MLB: Hall of Famers that do not belong
By Mark Howe
There are 312 members of the MLB Hall of Fame. Yet, not all of those players inducted deserved to be enshrined.
As Baseball’s Hall Of Fame enshrines the Class of 2016, let’s take a look at eight members whose statistics don’t bear out HOF consideration, much less membership. We’re continuing a tradition began at FanSided last year.
For this discussion, we will exclude former players who are in for managing, front office work, broadcasting or any other non-lineup activities. We will also give a pass to those whose career numbers may have risen to HOF-levels of excellence if not for military service.
We will break things down by position, and separate starting pitching from relievers. We recognize relief pitchers have not been en vogue throughout the Modern Era of baseball, but some have been enshrined and therefore must be examined. We will also exclude those who spent the majority of their playing careers in the Negro Leagues; they would have played in the big had it been an option, and an argument can be made the play in the Negro Leagues was as good as it was in the MLB.
The list will be big on those elected by the Veterans Committee, which has been accused of cronyism before. The Baseball Writers Association of America (BBWAA) is responsible for selection of players to the Hall Of Fame in their early portion of their post-career lives.
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