Mark McGwire Hall of Fame?
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by user Josh Q. Public
Josh Q. Public: I set that place up on fire, as they came out, batted their heads like I was Mark McGwire. I’m in the darkness.
Public Service Announcement:
OK, here we go. We all know. We all know by now Big Mac tops the list of first-time Hall of Fame candidates on the 2007 ballot. We all know by now this is a precedent setting vote. We all know this year’s voters are going to be put under the microscope more than ever before. They will be under the microscope now that the first cat from the steroid era stands before St. Peter awaiting judgment. Awaiting judgment for entrance through the Pearly Gates. Does Joe Cowley get to vote? Let’s hope not. Anyway. Big Mac. In or out? It’s a tough one. Our guts say absofrickalutely not! It’s not that easy folks. Let’s look at this rationally, by the book. Shall we?
Voting shall be based upon:
1. The player’s record
Ok, let’s have a look. His flashy career home-run total stands out there. 583, seventh overall. His career slugging percentage, .588 ranks 10th all time. American League’s Rookie of the Year in 1987. Proving he can flash the leather a little bit: One Gold Glove at first base. 12-time All-Star. Three Silver Slugger Awards. Here’s a stat for you: Career Leaders for At Bats per Home Run. Big Mac ranks first. Ahead of Ruth. Ahead of Bonds. We’re all aware of the number 70. As in the first player in major-league history to hit 70 bombs in one season. And there you have it. A big bopper with a decent glove. That’s what it comes down to. Make no mistakes. Mark McGwire was a top tier player. There were plenty of top tier players during his era. A lot of those cats played at a higher level for longer period of time than he did. The only thing that set McGwire apart was his proficiency for the long ball. That didn’t help Dave Kingman. I’m here to tell you Don Mattingly, Jim Rice, and Steve Garvey belong in the Hall long before Big Mac. But going by player’s record alone, McGuire deserves serious consideration.
2. Integrity, Sportsmanship and Character
This is where it all gets kooky. What does all that mean? Was Ty Cobb a good sportsman? Was Wade Boggs a man of good character? See Margo Adams. Did everybody’s favorite player, the jolly Kirby Puckett show integrity when he was pissing in parking lots, or worse, tried to strangle his wife with an electrical cord, locked her in the basement and used a power saw to cut through a door after she had locked herself in a room? Once, she said, he even put a cocked gun to her head while she was holding their young daughter. What are we really saying? Is the question did he cheat or not? Is that it? If it is, we need to consider some things. Whitey Ford, Don Sutton, Rollie Fingers and Gaylord Perry cheated by scuffing balls. George Brett used an awful lot of pine tar. Willie Stargell blew coke before games. The Say Hey Kid and The Hammer took speed before games. The Babe used a corked bat. Richie Ashburn sculpted the third base line to ensure his expertise at dropping dying bunts up that line didn’t bump into foul territory. To be fair, Big Mac never tested positive for steroid use. Andro was not a banned substance. Sure his head grew bigger than Jason Kidd’s son’s, but still. During his playing days, Major League Baseball did not have policies and testing procedures to discourage steroid abuse. Like Big Bad Buster Olney always says: “The only real difference between McGwire and many of his baseball superstar peers is that it was McGwire who got the subpoena for the March 17, 2005 congressional hearing, and they didn’t. Imagine if Superstar X, or Superstar Y, or Superstar Z had gotten that subpoena, instead of McGwire. Those guys would have been hemming and hawing and giving the same non-answers that McGwire and Sosa did. So I’m supposed to withhold my vote on some guys I suspect of using steroids, but not all of them? How do I do that, in good conscience? Because I think I probably know who took steroids?” And know this, if you refuse McGwire due to integrity, sportsmanship and character, be prepared to refuse Bonds and the Rocket.
3. Contributions to the team(s) on which the player played
For everything Big Mac was, I’ll tell you what he was not. He was not a team leader. He was not respected by his teammates. He was not big game player. In the postseason he batted just .217 with five homers and 14 RBIs in 42 games. His World Series batting average is .188.
Based on the speculation of steroid use, my gut says no way does this guy get in. However, that is not the reason he should be kept out. He should be kept out because his play on the field does not merit induction. Period.
Peace out homies. Six Two and Even! josh q. public
