2014 BBWAA Hall of Fame thread

[CubsFanBudMan]

No one jumps from 15 percent to in the next year. This process is tedious and illogical, but there are some predictable outcomes. Biggio reached a number that will convert others in an almost peer-pressure effect. It's all magic numbers and BS, and as I pointed out earlier, severely flawed at its core, especially the alleged elite status of "first ballot."

[mania]

I'dve cast votes for Maddux, Glavine, Thomas, Biggio... maybe Raines and Mussina. Maybe.

I think Mussina's a stronger candidate than Glavine. Tom stuck around to get 300 while Mussina retired after an excellent age 39 season. Had Mussina played to age 42, he'd almost assuredly have finished higher in the wins total.

Mussina's career ERA is a smidge higher, but he also played in far less hitter friendly confines for his career as well as not getting the 9 hitter off every game, so his adjustment is lower. Mussina had more elite seasons.

[Sport]

I will never support the Jack Morris Hall of Fame stuff. The dude pitched some gems in two World Series, including Game 4 in 1984 and obviously Game 7 from 1991 (he was also in the '92 Series in Toronto; don't remember how well he did), but the overall career body of work isn't there. ERA+ of 105 is not Hall worthy, by any stretch.

You and I disagree more often than not, but on this one I am in 100% agreement with you. Morris was a pretty good pitcher, he had a very solid career, and he was flat out dealing in those WS games, but he is not a HOF caliber pitcher.

On this year's class:

Greg Maddux is simply the greatest pitcher I've seen in my 40+ years of following baseball. If someone wanted to call him the best ever, I wouldn't argue about it. Tom Glavine was a no-brainer too.

If I'm a high school baseball coach I'm showing my kids tapes of Greg Maddux. The guy was an artisan. He didn't have close to the best stuff except maybe for his nasty sinker and he could work the changeup, but he made up for it with Xmen like control over his pitches. Nobody's been better at the craft or the science of pitching than Greg Maddux.

[TheOldRoman]

To me, it's almost a shame Greg Maddux didn't retire in maybe 2002 or 2003. I saw him pitch plenty of times in the postseason, but largely missed his regular season dominance because I primarily followed an AL team (and didn't have cable to see the Braves on TBS). My personal memories of Maddux are of the pudgy guy in too-tight pants putting up ERAs in the mid 4's. His Padres and Dodgers years, where he essentially became a mediocre innings-eater, would be fine for other guys, but they almost cheapen what he did through the dominant part of his career. He wasn't terrible, but Greg Maddux shouldn't have gone out being an innings-eater. One could say the same thing about Thomas, as he never again hit .300 after 2000. He realized his skills had slipped as he started dealing with injuries, so he sacrificed the average and swung for the fences more. But still, the essence of Frank - huge guy who hit the piss out of the ball- was the same to me. I could be way off base here, and I'm sure people who saw more of Maddux's prime think of that before they think of the tail-end of his career.