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Did not see a thread on this so thought I would get it going. We have a Cardinal Hall of Famer on the list for the Cooperstown Hall, and his credentials stack up quite well compared to the other candidates. Here is the list with bWAR and a few notes I added to some of the candidates. In addition to the below data, Boyer also won 5 gold gloves to lead all of the potential inductees in that category.
1. Dick Allen 58.7 (also has an MVP and ROY – Bill James slammed him as being detrimental to the
clubhouse, but who knows; Red Schoendienst had no problem with him in his one year as a
Cardinal)
2. Ken Boyer 62.8 (also has an MVP and World Series ring)
3. John Donaldson 3.4 (Negro League player so the stats are incomplete)
4. Steve Garvey 38.0 (also an MVP and Series ring)
5. Vic Harris 10.6 (another Negro League player, so stats are not reflective of his impact)
6. Tommy John 61.6
7. Dave Parker 40.1 (another MVP and has a couple of Series rings)
8. Luis Tiant 66.1 (won 2 ERA titles)Here is a link to the selections and some additional information.
https://baseballhall.org/news/classic-baseball-era-committee-candidates-announced-2025
Love to see Boyer get in. Easily one of the best 15-20 at the position in the history of the game.
Allen was a beast!
If Santo’s in, Boyer belongs. Garvey was highly unique in the sense that he generated plenty of raw power while also collecting 200 or more hits in 6 seasons. That’s an accomplishment never achieved by Aaron, Ruth, Bonds or Pujols. Musial came close with 5 seasons with 200 or more hits and I know that Gehrig had 8 seasons in which he achieved the 200 hit mark. I’d say Garvey belongs. I’m on the fence with Dave Parker, but I saw plenty of him and he was a 5 tool baseball player who was undoubtedly the best playerin the game for 5 or 6 years. Parker was no joke.
I had credible source (now long deceased) that said the
Dick (don’t call me ‘Richie’) Allen had a serious drinking problem.The one thing I will always remember about Dave Parker besides his being a part of the Pirates ‘Lumber Company’ in the 1970’s is his response in an interview: Parker wore a Star of David pierced earring in one ear. A reporter asked him why he wore it. His response was ‘Because my name’s David, and I’m a star’.
It’s a crime that Jim Edmonds isn’t already in the HOF. He deserves it more than any of the players listed here. And this is a list of some really great players.
I believe Allen did have a drinking problem. Supposedly he was quite inebriated on the final day of the 1968 season, but played anyway and hit 3 home runs. Not sure how accurate the story is but I have heard that was the case. The three home runs is a fact, but the being drunk or at least the rumor he had been drinking before the game is something I do not know for sure.
Parker was indeed a real beast. I can still see that throw in the All-Star game one year when he was in his prime with Pittsburgh.
If Boyer gets in, I am going to seriously think and plan on going to the induction ceremony next summer.
I came of age in the 70’s so I have a soft spot for guys like Parker, Garvey, John, and Tiant. Garvey and John were models of consistency and Parker was indeed a monster player. I didn’t follow Tiant as much since he was an AL player. Those Pirate teams of the late 70’s were very feared.
“It’s a crime that Jim Edmonds isn’t already in the HOF. He deserves it more than any of the players listed here. And this is a list of some really great players.”
Edmonds has a bWAR of 60.4, with a ring and eight gold gloves. So he is right there when compared to the candidates on the ballot. Obviously I still think Boyer is the guy and is overdue, but Edmonds outshines Parker as far as an outfielder, and arguably was a better teammate than Allen.
No question that Edmonds outshines Parker in the OF. He’s one of the best CF’ers I’ve ever seen and I’d have to say I saw him make the two most spectacular plays that I’ve ever seen a OF’er put on display on a baseball field. However, Parker was so dominant in every area of the game and, in my view, was the best all around baseball player in the world for four or five consecutive seasons. He was the sort of player that could help his team win in countless different ways.
Yeah, Parker was similar to Larry Walker in that he could do it all.
I saw Edmonds make one of the best catches I have ever seen live at a game in Coors Field. He was still with the Angels then, and made a diving catch running in to rob a guy of a hit – don’t recall the hitter. What was cool about it is he dove and slid on the turf, which left a noticeable and good sized chunk of turf messed up. That turf “tatoo” remained the rest of the game as a reminder that a great play had been made.
