A quick google search for "worst player in the baseball hall of fame" returns a few possible candidates. Curt Flood's impact on the game is vastly more important than many of these players and certainly no less important. So if we are not going to let Curt Flood into the Hall, here are some people we should probably kick out.
Tommy McCarthy
With apologies to the McCarthy family and McCarthyism enthusiasts of all shapes and sizes, it's hard to argue with Bill James' assessment that Tommy McCarthy's inclusion into t
he 1946 HOF class makes him the worst player in Cooperstown. Apparently America's obsession with McCarthyism predates Senator Joe's black list of suspected Commies unleashed in 1950. According to baseball reference, McCarthy (the baseball player, not the Red Scare fueling Senator) had a lifetime .292 average with 468 steals over a thirteen year career. His peak season of 1890 included a solid .350BA and 83 steals, carving a niche out as a precursor to a poor man's Vince Coleman. Seeing as though Vince Coleman isn't in the HOF, a player with lessor accomplishments shouldn't either. On pure stats, McCarthy shouldn't be in. Bill James' cites McCarthy's addition of the hit-n-run and batter to base runner as to why he was held in such high esteem. That's fine. I have no problem rewarding those who come up with new ideas and challenge the conventional thinking. However, if you are going to consider factors outside of statistics, Curt Flood's absence in the HOF is comical. His courage to challenge the owners, risking his name and marketability, singlehandedly created free agency, changed the game forever. For that simple reason, he should be in the Hall.
Final interesting note: Flood's career BA is .293, .001 better than McCarthy's.
No comments:
Post a Comment