The Hall of Fame case for Pittsburgh Pirates, Cincinnati Reds legend Dave Parker

Pittsburgh Pirates and Cincinnati Reds legend Dave Parker was one of the most prolific players of the late 1970s and into the 1980s.

When he retired after the 1991 season, many people thought that he was a good player but just short of the level needed for the Baseball Hall of Fame. For example, in a Q&A session with people on Twitter, Baseball Hall of Famer Rod Carew was asked by a fan which former player he would put into the Hall of Fame unilaterally if he had the power. His answer: Dave Parker.

But unlike a lot of players from his time, Parker is more revered by the old guard of writers, evaluators, and fans and not the younger, more sabermetrically inclined community of writers, evaluators, and fans.

If you look at the things that each side looks at, you can see how they feel the way that they do but when you balance the two, is Dave Parker a Hall of Famer?

Pirates and Reds legend Dave Parker has a mixed case for the Baseball Hall of Fame

Dave Parker spent parts of 19 seasons in the major leagues from 1973 through 1991, spending 11 seasons with the Pittsburgh Pirates and four with the Cincinnati Reds.

Parker was a career .290/.339/.471 hitter with 339 homers and 1493 RBI in 2466 games. He was a seven-time All-Star, three-time Gold Glove winner, three-time Silver Slugger winner, a two-time batting title winner, and the 1978 NL MVP.