My All-Time Hall of Fame Ballot

The baseball Hall of Fame voting results will be announced tomorrow, and it's one of the relatively more interesting ballots in history, with a pretty massive crop of players who--purely on the numbers--would be clearly deserving of enshrinement (Barry Bonds, Roger Clemens, Mike Piazza, Curt Schilling, Craig Biggio, and Sammy Sosa). Accordingly, 'tis the season for people to say who they'd vote for of this year's ballot. Just for fun, however, I thought I'd try to do something a bit larger in scope, and figure out how I would go about filling in a baseball Hall of Fame of approximately the size of the current one from scratch, i.e. not considering myself bound to include players who have already been inducted. Overall I found 216 players worthy of inclusion, compared to the 205 currently in the Hall, but the difference can be explained by my inclusion of players not yet eligible, either because they've been retired less than five years or because they're still playing. (Note that I'm not dealing with the whole Negro League thing, not obviously because I disapprove of including Negro Leaguers in the Hall but because I don't have access to the relevant evidence to make a comprehensive analysis of those players, so they're not included in that 205.) For a few of those still-active players, I'm sort of assuming that they'll have a couple more years at basically their usual level of production; I'll note those players with an asterisk as they come along. I will also note, at each position, the players in the actual Hall of Fame that I'm excluding, the already-elligible players not in the real Hall that I am including, and any player not yet elligible that I'm including. Also note that I basically took the attitude of including everyone and anyone, regardless of potential misdeeds. Thus, I present my all-time Hall of Fame ballot.


Catchers
Bill Dickey, NYY; Buck Ewing, NYG; Carlton Fisk, BOS; Gabby Hartnett, CHC; Gary Carter, MON; Gene Tenace, OAK; Ivan Rodriguez, TEX; Joe Mauer,* MIN; Joe Torre, MLN; Johnny Bench, CIN; Mickey Cochrane, PHA; Mike Piazza, NYM; Roger Bresnahan, NYG; Roy Campanella, BRO; Ted Simmons, STL; Yogi Berra, NYY.

Not included from the real Hall: Ernie Lombardi, Ray Schalk, Rick Ferrell, of whom Lombardi is the only close case.
Included but not in the real Hall: Gene Tenace, Joe Torre, Ted Simmons
Included but not yet elligible: Ivan Rodriguez, Mike Piazza
Not quite there yet: Joe Mauer, who I think will pretty clearly merit inclusion with even a moderate reduction in his production over the length of his current contract.
Notes: Tenace and Simmons, and Torre actually, seem wildly underrated to me.

First Basemen
Albert Pujols, STL; Cap Anson, CHC; Dan Brouthers, BUF; Eddie Murray, BAL; Fred McGriff, TOR; George Sisler, SLB; Hank Greenberg, DET; Jeff Bagwell, HOU; Jim Thome, CLE; Jimmie Foxx, PHA; Johnny Mize, STL; Keith Hernandez, NYM; Lou Gehrig, NYY; Mark McGwire, STL; Rafael Palmeiro, TEX; Roger Connor, NYG; Todd Helton, COL; Willie McCovey, SFG; Frank Chance, CHC; Bill Terry, NYG.

Not included from the real Hall: George Kelly, Jake Beckley, Jim Bottomley, Orlando Cepeda, Tony Perez.
Included but not in the real Hall: Fred McGriff, Jeff Bagwell, Keith Hernandez, Mark McGwire, Rafael Palmeiro.
Included but not yet elligible: Albert Pujols, Jim Thome, Todd Helton.
Notes: Pujols is not a "not quite there yet," because if he retired this winter he'd be a clear Hall of Famer. Keith Hernandez had probably the lowest overall career production of any of these players, but he's on the borderline and because he was revolutionarily good at playing first base in the field, I think he does merit inclusion.

