Instant Hall of Fame
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by user The Widening Geier
Am I the only one who is getting tired of the media tendency to overhype potential and short-term success into superstardom and a place in Cooperstown?
The real impetus for my opinion is Mike Lupica's recent Daily News article, wherein he posits that the subject of who has a better SS and 3B in New York is up for debate. Now I am admittedly and unabashedly a Yankee fan, but also consider myself to be fairly unbiased when it comes to facts. (intangibles being just that) I will admit that you can certainly make convincing arguements of some aspects of this debate; whether David Wright is having a better season than A-rod so far (yes), whether Reyes and Wright have been more effective than their Bronx counterparts (maybe), and who between the Yankees or Mets can expect a better second half from their stars. What I can't take is the ridiculous assertion that Wright and Reyes are better ballplayers than A-Rod and Jeter, or that teams would much rather have the Met duo than the Yankees players.
I believe that people are letting a great first-half on an overachieving Mets squad by Wright and Reyes blind them to the great last 10 years by Jeter and A-Rod. Seriously, lets check the black and white numbers. Take names out of the equation and tell me what GM isn't picking Jeter and Alex. No knock on the outstanding first halves, but lets call them what they are, 81 great games.
Put it another way:
Shaun Alexander or Ronnie Brown
Chris Paul or Jason Kidd
Sidney Crosby or Jaromir Jagr
Sure contracts and age play a role in some of these discussions, but on a purely skills-related basis you have to take proven performance over strong starts and potential. I think at the very least you have to wait a few years to ensure that half a season worth of play is really as indicative as it appears to be.
Date
Mon 07/10/06, 11:21 am EST
