…if they gave anonymous, untalented hack bloggers a Hall vote.
The deadline for voting for the Baseball Hall of Fame’s 2007 class is Dec. 31. Some players eligible will be enshrined, others won’t. Here’s who I would vote for:
- Tony Gwynn: Like, duh. Gwynn, along with his American League counterpart Wade Boggs, are inextricably intertwined as the best pure hitters of their era. There’s no need to argue Gwynn’s case. His numbers do all the talking.
- Cal Ripken: Like, double duh. His 3,184 hits and 447 homers ensure his enshrinement. Oh, and that consecutive games played streak.
Other should-be enshrinees, in alphabetical order:
- Bert Blyleven: For the life of me, I can’t figure out why the Dutchman isn’t in the Hall. Why should voters love thee? Let me count the ways: 287 wins; career ERA+ of 118; top 10 in ERA 10 times; top 10 in WHIP 11 times; 13th all-time in innings pitched; 3,701 strikeouts, good for fifth (fifth!) all time; and a career K/BB ratio of 2.8. Naysayers may point to his 250 losses or his penchant for the long ball. But let’s take a look at the strikeouts. Of the four men ahead of him on the all-time list, two are in the Hall and two will be. Of the next 11 men after him, eight are in and one (Maddux) certainly will be; the others (Schilling, Martinez) merit consideration. Of course, the win is a highly imperfect measure, but you don’t pile up 287 by accident. And if you are a believer in Baseball-Reference’s comps, eight of Blyleven’s 10 most similar players are in the Hall. Come on, baseball writers… vote him in. Don’t fuck this fucking thing up.
- Andre Dawson: If players such as Billy Williams and Dave Winfield, both fine players, are in, there’s no reason that Hawk should be out. Plus, there’s that whole (undeserved) 1987 NL MVP award.
- Rich Gossage: When it was announced last year that old friend Bruce Sutter made the Hall, I tried to make a case for the Goose’s inclusion. My feelings haven’t changed. During nine seasons, Gossage played Harlem Globetrotters to the rest of the league’s Washington Generals. He straight-up housed opposing hitters. From the mid-1970s to the mid-1980s, he was the most lethal reliever in the major leagues. Just check his ERA+ from those years, and you’ll see what I mean. Honestly, I think it’s kind of a shame that Sutter made the Hall before the Goose.
- Jim Rice: I’m not against enshrining Rice, but if it’ll get Dan Shaughnessy to shut up, then I’m all for it.
You might notice a certain well-muscled yet gutless slugger absent from this list. Since he’s not willing to talk about his past, I’m not either.
January 13, 2007 at 8:56 pm
I am an editor currently in the process of compiling several “Best of the Blogsphere” books:
-General Humor
-Sports
-Conservative Writing (serious and satirical)
-Left-Wing Writing (serious and satirical)
-Entertainment/Pop Culture/etc.
Qualifications:
1) Writings that have more than a fleeting value; can you read the entry six months later with the same effect?
2) Blog entries must have actually been written in a blog that has been kept for a reasonable amount of time and has a reasonable following.
3) Writings must be accessible to a broad audience. No unexplained inside jokes, or things that only your select audience would find value in.
4) Writings must be under 1,500 words; the pithier the better.
5) Writings must not infringe copyrights in any way, shape, or form.
If you have something that you wish to be considered for Best of the Blogsphere, please send an email with a) your actual name, b) a permalink to the blog entry(-ies) you would like to enter for consideration, and c) the estimated number of regular readers your blog has to the e-mail listed (bestofblogsphere -at- yahoo.com for the lazy). DO NOT SEND ATTACHMENTS, TEXT ONLY. WE DO NOT CARE ABOUT YOUR RESUME, ONLY YOUR WRITING. If we wish to include you in the book, we will be in contact with you about a contract, possible edits, etc.
The compensation for this is a fair percentage of any profits the book brings in. At this time, we cannot promise a free copy of the book to everyone who contributes, but that is a likely possibility as well. Since you are doing no additional work aside from sending an e-mail with a link, this should not be a problem.
We strongly believe that the blogsphere has so much to offer the literary world, much more than the mainstream media can actually comprehend. Yet, we understand the economic realities that prevent most bloggers from having remotely successful books in their own right. BEST OF THE BLOGSPHERE is our attempt to try and get the best writings out there to the general public and get some seriously good writers some notice.
Be a part of something that boosts the reputation of the blogsphere, and make sure you spread the word to all your blogger friends!