Edit2Eat wrote:
I don't know about you all, but I'm of an age to have been a big fan of several of the lesser (non-Gwynn or Ripken) first-year nominees on this year's HOF ballot, even though they're no-hopers for sticking around for a second year (except for Canseco, likely). Who's your favorite?
Bobby Bonilla
Jay Buhner
Dante Bichette
Scott Brosius
Jose Canseco
Eric Davis
Tony Fernandez
Wally Joyner
Paul O'Neill
Bret Saberhagen
Devon White
Bobby Witt
I have to say that Tony Fernandez was my favorite on the early 90s Toronto teams, and Saberhagen led the Royals to the World Series at a time before expansion diluted the league so much.
Bonilla doesn't merit serious HOF discussion, and neither do Brosius, Davis, Joyner, Witt, O'Neill, Fernandez or Bichette (any Rockies player is unfortunately going to have to prove himself outside of Coors Lite to merit serious HOF consideration).
In my mind I hesitated on denying White because I remembered him as a solid offensive and defensive contributor to championship teams, and he was that. But I just checked his career stats--208 HR, 1,934 hits, .263 BA--and saw they fall well short of HOF level.
Saberhagen, too, I felt could have been HOF material if he hadn't got hurt. And the Mets portion of his career was a disaster. But I guess he was never the same after the injury. I lost a lot of respect for him after he aimed a water gun at reporters in the clubhouse (the gun was filled with bleach) and sprayed them with it. Still, pretty good lifetime numbers: 167-117, 3.34 ERA, not dissimilar to Ron Guidry's 170-91, 3.29 ERA, and two Cy Youngs to Guidry's one.
Buhner, too, was an exceptionally good right fielder and hitter, but not HOF material. At .254-310-965, his lifetime numbers are alarmingly Mickey Tettleton-like (.251-245-732). No one's going to be enshrining Mr. Froot Loops anytime soon.