And one more comment on Boyer – another thing that puts him in is he was the best third baseman in the game from around 1960 to ‘63. Then in ‘64 he ceded the title to Brooks, but remained the best in the NL. Then Santo took the NL crown for a few years.
Not that he needs it, but I’d say the best case for Ken Boyer’s HOF induction is Ron Santo. If you lay the spreadsheets of both 3B’man side by side, their career numbers are remarkably similar. Santo enjoys a pretty good edge in career HR’s, but Boyer trumps that edge with a NL MVP and a WS Championship.
Clutch bats in high stakes situations are obviously important, but the same can be said regarding clutch mitts. It’s my view that Edmonds saved the ’04 NLCS with the astounding full extension, back to IF diving grab he made on the scorching line drive off the bat of Brad Ausmus with 2 runners aboard in game 7 of that season’s NLCS. That baseball was destined for the base of the LCF wall and only an immortal type effort could have squeezed it for the out. In all likeliehood the Astros win that game 7 if Jimmy doesn’t run it down. We all saw him make numerous jaw dropping plays out there in CF, but that one was without a doubt made with the NL Pennant on the line.
Dick Allen and Dave Parker are in. Sadly, Ken Boyer received fewer than five of the needed 12 of 16 votes.
Parker was quite possibly the best all around player in the game for several years so it’s easy to see why he’s in, but I can’t understand how Allen sneaks in there and Boyer’s not even close. Boyer outshines Allen in both career hits and RBI’s and also boasts 5 GG’s and an MVP season in which the team he played for won a WS. Life ain’t fair in this world even after you’re gone.
I thought Allen would get in as momentum has been building for him in recent years. I am surprised at Parker getting the call though. As 1TD said, Boyer is far and away more worthy than Allen, not to mention Parker.
I thought it would be Allen and possibly Tommy John or Luis Tiant. Even though Boyer is deserving, I honestly thought he would be a long shot as he was not flashy, and is largely forgotten today. Many of the voters played with or against Parker, and he was an imposing figure who had a lot of notoriety in his prime. I think there was some recency bias going on.
Not to mention Big Dave is not doing all that well, and maybe they wanted to get him honored while he is still with us.
Glad Dick Allen finally made it. As Dick once said “just take a look at the back of my baseball card to see my HoF resume”. I have such fond memories of Harry’s calls of his homers. I think I was in kindergarten, but recall them vividly……..I still get a thrilling chill right down the back of my spine at the recollections.
The nose candy trials undoubtedly hurt Parker in past balloting because he was a genuine tour de force early in his career. No one was better in either league for several years and he excelled at every facet of the game. I had forgotten all of the big names that were involved in those drug trials. Most of us recall Hernandez and Lonnie Smith, but also included were Vida Blue, Tim Raines, Jeffrey Leonard, Willie Aikens, John Milner and Yogi’s son, Dale. Any GM could field a pretty nice team with those 9 guys printed on a scorecard.
Any history can be revised if you wait long enough. Eventually, the people who where there, and already passed judgement based on what they know from being there, are outnumbered and replaced and over ruled by people just looking at stats and video.
So you are saying that Boyer isn’t worthy and the Baseball Writers never make mistakes. Interesting position to take.
I am pretty sure these people are qualified to vote, with more than a casual knowledge of the nominees.
From the HOF:
The 16-member Hall of Fame Board-appointed electorate charged with the review of the Classic Baseball Era Ballot was comprised of Hall of Fame members Paul Molitor, Eddie Murray, Tony Pérez, Lee Smith, Ozzie Smith and Joe Torre; major league executives Sandy Alderson, Terry McGuirk, Dayton Moore, Arte Moreno and Brian Sabean; and veteran media members/historians Bob Elliott, Leslie Heaphy, Steve Hirdt, Dick Kaegel and Larry Lester. Hall of Fame Chairman of the Board Jane Forbes Clark served as the non-voting chairman of the Classic Baseball Era Committee.
Are they more qualified than those who voted before? Probably not, and their view is impaired by distance. But they judge themselves able to right a wrong done by those long ago voters who were there.
My view is that Boyer may have been placed at a disadvantage by what’s termed the “Classic Era HOF Ballot” simply because it’s possible that many of the ballots may have been cast by voters who never saw Boyer manned up at 3B during his heyday. I saw him as both a player and manager, but he was well passed his prime when I saw him as a player. In any event, I’ve always felt that he was just as, if not moreso, deserving of HOF consideration than Ron Santo. And certainly moreso than Richie Allen.
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