Which 3B Belong in the Hall of Fame?

[sweaver]

I won't offer any names to start this time, let's start from zero.

[Soapy]

I won't offer any names to start this time, let's start from zero.

Schmidt, Brett, Jimmy Collins, Brooks, Eddie Mathews, Pie TraynorBaker, Santo, Molitor, Hack, Rosen, Bando.

Kevin

[Ytown Tribe fan]

Ten for the Hall:

Home Run Baker, Wade Boggs, George Brett, Darrell Evans, Stan Hack, Eddie Mathews, Paul Molitor, Brooks Robinson, Ron Santo, Mike Schmidt.

[LeGrandOrange]

My way too big hall of fame can manage to induct 25*...it was overkill when I figured these guys out a few days ago, and I am really burned out because of it, but I still think I did logically.

*I'm including two DH selections in my list of 3B's for organization's sake.

MLB players who should be in:
Eddie Mathews
Mike Schmidt
Wade Boggs
George Brett
Paul Molitor
Edgar Martinez
John McGraw
Stan Hack
Frank Baker
Denny Lyons
Bill Joyce (I lied...)
Toby Harrah
Bob Elliott
Darrell Evans
Ron Santo
Pie Traynor
Sal Bando
Harlond Clift
Deacon White
Heine Groh
Brooks Robinson
Chipper Jones

Negro Leaguers who should be in:
Ray Dandridge
Judy Johnson
Jud Wilson

Counting amendments I have done privately, this is over 100 guys I've suggested. I'm overdoing this SERIOUSLY badly...

[sweaver]

When we've gone through all the positions, I'm gonna ask you all to go back and review the thread about how many should be in the Hall.....

I think 3B is the position with the fewest deserving players. I'm not sure exactly why this is.

[LeGrandOrange]

I was fairly surprised that when I analyzed the numbers that I COULD put this many 3B in my hall. I stand by having 25 though...it fits into my bloated standards for my Hall.

[JamesI]

Brooks, Brett, Eddie Mathews, Schmidt, Boggs, Santo, Home Run Baker, Traynor

No actives seem likely to make it or they are too young to fairly judge.

[Wolf Hopper]

Man, Puff gets no respect here!

Gold Glove "D" - led the league in HRs - played on a WS champ and had a huge impact in a Series (ask LaSorda) - - plus, this:


AMERICAN LEAGUE
CAREER
3B

HOMERUNS HR
1 Graig Nettles 321
2 Gary Gaetti 292
3 Brooks Robinson 268
4 Dean Palmer 264
5 Sal Bando 242
6 Doug DeCinces 237
7 George Brett 209
8 Robin Ventura 198
9 Al Rosen 192
10 Harmon Killebrew 182

Shame on ya'll!

[Wolf Hopper]

Let's give some consideration to Ron Cey as well - - -

CAREER
3B
PLATE APPEARANCES >= 8000
OPS >= .03 vs. the league average

OWP OWP PA OPS
1 Eddie Mathews .709 9718 .153
2 Mike Schmidt .687 9417 .187
3 Wade Boggs .666 10359 .116
4 Stan Hack .628 8435 .063
5 Ron Santo .598 8979 .121
6 Sal Bando .597 8288 .056
7 Ron Cey .587 8214 .080
8 Graig Nettles .537 9878 .038
9 Buddy Bell .531 9414 .034
10 Pie Traynor .530 8237 .036

[Skip]

Let's give some consideration to Ron Cey as wellNo. HOF? Kidding?

[Jim Rice]

In order:

Schmidt, Brett, Mathews, Robinson, Boggs, Santo, Baker, Collins, Traynor, Boyer, Elliott, Evans, Hack, Nettles.

Just missed: McGraw, Bell, Lyons, Bando.

I will defer to experts on the Negro Leaguers; they're not my specialty.

[sweaver]

Here's my list.

The inner circle: Wade Boggs, George Brett, Eddie Mathews, Ron Santo, Mike Schmidt.

The second tier: Buddy Bell, Ken Boyer, Darrell Evans, Graig Nettles, Brooks Robinson.

Actives: Robin Ventura in, Matt Williams out. Chipper Jones will push his way in here in a year or two, but will likely be classed an outfielder by the time he retires.

