Reds just raked with this deal.

So we’re all gonna just ignore that the Reds just got their new best pitcher by miles and miles on top of two regulars?

It’s really easy to COMPLAINNN when you’re not required to actually implement alternatives.

But I’m really looking forward to the 2030's, when someone legitimately considers trading FOR Bobby Bonilla’s contract in order to get a better prospect.

Holy shit, we are now at the point of kids named after Derek Jeter appearing in the MLB. Giant Asteroid, where are you??

Mazeroski is the perfect example of the point in the main post about the definition of fame and telling a story. Yes, Mazeroski was not a great hitter (his career OPS+ is below 100), but he was the best defensive secondbaseman of his generation and may be the best defensive 2B of all time (he’s the career leader in…

It really shouldn’t be because the system’s broken. Dwight was pretty underrated in his day. Kind of reflects the silliness of the system. If Dwight had won an MVP award and/or a World Series, he probably is in the Hall years ago.

And looking at his peak, it’s kind of mind-boggling he didn’t manage to win an MVP award.…

But Mazeroski is also considered one of the best defensive second baseman. Obviously, though, he wouldn’t be in the Hall without that home run. But at least there’s something else on his resume.

Only suggesting this (with, admittedly, minimal actual thinking) now that the dam has burst.... but what if the Hall became like a credit card or frequent flyer program, with a few tiers of status. So, Willie Mays is a Platinum Hall of Famer and Harold Baines is a Silver Hall of Famer... or something like that. Can…

I really wish this wasn’t so buried in the comments. +1 Seuss 

Pros:

All you very good not-quites, ‘tis dawn of new day-
You Dykstras, Delgados, Ellis Burks and Ron Cey,
Jeff Kent and Mark Grace, Gil Hodges and Keith,
Justice, Gonzalii (Adrian and Luis),
Crime Dog and Murphy, each and every Alou,
Strawberry, Sosa, and John Olerud,
Munson, Posada, Clarks Jack and Will;
With Baines now…

Finally, an article about the HoF by someone who’s read The Politics of Glory (the first edition had the better title). Thanks.

The biggest problem with Baines is that almost every team has at least one team icon who was hugely popular with the fans and has credentials at or above those of Baines. And I think every fandom has come to grips with the idea that Ken Singleton won’t make it despite being a big part of his teams glory years.…

Gaedel came up just short on votes, if memory serves.

This is all making me feel terrible for Baines, a very good player I would generally have wanted on my team and who never asked to be the poster boy for HoF vote fuckups.

Yes, I am being a bit reductive, but as we move towards that sweet embrace of entropy, these debates generally get settled without anyone needing to lift a finger. Even if someone is in the Hall of Fame, time and history will winnow down narratives until only the highlights remain. Everyone will remember the truly…

you know who i saw get inducted in person?  bill fucking mazeroski.  baines ain’t setting a new low, that bar was set long ago.  apparently if you hit one iconic homerun, you’re in.

That kind of nihilism seems reductive. I mean, we’re all going to die, the sun will swallow the earth, and the universe will eventually becoming unimaginably cold and dark.

Harold Baines getting in at least gives me hope that Dwight Evans might make it someday, even if it is the result of a broken system.