Second Basemen
Bobby Grich, LAA; Charlie Gehringer, DET; Chase Utley*, PHI; Craig Biggio, HOU; Eddie Collins, PHA; Frankie Frisch, NYG; Jackie Robinson, BRO; Joe Gordon, NYY; Joe Morgan, CIN; Lou Whitaker, DET; Nap Lajoie, CLE; Roberto Alomar, TOR; Rod Carew, MIN; Rogers Hornsby, STL; Ryne Sandberg, CHC; Johnny Evers, CHC; Bobby Doerr, BOS; Tony Lazzeri, NYY.

Not included from the real Hall: Bid McPhee, Bill Mazeroski, Billy Herman, Nellie Fox, Red Schoendienst.
Included but not in the real Hall: Bobby Grich, Lou Whitaker.
Included but not yet elligible: Craig Biggio.
Not quite there yet: Chase Utley, whose production would need to crater for him not to end up deserving inclusion.
Notes: That Bobby Grich is not in the real Hall, and in fact didn't even make the 5% cutoff for staying on the ballot his first year, is just plain ridiculous.

Shortstops
Alan Trammell, DET; Arky Vaughan, PIT; Barry Larkin, CIN; Bill Dahlen, CHC; Cal Ripken, BAL; Derek Jeter, NYY; Ernie Banks, CHC; George Davis, NYG; Honus Wagner, PIT; Joe Cronin, BOS; Joe Tinker, CHC; Lou Boudreau, CLE; Luke Appling, CHW; Ozzie Smith, STL; Pee Wee Reese, BRO; Robin Yount, MIL; Luis Aparicio, CHW; Bobby Wallace, SLB.

Not included from the real Hall: Dave Bancroft, Hugh Jennings, Joe Sewell, John Ward, Phil Rizzuto, Rabbit Maranville, Travis Jackson.
Included but not in the real Hall: Alan Trammell, Bill Dahlen.
Included but not yet elligible: Derek Jeter.
Notes: Guys like Jimmy Rollins or Jose Reyes could potentially merit inclusion on this list by the time they're done, but they're not as close to having demonstrated their worth as the people in my "not quite there yet" category.

Third Basemen
Adrian Beltre*, TEX; Alex Rodriguez, NYY; Brooks Robinson, BAL; Chipper Jones, ATL; Dick Allen, PHI; Eddie Mathews, MLN; George Brett, KCR; Harmon Killebrew, MIN; Miguel Cabrera*, DET; Mike Schmidt, PHI; Paul Molitor, MIL; Pete Rose, CIN; Ron Santo, CHC; Scott Rolen, STL; Wade Boggs, BOS; Frank 'Home Run' Baker, PHA.

Not included from the real Hall: Freddie Lindstrom, George Kell, Jimmy Collins, Pie Traynor.
Included but not in the real Hall: Dick Allen, Pete Rose (though not on the merits).
Included but not yet elligible: Alex Rodriguez, Chipper Jones, Scott Rolen
Not quite there yet: Adrian Beltre, Miguel Cabrera, with Cabrera having farther to go but also being a much better player, and thus more likely to get there.
Notes: Since third base is a relatively scarce position, I've included a few players here who spent substantial time at other positions as well, such as Killebrew, who's in the real Hall as a first baseman, and Molitor, who was more a DH than a third baseman. I honestly don't get how Dick Allen is not in the Hall of Fame.

Left Fielders
Al Simmons, PHA; Barry Bonds, SFG; Billy Williams, CHC; Carl Yastrzemski, BOS; Ed Delahanty, PHI; Fred Clarke, PIT; Goose Goslin, WSH; Jesse Burkett, CLV; Joe Jackson, CHW; Joe Medwick, STL; Lou Brock, STL; Manny Ramirez, BOS; Ralph Kiner, PIT; Rickey Henderson, OAK; Sherry Magee, PHI; Stan Musial, STL; Ted Williams, BOS; Tim Raines, MON; Willie Stargell, PIT; Zack Wheat, BRO.