On the bubble: Ron Cey, Bob Elliott, Stan Hack. I would tend to say no, but since I have a shortage of older third basemen I should probably take both Hack and Deacon White, as well as Jimmy Collins and Frank (Home Run) Baker. Ah, heck, I'll take Cey and Elliott too. Makes a total of 17, including Ventura.

Guys IN that I would throw OUT (pass the crowbar): George Kell, Freddy Lindstrom, Pie Traynor.

Among Negro Leaguers, Ray Dandridge and Judy Johnson would certainly be qualified.

[Wolf Hopper]

No. HOF? Kidding?

Cey is just a notch below Santo, no?

[sweaver]

A couple notches, but Cey is in the grey area.

[Skip]

Cey is better than my first reaction/memories/anti-Dodger bias gave me to believe, but he's still not HOF.

[JamesI]

Neither Cey or Nettles are hall of famers.

I neglegted Chipper Jones, he probably will be when he's done.

[sweaver]

I'll give you Cey, if you like, but Nettles should be in the Hall. The combo of defense and power is just what a top-notch 3B should be. It's a strange position, somewhere between the offensive and defensive ends of the spectrum.

[LeGrandOrange]

Nettles shares my birthday and I half considered putting him in for that reason, but I don't buy him as a HOF'er. He strikes me as Brooks Robinson with less of a glove, and with less of a glove he is not a hall of famer. Ergo, neither is Nettles.
I was exceptionally close to putting Cey on my list, but he missed by a ridiculously small margin. He is one of the first guys I will add if I change my mind someplace else...or here for that matter.

[sweaver]

OK, making the Nettles case for the Hall of Fame......

He was a top-notch defensive third baseman. He only won two Gold Gloves, but that was partly because the voters tend to get in a habit of giving one guy the award, and that was Brooks Robinson, even when Brooks had gotten old and wasn't playing every day. Then Aurelio Rodriguez won one. Rodriguez could really field, but this was a consolation prize. Then Nettles won his, 1977-78, and then Buddy Bell took over the franchise. Nettles could have won 10, but the voters didn't see it that way.

Nettles also hit 390 homers in his career. As Wolf pointed out, he has the AL record with 321. His career average was just .248, which is why he'll never be elected, but he had 2225 hits and 1088 walks, and ended up with a .329 OBP and a .421 SLG. His career OPS+ was 110. Ken Boyer's was 116. Brooks Robinson's was 104. Buddy Bell's was 108.

Pie Traynor's was 107. Jimmy Collins was 113.

How much better than those guys does Nettles have to be?

[JamesI]

Nettles also hit 390 homers in his career. As Wolf pointed out, he has the AL record with 321. His career average was just .248, which is why he'll never be elected, but he had 2225 hits and 1088 walks, and ended up with a .329 OBP and a .421 SLG. His career OPS+ was 110. Ken Boyer's was 116. Brooks Robinson's was 104. Buddy Bell's was 108.

Pie Traynor's was 107. Jimmy Collins was 113.

How much better than those guys does Nettles have to be?

Ok, maybe he was better than Traynor, but I consider Traynor borderline anyway.

Nettles had good power, but so does Matt Williams. HE may be more deserving than Boyer or Bell, but that does not make him a hall of famer. I say he's close, but out.

[sweaver]

For comparison's sake, Williams' career OPS+ is 113. But he wasn't the defensive player Nettles was.

[SmedIndy]

I'm split on Nettles - but no Cey.

[huskerdru]

No actives seem likely to make it or they are too young to fairly judge.

I agree, however if any active is building a really good case, I'd have to say Scott Rolen. His glove has always been the best around (of his contemporaries...not of all time :D ), and his offense appears to be really shaping up now that he's in St. Louie.

Chipper certainly has the offense, but a subpar glove and move to LF will complicate things.

[KCBOOMER]

Not many 3B's stand out to be HoFers. Mathews, Schmidt, Brett, Baker, Dandridge, and JOhnson amongst the currently enshrined. The ought to be's are Santo and Hack. Since I didn't vote for Ozzie I can't vore for Brooks.

Boggs is a definite when the vote comes around to him.

Chipper will depend on whether he is considered a 3B or an OF put he is on course to make but has a lot of work to do.

[JamesI]

I would love for someone to explain how Brooks Robinson (or Ozzie Smith for that matter) could possibly not be hall of famers.