Voting for the 2019 class of the National Baseball Hall of
Fame is due shortly. As always, there will be much debate over who should and
shouldn’t get in, and a wheelbarrow load of whys. Contributing to this muck and
mire is the following discussion of a player who is sure to get some votes, but
equally certain to not receive nearly enough to reach enshrinement status—but deserves
much more consideration. That player is former first baseman Fred
McGriff.
The Crime Dog had an exemplary 19-year (1986-2004) major
league career with six different teams. During that time he hit .284 with 493
home runs, 1,550 RBIs and 2,490 base hits. He has a career WAR of 52.6,
although that number is negatively impacted by his not so stellar work with the
glove, which resulted in a -17.3 dWAR according to Baseball Reference.com. With
his top-two career comparisons being Willie
McCovey and Willie
Stargell, he is in great company with an impressive resume. However, about
to be on the ballot for a 10th year, he has consistently polled low,
always receiving between 11.7 and 23.9 percent of the votes the previous nine
years (including 21.5% in 2018).
Upon taking a closer look it appears that McGriff has been
victimized by having a resume that is every bit as good as a Hall of Famer’s
should be, but one that is not as straightforward as many like to see when
considering their candidates.
McGriff has all the numbers, yet is at the same time being
downgraded because of them. Statistically, he is a top-100 player of all time in
just about every important offensive category. With 323 people having been
previously inducted into the Hall of Fame, one would think that makes him a
very strong candidate. However he fell just short of the magical 500 home run
threshold; didn’t reach 3,000 hits (fell just shy of 2,500); and only led the
league in a major statistical category twice (home runs in 1989 and 1992).
He was also “only” a six-time All Star and never won any
major awards (Save the 1994 All Star MVP). However, he had six top-10 MVP
finishes, including four times when he didn’t even make the All Star team those
years.
McGriff was remarkably consistent with no major outlier
seasons. Between 1987 and 2002, during which time he was a regular player, with
the exception of two years his OPS+ was between 119 and 165. At a time that is
widely considered to be a golden age for first basemen, he was often lost in
the pack because his calling card was being consistently very, very good for a
long period of time and not occasionally the best.
The nomadic nature of his career has also almost certainly
contributed to his lack of Hall of Fame support. He moved around quite a bit
for a player of his caliber and toiled for the majority of his career for
smaller market teams like the Toronto Blue Jays, San Diego Padres and Tampa Bay
Devil Rays. His biggest star turn came in 1993-1997 where he starred for the Atlanta
Braves, who won their division each year with him anchoring their offense. He
never stayed more than five years with any one team (five-year stints with both
the Blue Jays and Braves) and was not consistently on the main stage for much
of his career, like so many others with Cooperstown aspirations.
Although it is not often mentioned, he actually raised his
game in the playoffs. His teams made five post seasons, including two World
Series appearances (one win with the 1995 Braves), during which time he hit
.303 with 10 home runs and 37 RBIs in 50 postseason games.
Advanced metrics say McGriff wasn’t a gifted or nimble
fielder, but the counting stats show him top-12 all time in assists, putouts
and double plays turned. Defense may not be an element that can be used as a
proactive argument for his Hall of Fame case, but neither is it something that
should demonstrably detract from his body of work.
The Hall of Fame’s mission statement
says in part that it is “dedicated to fostering an appreciation of the
historical development of baseball and its impact on our culture by collecting,
preserving, exhibiting and interpreting its collections for a global audience
as well as honoring those who have made outstanding contributions to our
national pastime.” McGriff may not have the slam dunk case some like to see.
However, his body of work is impressive and he displayed a level of consistent
excellence over an extended period of time during his career. Not only does he
deserve more consideration on the ballot than he has received, he flat out deserves
enshrinement. 2019 may not be his year, but hopefully a groundswell will eventually
push him towards this honor, which he earned.
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