Not included from the real Hall: Chick Hafey, Heinie Manush, Jim O'Rourke, Jim Rice, Joe Kelley.
Included but not in the real Hall: Joe Jackson, Sherry Magee, Tim Raines.
Included but not yet elligible: Barry Bonds, Manny Ramirez.
Notes: Lou Brock is the greatest beneficiary of the blanket inclusion of all 3000-hit players, as he only has ~11 Wins Above Average for his career, with the typical borderline player being in the mid-30s. I've called Musial and Stargell left fielders because first base is overcrowded as it is.

Center Fielders
Andre Dawson, MON; Andruw Jones, ATL; Billy Hamilton, PHI; Carlos Beltran,* NYM; Duke Snider, BRO; Earl Averill, CLE; Hack Wilson, CHC; Jim Edmonds, STL; Joe DiMaggio, NYY; Ken Griffey, Jr., SEA; Kirby Puckett, MIN; Larry Doby, CLE; Max Carey, PIT; Mickey Mantle, NYY; Reggie Smith, LAD; Richie Ashburn, PHI; Tris Speaker, CLE; Ty Cobb, DET.

Not included from the real Hall: Earle Combs, Edd Roush, Hugh Duffy, Lloyd Waner.
Included but not in the real Hall: Reggie Smith
Included but not yet elligible: Andruw Jones, Jim Edmonds, Ken Griffey.
Not quite there yet: Carlos Beltran, who's borderline right now but with another couple of decent years will be clearly deserving.
Notes: I've got Dawson as a center fielder, while the real Hall has him in right field. Whether Andruw Jones deserves it is entirely dependent on whether you believe in his defense being as insanely good as the metrics think it was. Kirby Puckett is being given implicit credit for a bunch of years he never played due to his illness.

Right Fielders
Al Kaline, DET; Babe Ruth, NYY; Dave Winfield, SDP; Elmer Flick, CLE; Enos Slaughter, STL; Frank Robinson, BAL; Gary Sheffield, FLA; Hank Aaron, MLN; Harry Heilmann, DET; Ichiro Suzuki, SEA; Larry Walker, COL; Mel Ott, NYG; Paul Waner, PIT; Reggie Jackson, OAK; Roberto Clemente, PIT; Sam Crawford, DET; Sam Rice, WSH; Sammy Sosa, CHC; Tony Gwynn, SDP; Vladimir Guerrero, MON.

Not included from the real Hall: Chuck Klein, Harry Hooper, Kiki Cuyler, King Kelly, Ross Young, Sam Thompson, Tommy McCarthy, Willie Keeler, of whom only Klein is a close case, I think.
Included but not in the real Hall: Larry Walker
Included but not yet elligible: Gary Sheffield, Ichiro Suzuki, Sammy Sosa, Vladimir Guerrero
Notes: Ichiro and Vlad are not retired yet, but I think in both cases are already worthy, regardless of future production or the lack thereof. That's a bit complicated in Ichiro's case, but I think it makes sense to give him some consideration for the circumstances of his not being in the Major Leagues for the first decade of his career. Sheffield is one of those cases where you really need to have no penalty whatsoever for steroid stuff for him to get in, along with probably only McGwire of the people I've included, and maybe also Sosa.

Designated Hitters
Edgar Martinez, SEA; Frank Thomas, CHW.

Martinez is on the ballot but has not yet been inducted; Thomas isn't elligible yet. If David Ortiz can manage to get to 500 home runs, which I think is quite likely, I will consider him worthy of induction as well, but not if he doesn't: like Lou Brock, he's dependent on blanket inclusion through the counting stats.

