Yankees History: Joe Dimaggio Snubbed on First HoF Ballot
By David Hill
When one thinks about the greatest players to ever appear in the Majors, Yankees legend Joe Dimaggio will come up on that list. However, on this day in 1953, Dimaggio was passed over on his first appearance on the Hall of Fame ballot.
The Hall of Fame creates a great deal of discussion. Every year, when the ballots come out, the resume of the players listed is dissected to the point of becoming almost nauseating. Then, when the results are announced, we then go back through the voting and question why certain players did not make it in.
Given the attention that has been paid to the voting process, and the players that have been inducted, one has to wonder what the reaction would have been to the 1953 class. While Dizzy Dean and Al Simmons certainly deserved their place in the Hall of Fame, several other players were bypassed. One of those was New York Yankees legend Joe Dimaggio, appearing on the ballot for the first time.
If it was a matter of the writers refusing to put a player in on their first appearance on the ballot, that would be a different matter. However, Dimaggio finished eighth on the ballot. Eighth. While the other players around him all made the Hall of Fame, no one out there would argue that Rabbit Maranville or Ted Lyons were better players than the Yankees legend.
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Yes, Dimaggio’s counting stats may not scream out that he was an all time great. He had a stellar .325/.398/.579 batting line, but hit “only” 361 home runs and had 2214 hits. That, however, discounts the three years that Dimaggio lost due to World War Two, which happened to be his age 28 through age 30 seasons.
Those numbers also do not tell the entire tale of what Dimaggio meant to the Yankees. He took over the mantle as the next star in the Bronx, following in the footsteps of Babe Ruth and Lou Gehrig. His incredible 56 game hitting streak in 1941 cemented his place as a star, and a worthy heir to two all time greats. He was a three time MVP, and made the All Star Game in each season he played. Oh, and the Yankees made the World Series in ten of his 13 years, coming away with nine championships.
The worst part of Dimaggio’s time on the ballot is that he didn’t even get in during his second year of eligibility. After getting only 44.3% of the vote when he retired (he received one vote in 1945 while he was in the service) Dimaggio was on 69.4% of the ballots in 1954. It took three years for Joltin’ Joe to be elected to the Hall of Fame.
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There is no question that Yankees legend Joe Dimaggio deserves to be in the Hall of Fame. However, it took three years for him to get there.