MLB: All-Time Greats on All-Time Terrible Teams
Andre Dawson
A look at the career of Andre Dawson leaves little question that his 2010 induction into the Baseball Hall of Fame was richly deserved. But his one MVP season is not only considered to be one of the biggest misses since the BBWAA started handing out the award, he was also stuck on a Chicago Cubs team that finished 76-85, good for last place in the NL East.
In 1987, Dawson had some gaudy numbers with 49 home runs and 137 RBIs. Yet a deeper look reveals a good but not great year. The Hawk slashed .287/.328/.568, amassed a 130 OPS+, and finished with a bWAR of 4.0. Several other players, including Ozzie Smith of the St. Louis Cardinals and Eric Davis of the Cincinnati Reds, made compelling cases for the MVP, but Dawson’s power numbers were just too much for them to overcome.
In a career that spanned two decades, Dawson had a respectable enough slash line of .279/.323/.482, hit 503 doubles and 438 home runs, and drove in better than 1,500 runs. His 64.5 career bWAR is currently 95th all-time amongst position players, but he only played on a winning team a handful of times and saw the playoffs just twice, and goes down as one of only four men to win an MVP on a last place team.
Next: Lefty on a Loser