Starting Pitchers
Addie Joss, CLE; Al Spalding, BSA; Amos Rusie, NYG; Bert Blyleven, MIN; Bob Caruthers, STL; Bob Feller, CLE; Bob Gibson, STL; Carl Hubbell, NYG; Charlie 'Old Hoss' Radbourne, PRO; Christy Mathewson, NYG; Curt Schilling, ARI; Cy Young, CLV; Dazzy Vance, BRO; Don Drysdale, LAD; Don Sutton, LAD; Early Wynn, CLE; Ed Walsh, CHW; Eddie Plank, PHA; Fergie Jenkins, CHC; Gaylord Perry, SFG; Greg Maddux, ATL; Hal Newhouser, DET; Jim McCormick, CLV; Jim Palmer, BAL; John Clarkson, CHC; John Smoltz, ATL; John Ward, PRO; Juan Marichal, SFG; Kevin Brown, FLA; Kid Nichols, BSN; Lefty Gomez, NYY; Lefty Grove, PHA; Mickey Welch, SFG; Mike Mussina, BAL; Mordecai Brown, CHC; Nolan Ryan, CAL; Pedro Martinez, BOS; Pete Alexander, PHI; Phil Niekro, ATL; Pud Galvin, BUF; Randy Johnson, ARI; Robin Roberts, PHI; Roger Clemens, BOS; Roy Halladay, PHI; Rube Waddell, PHA; Sandy Koufax, LAD; Silver King, STL; Stan Coveleski, CLE; Steve Carlton, PHI; Tim Hudson,* OAK; Tim Keefe, SFG; Tom Glavine, ATL; Tom Seaver, NYM; Tony Mullane, CIN; Walter Johnson, WSH; Warren Spahn, MLN; Whitey Ford, NYY.

Not included from the real Hall: Bob Lemon, Burleigh Grimes, Catfish Hunter, Chief Bender, Dizzy Dean, Eppa Rixey, Herb Pennock, Jack Chesbro, Jesse Haines, Jim Bunning, Joe McGinnity, Red Faber, Red Ruffing, Rube Marquad, Ted Lyons, Vic Willis, Waite Hoyt.
Included but not in the real Hall: Al Spalding, Bob Caruthers, Jim McCormick, John Ward, Kevin Brown, Silver King, Tony Mullane.
Included but not yet elligible: Curt Schilling, Greg Maddux, John Smoltz, Mike Mussina, Pedro Martinez, Randy Johnson, Roger Clemens, Roy Halladay, Tom Glavine.
Not quite there yet: Tim Hudson.
Notes: I can't believe that Kevin Brown got 2.1% in his first and only year of elligibility. Halladay made the transition from "not quite there yet" to "not elligible yet" a couple of years ago, arguably on the day he didn't allow a hit in his first post-season start ever. John 'Monte' Ward is included sort of as a multi-way player, with his ~60 career Wins Above Replacement split between hitting and pitching, as well as a bit of a career as a manager. Tim Hudson is maybe the "not quite there yet" player I have the least confidence in actually to get there over the next decade. Justin Verlander's a pretty good prospect to get on this list soon. Johan Santana would be in the "not quite there yet" category except for how little confidence one can have in his future production at this point; if he resumes pitching well for another several years, he'll be a real contender again.

Relief Pitchers
Billy Wagner, HOU; Bruce Sutter, CHC; Dennis Eckersley, OAK; Goose Gossage, NYY; Hoyt Wilhelm, CHW; John Franco, NYM; Lee Smith, CHC; Mariano Rivera, NYY; Rollie Fingers, MIL; Trevor Hoffman, SDP.

Not included from the real Hall: none.
Included but not in the real Hall: John Franco, Lee Smith.
Included but not yet elligible: Billy Wagner, Mariano Rivera, Trevor Hoffman.
Notes: It's insane that Lee Smith isn't going to get in, assuming he doesn't get in, and it's just as insane that Franco got less than 5% in his first year of elligibility. Basically the Hall should respect relief pitching more than it does.


One thing I noticed as I went through that list was that an awful lot of the "not yet elligibles" are up for consideration in the class of 2013, i.e. the ballot that'll be announced tomorrow. It should be an interesting day, and presumably we'll all have plenty to be outraged about.