Regular visitors of Notinhalloffame.com know that we are slowly working on the top 50 of every major team in the NHL, NBA, NFL, and MLB. Once that is done, we will examine how each team honors its past players, coaches, and executives. As such, it is important to us that the Chicago Cubs will induct Sammy Sosa and Derrek Lee to their franchise Hall of Fame this year.

The induction of Sosa is the culmination of two decades of acrimony between Sosa and the Cubs.  Sosa, who was a beloved figure in Chicago in the 90s as he was going deep at an astronomical level saw the tide turn against him when it was believed that he took PEDs.  The last days of his run at Wrigley saw him leave early in the 2004 Season Finale.  The Cubs had stated that Sosa would not be welcomed back to the organization unless an apology occurred, which happened, albeit cryptically last December.

“There were times I did whatever I could to recovery from injuries in an effort to keep my strength up to perform over 162 games.  I never broke any laws.  But in hindsight, I made mistakes and I apologize.”

Sosa joined the Cubs in 1992 in what turned out to be one of the most lopsided trades in team history.  By the mid-90s, Sosa had at least 35 Home Runs from 1995 to 2004, winning two Home Run Titles (2000 & 2002), two RBI Titles (1997 & 2001) and won the 1998 MVP.  Sosa also won six Silver Sluggers, and as a Cub would compile 545 Home Runs, 1414 RBIs and a .928 OPS.

Derrek Lee played for the Cubs from 2004 to 2010 amassing 179 Home Runs, 1,046 Hits with two All-Star Games.  His best season was in 2005, where he led the National League in Hits (199) and Doubles (50) and was third in MVP voting.  He also won two Gold Gloves and two Silver Sluggers as a Cub.

We here at Notinhalloffame.com would like to congratulate the impending members of the Chicago Cubs Hall of Fame.

 

 

 

 

 

 

Is it that time again!

One of our core lists on Notinhalloffame.com, our Baseball list of those to consider for the Baseball Hall of Fame has been revised.

The steps in our revisions are basic:

-Remove all of those who were inducted.  This included David Ortiz (#8), Gil Hodges (#11), Minnie Miniso (#14), Jim Kaat (#20) and Tony Oliva (#27).

-Input those we think worthy who are now eligible.

-Adjust rankings based on your votes and comments.

Before we announce our top ten, note that we did one major change.  We used to have three number ones, with Pete Rose and “Shoeless” Joe Jackson appearing as 1A and 1B since our inception, as both were deemed ineligible.  We have altered this with no multiples at the top, and although Rose and Jackson are still not welcome into Cooperstown, we disagree, and will keep them ranked.

The entire list can be found here, but here is our new top ten:

#1. Barry Bonds.  Bonds’ ten years of eligibility may have ended a few months ago, but the all-time leader in Home Runs leader won seven MVPs, despite there being a cloud of PED suspicion around him.  His chances now lie with the Veteran’s Committee.  Bonds was ranked at 1C last year.

#2. Roger Clemens.  Clemens is like Bonds, in that he too ended his regular stay on the ballot, and was likely excluded due to the belief that he might have used PEDs.  Clemens won the Cy Young seven times, and remains at #2.  

#3. Alex Rodriguez.  Unlike Bonds and Clemens, Rodriguez DID test positive for PEDs, which happened after the 2004 agreement between the players and MLB that outlawed the enhancers.  A-Rod was on his first year of eligibility, drawing only 34.3% of the vote, despite being a three-time MVP.  He holds the same rank as last year.

#4. Pete Rose.  Rose is the all-time leader in Hits, but he has been from baseball for gambling on the sport.  Ranked at #1A last year, Rose drops considerable on this list, but despite the issues of the players of above him, Rose actually has a significantly lower bWAR than Bonds, Clemens and Rodriguez.

#5. “Shoeless” Joe Jackson.  Ranked #1B last year, Jackson is ineligible for the Hall due to his possible participation in the throwing of the 1919 World Series.  That being said, there are many, including us, who feel that he belongs.

#6. Lou Whitaker.  The former Tigers Second Baseman might not have lasted more than one year on the Hall of Fame ballot, but he was once on the Veteran’s Ballot, and is considered one of the more egregious snubs by sabremetricians.  He was ranked #4 last year.

