The man called “Superchief” was one of the great right handed pitchers of the New York Yankees.  Allie Reynolds was the first man to toss two no-hitters in a season in the American League though that was just a small sample of what he accomplished.

One of the most popular Yankees of all time was Don Mattingly.  This was a very impressive reality considering that the year before he turned pro the Bronx Bombers lost to Dodgers in the World Series and the year after he retired they won the championship.  During Mattingly’s entire tenure, the Yankees never went to the Fall Classic; the largest stretch of post-season futility in franchise history.

We imagine that there are younger baseball fans that are oblivious that there really was a Tommy John and that it was not just the name of a surgery.  This would be unfortunate, as Tommy John has to go down as one of the most durable pitchers in baseball history.

What more would Thurman Munson have accomplished had he not been killed in a plane crash on August 2, 1979?  We will never know but prior to his untimely death, Munson’s accomplishments on the diamond were already sizable.

It is often the case for various Halls of Fame to discriminate based on the likeability of the candidate.  Carl Mays was not necessarily the most liked player in his day, and his brushes with controversy probably pushed Mays on the opposite side of the bubble.

It is strange to say that Willie Randolph played in a bit of a shadow as he was a long-time Yankee but that is somewhat true.  He was in the shadow of other more flamboyant New York stars, and his strong defensive play never got him a Gold Glove as he played at the same time as Lou Whitaker or Frank White.  Hell, even his current Coaching career seems to overshadow his accomplishments on the diamond.  It shouldn’t though as Willie Randolph was a very good ballplayer.

David Cone may not be best remembered for winning a Cy Young Award. He may be best known for being a true hired gun that baseball teams coveted for their stretch drive.

Many baseball players are known for the clutch performances with their bat.  Graig Nettles certainly had many clutch hits in his long career, but he may have been known for having more clutch performances with his glove.

With a magical season, a pair of exceptional ones, and a few very good ones, Ron Guidry had an excellent career in Baseball all with the Yankees. Theoretically, “Louisiana Lightning” did everything you want to accomplish in a career as he won the Cy Young Award (and was in the hunt for a few others) and won the World Series, which he did twice. However the knock on Guidry, is that he was only a full-time player for nine seasons, and though he does have one of the most impressive winning percentages in Baseball, his longevity is questioned in regards to the immortals. In regards to the Hall of Fame, this generally does matter!

It is a sad day for Baseball, the New York Yankees and the witticisms as Yogi Berra passed away at the age of 90 due to natural causes. 

The Hall of Fame Catcher and three time American League MVP was one of the best hitting Catchers of all time and holds the distinction of playing in more World Series Games than anyone else.  Berra would win ten World Series rings as a player and three as a coach and would retire as a player with 358 Home Runs and 1,430 Runs Batted In.

The popular Catcher would become known not only for his on field play but for his expressions, the top of which we ripped off from an ESPN article this morning.

10. "It's like deja vu all over again."

9. "You better cut the pizza in four pieces because I'm not hungry enough to eat six."

8. "The future ain't what it used to be."

7. "We made too many wrong mistakes."

6. "Nobody goes there anymore. It's too crowded."

5. "You can observe a lot just by watching."

4. "You should always go to other people's funerals; otherwise, they won't come to yours."

3. "When you come to a fork in the road, take it."

2. "Baseball is 90 percent mental. The other half is physical."

1. "It ain't over 'til it's over."

While Berra’s life may be over his Yogi-isms will forever live on as will his memory.

We here at Notinhalloffame.com would like to offer condolences to the friends and family of Yogi Berra at this time.

Over the past weekend, The New York Yankees officially gave former battery mates, Jorge Posada and Andy Pettitte the highest accolade they can give, as their numbers were officially retired by the organization.

Posada had his number #20 retired on Saturday by the only MLB organization he ever played for.  Posada was a member of four World Series Championship teams, was a five time All Star and five time Silver Slugger Award winner. 

Pettitte’s ceremony took place on Sunday.  As a Yankee, #46 won five World Series Rings won 219 Games and another 18 in the post-season.  He also has the most Strikeouts in Yankees history.

This is no small honor as they join a very exclusive list of legends which includes:



Billy Martin #1

Babe Ruth #3

Lou Gehrig #4

Joe DiMaggio #5

Joe Torre #6

Mickey Mantle #7

Bill Dickey #8

Yogi Berra #8

Roger Maris #9

Phil Rizzuto #10

Thurman Munson #15

Whitey Ford #16

Don Mattingly #23

Elston Howard #32

Casey Stengel #37

Mariano Rivera #42

Reggie Jackson #44

Ron Guidry #49

Bernie Williams #51



It should be noted that the numbers are displayed in Monument Park, adjacent to left field.  It is expected that Derek Jeter’s #2 will join this list shortly.

Congratulations go out to the New York Yankees, which have the best lot of retired numbers in Baseball.

Andy Pettitte took PEDs and apologized for it. He was forgiven by not just the fans of the New York Yankees but baseball fans in general. That fact (an important one) makes him the most intriguing candidate for this year as his contriteness might make him Hall of Fame worthy.  

Still, if the PED issue is not a factor, is Andy Pettitte a HOF contender? Let’s take a look!

We admit we made a mistake not ranking Bernie Williams last year. Were we rebelling against a Yankee bias, or was it that we just considered him just not good enough? Regardless, that is the beauty of Baseball is that you can easily reevaluate what you may have missed the first time. Lord knows it happens all the time during the actual balloting process for the Hall of Fame.

Couldn’t we just say look at the previous Barry Bonds entry and say “Ditto”? Seriously, the parallels are too great to ignore.

Like Bonds, Clemens may have had a Hall of Fame career before he allegedly took PEDs, and like Bonds, he dominated the steroid era as he did the decade before. He has the career statistics (353 wins and 4,672 strikeouts), the dominating seasons (seven Cy Youngs and an MVP), and two World Series Rings. “Rocket” Roger Clemens is arguably the best Pitcher in the past twenty-five years.