2010 Baseball Hall of Fame Ballot

The 2010 baseball hall of fame vote is coming up in a few weeks so i'd thought i'd share who would be on my ballot. You could vote up to ten players.

Andre Dawson(OF)-.279 AVG, 438 HR 1591 RBI. Had he not been playing the first 11 years of his career on the artificial turf in Montreal, he would undoubtedly be a 500 home run hitter. He was a force for the duration of his career that was plagued with injuries. He deserves a hall of fame plaque.
Bert Blyleven(SP)-287-250, 3.31 ERA, 3,701 K. If anyone on the ballot deserves to be in the hall, its Bert. Besides the before mentioned stats, he had 242 complete games and 60 shutouts. So take the 685 games he pitched and that shows one-third of his games he went the whole 9. That’s just invaluable. And he did it with one of the nastiest curveballs in the modern era. Bert should be enshrined in 2010.
Jack Morris(SP)-254-186, 3.90 ERA, 2,478 K. Morris was one of the best big game pitchers in the history of baseball. To back that he won the World Series four times and in ‘91 he pitched a 10 inning shutout of the Atlanta Braves. His stats might not look good on paper, but don’t forget he pitched in the same division as the Yankees and Red Sox and was overshadowed by Roger Clemens during his best seasons. He is hall worthy.
Lee Smith(CP)-478 SV, 3.03 ERA, 1251 K. Had he played more for a couple of teams rather than 7 teams, Lee Smith would be in the Hall of Fame already. Don’t forget saves didn’t become a major league stat until 1969, and Smith was the all time leader just until 2007 when Trevor Hoffman surpassed him. He was a dominant closer with great stuff and he gave teams that fear that when he came into the game, it was over. He has to be regarded as on of the best ever and should be rewarded for it.
Roberto Alomar(2B)-.300 AVG, 210 HR, 1134 RBI, 474 SB. His numbers aren’t that appealing, but he plays at a position (second base) where offense takes a back seat. But he excelled at offense and played great defense while playing for some great teams. He was a twelve time all star, a ten time gold glove award winner, and a four time silver slugger winner. As I stated before, his numbers aren’t appealing, but the awards case this guy has does. He will get in at some point.
Barry Larkin (SS)-.295 AVG, 195 HR, 2,340 H, 379 SB. Another guy with not the best of numbers but just his presence in the Reds lineup everyday made him a force. He was a twelve time all star selection, a nine time silver slugger winner, a three time gold glove winner, and the 1995 NL MVP winner. And for the final eight seasons of his major League career, he was the Reds captain. He is a should be hall of famer but it mights be a few ballots before it happens.
Edgar Martinez (DH)-.312 AVG, 309 HR, 1261 RBI. He was one of the first true Designated Hitters in baseball history. He was a feared hitter for the Seattle Mariners while batting behind another hall of famer, Ken Griffey Jr. He was always good for a .320 average with 25 home runs and 100 RBI each season during his a seven year stretch. The turn off for his hall of fame plaque is he was a designated hitter. Had he not played on the Kingdome’s Astroturf it might of prolonged his career by five seasons where his numbers would truly be better. He still is deserving of a spot in Cooperstown.

Twins Offseason Blog-12/9

I haven't blogged in a while so I thought i would get cracking again and talk about the Twins while the MLB Winter meetings wrap up tomorrow.

• I first want to touch on the move that took place two days after the World Series ended. The Twins and Brewers swapped CF Carlos Gomez for SS J.J. Hardy. Personally I think this move is great for both sides, as the Brewers needed a new centerfielder after they decided to let Mike Cameron go and it was clear that Gomez wanted more playing time after the four outfielder log jam the Twins had this past season left Gomez on the bench more often then not. Now he will get to play everyday in Miller Park and personally i think more playing time was what he needed to make him a better hitter so he could be learning everyday. The Twins getting Hardy in return fills a hole that is left by Orlando Cabrera, who filled in admirably after being acquired at the July 31st trade deadline. Hardy had a down season hitting .229 with 11 HR and 43 RBI in just 115 games. It became clear the Brewers and Hardy would part ways when he was sent down to AAA to make room for stud prospect SS Alciedes Escobar. In the two season prior to '09 Hardy averaged .280 with 25 HR and 77 RBI and averaged a on base precantage of .333. Not great average and on base numbers, but he would be the most solid option at shortstop since Cristian Guzman left after the '04 season. And now that there won't be a logjam in the outfield for playing time the Twins are putting their faith in the fact that Delmon Young will live up to his potential. If he fails to improve in 2010 look for the Twins to move him and acquire another left fielder.
• Secondly, I have been following the Winter meetings this past week with great attention and the Twins have been linked to trying to acquire 3B Kevin Kouzmanoff from San Diego. The Twins have reportedly offered Glen Perkins in exchange, but the Padres want more and the Twins will not offer more. Personally I thought the Twins weren't looking for a longer term guy at third to acquire this offseason with star prospect Danny Valencia waiting in the wings. So that made me wonder if he is actually ready for the big leagues. All reports say he needs at least to have another half season at AAA before attempting to give him the hot corner job and it looked like the Twins would bring in a temporary fill in just for 2010 to man third. Joe Crede has expressed interest in returning but it won't be until January at least that teams begin to check his rehabbing from back surgery. Maybe they know something about Valencia we don't know. As for Kouzmanoff i think he is a decent offensive third baseman with decent defensive skills who could be a good factor in the lineup for the next few years as he enters his prime years. It is a cause for concern to see that his average (.275, .260, .255), slugging percentage (.457, .433, .420), and OPS (.786, .732, .722) have decreased over the last three seasons. The only stat he has increased is hir RBI totals going from 74 to 84 to 88 in three seasons. It will be interesting to see how the Twins play this one out.
  
• My final point will be to say that even though its snowing, Target Field looks better than ever with just 124 days remaining until the stadium opens. Last week the final seat was installed and the cover was put over the field for the winter. Cant wait to see how it looks on Opening Day!

WIN TWINS!!