#7. Bill Dahlen.  Dahlen was a previous Veteran’s Committee Nominee, and that is still the route in which he needs to gain entry to Cooperstown.  The Shortstop was a two-time leader in Defensive bWAR and won a World Series Ring with the Giants in 1905.  He was ranked #5 last year.

8. Curt Schilling.  Schilling asked to be removed off of the ballot, and that didn’t happen, and many of the voters acquiesced to his later request to be removed from consideration.  On his last year on the ballot, Schilling dropped from 71.1 to 58.6, and despite his resume, it is conceivable that he will never see a Veteran’s Committee ballot.

9. Manny Ramirez.  Ramirez entered the ballot in 2017, and offensively he statistically had a better resume than Ivan Rodriguez and Vladimir Guerrero, both of which are now in Cooperstown.  He is in the same vein as A-Rod, as he was popped for PEDs as a player.  Ramirez will enter his seventh year on the ballot, but has yet to crack 30%.

10. Carlos Beltran.  Beltran is the only new entry in his first year of eligibility, and the nine-time All-Star has the stats for the Hall, but his recent scandal involving the Astros World Series win, could cost him some votes.

There were other new entries, including closer, Francisco Rodriguez, who debuts at #172.  To close off the list, a new #300 had to come in, which was Derrek Lee.

Thank you all for your support, and we encourage you to cast your votes and offer your opinions.

Derrek Lee was a First Round Pick by the Padres in 1993, and he made it to their main roster four years later, playing 22 Games in 1997.  The Padres had the chance to trade for pitching ace, Kevin Brown, and they gave up Lee to get him.

Lee would become Florida's starting First Baseman the year he arrived, but he struggled for two years before he broke out with a 28 HR/.281 BA year, and this would be the type of numbers that he provided the Marlins over the next three seasons.  From 2001 to 2003, Lee had at least 20 Home Runs with a .270 Batting Average, which were respectable metrics.  Defensively, he was also good, winning the Gold Glove in 2003.  

Lee was a large part of Florida’s World Series win in 2003, and the Marlins did what they always did, jettison off their best players.  He was traded to the Cubs, and with the Marlins, he blasted 129 Home Runs with a .822 OPS.

While his overall offensive numbers indicate that he should be a few spots higher, for a First Baseman, they were not up to the standard that they need to be to have an elite rank on this list.

A World Series Champion with the Florida Marlins in 2003, Derrek Lee was one of the many players who was jettisoned off in their fire sale.  Lee would play for the Cubs for six and a half seasons, where he had 1,046 for the team with a beautiful Slash Line of .298/.378/.524 and was a two-time All-Star.  He will always be remembered for his spectacular 2005 season, where he won the Batting Title (.335), Slugging Title (.662), and OPS Title (1.080), and he would have career highs in Home Runs (46).  He would finish third in MVP voting that year, and he would also have a ninth place finish in 2009.

Derrek Lee is an underrated offensive player who has a phenomenal offensive year in 2005 but is not remembered for much else.

Lee was briefly a San Diego Padre before he was traded to the Florida Marlins in 1998.  With Florida, the First Baseman had four 20 Home Run years, peaking with a 31-HR season in 2003, which coincided with him leading the Marlins to a World Series Title.  As most of you know, Lee (along with everyone else who was talented) was packaged away in a disgusting cost-cutting move, and Lee wound up with the Chicago Cubs.

It was with Chicago where Lee had his best years, specifically in 2005, where he led the National League in Hits (199), Doubles (50), Batting Average (.335), Slugging (.662), and OPS (1.080).  Lee was an All-Star, Gold Glove winner, and Silver Slugger and third in MVP voting.  He could not build on that as injuries held him to 50 Games in 2006, but he was an All-Star and Gold Glove winner in 2007, and was ninth in MVP voting in 2009.  With the Cubs, Lee had five 20-plus Home Run years, with three exceeding 30. 

Lee finished his career with Atlanta, Baltimore, and Pittsburgh, retiring in 2011 with 1,951 Hits, 331 Home Runs, 1,078 RBIs, and a .495 Slugging Percentage. 

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