No Doubt
Hong-Gu Hyun – One of the great players of all-time, won 2 MVPs, went to 9 All Star games and won 9 Silver Sluggers! Hit almost 400 HRs, stole 250 bases, and had a blistering 1.000 OPS. Did I mention he did it all at CF?
Dennys Yamakazi – It may be hard for current Capra players to remember a time when there was only 1 truly great pitcher (the immortal Brett Tracy). Yamakazi’s numbers might not be staggering, with 190-133 W-L and a 3.89 ERA, but he was clearly the best pitcher not named Tracy in the early years of the league. No real-life pitcher won 3 CYA’s and isn’t in the HOF. His career ERA+ of 133 makes him comparable to Whitey Ford. He’s a HOFer.
Hal Randall – .336/.419/.563. Pretty much says it all. Over 600 2Bs, 375 HRs and 375 SBs. 2800 hits. And played a solid 2B. 11 All Star games and 8 Silver Sluggers. How could you possibly vote Evan Moore over this guy?
Diego Santana – 8 All Star games and an MVP for our greatest catcher yet. He slugged 475 HRs, including hitting 60 in a season twice, and had a .950 OPS. The definition of a HOFer.
Good chance
Desi Rodriguez – Gold Glove winning SS who went to 7 All Star games and hit over 500 HR. Sounds like a HOF lock! His .850 OPS hurts him a bit, but the huge contracts handed out to SS this offseason remind us how important this position is.
Jorel McGlinchy – A tough call, not an amazing offensive player, though respectable with over 500 2Bs, 200 SBs and an .812 career OPS. But an absolutely incredible defensive force, winning 10 GGs at CF and going to 8 All Star games. Racked up 424 (+) plays – the second most is 146. If you value defense, this guys is a HOFer.
Julio Johnson – 2-time MVP and 6 All Stars, plus a .941 OPS, while playing 2B and LF. Only 10 seasons, not quite as defensively valuable as Harry Pascual, but 2 MVPs speak loudly.
Mikey Tatum – Lfer who went to 9 All Star games, won 4 Silver Sluggers and 4 Gold Gloves. With 300 HR, almost 600 SB, nearly a .900 OPS and 1500 R, he’s easy to vote for.
Trenidad Prieto – 500 HR, 1700 RBI and 1500 R. A .957 career OPS. HOF numbers for sure. Only 4 All Stars and 1 Silver Slugger though, and at 1B in this league you have to MASH. He’d be a sure thing if he played another position, as it is… he’s not a bad choice.
Alexander Henry – 500 HR, 1500 RBI, .971 career OPS. 4 All Star games and an MVP. Another 1B with HOF numbers, but how many can you take. Tough choices here.
Clinton Anderson – This RF hit an enormous 667 HR, drove in over 1800, and scored over 1600. His .921 OPS is very good but does not elevate him from this group. He won an MVP, but only went to 2 All Star games.
Evan Moore – Gets the accumulater vote, but was never as good as the rest of the guys in this category. A solid .869 OPS with over 500 2Bs is very nice, but the only reason he’s this high is because of the 3000 H. Only one All Star game. I personally wouldn’t put him in until a lot of these other guys get in. Played 1B for his whole career despite being listed as a 2B on his HOF card.
Denny Cooper – Second all-time in SBs with 721, this speedster also got on base and hit for power, giving him an .897 career OPS. 4 All Star games and 4 Silver Sluggers. He also played an excellent 2B. Another high-level candidate.
Harry Pascual – 4 All Stars, 4 Silver Sluggers and a .939 OPS from a 2B. Despite only 10 full seasons, it’s hard to say he doesn’t belong.
Nerio Miller – 9 All Stars, 6 Firemen and a CYA. 2.93 career ERA and 487 Sv. The fact that he pitched less than 1000 IP keep him out of the sure thing category for me.
David Wanatabe – The all-time Saves leader by a mile, with 623. Went to 10 All Star games and won 5 Fireman awards. But he only pitched 50 IP more than Nerio, with a 3.67 ERA. Hard to say who was better. Some will vote for him. I probably won’t.
Ron Quantrill – I still haven’t figured out how to rate pitcher’s careers. 176 W and a 3.87 ERA aren’t mind blowing, but there are so few pitchers with those numbers that I think it’s much harder than it seems. 6 All Stars and over 2800 IP.
Borderline
Roosevelt Davenport – A victim of too many good players – he’s next in line to a lot of guys. Should get lots of respect for 586 HRs and a .920 OPS, but only went to 3 All Star games. He played a below average 2B for most of his career, then played an above average LF.
Darin McClellan – A Davenport clone, he hit 589 HRs and had a .921 OPS. Despite that he only went to 1 All Star game. Played 1B, LF and DH. Doesn’t really stand out.
Ringo Weston – Played CF, SS and 3B, got over 2300 H and 1300 R, with an OPS of .845. Excellent all-around player, maybe not quite HOF quality.
Anthony Gipson – This excellent 3B went to 6 All Star games, won a Gold Glove and 4 Silver Sluggers. His 399 HR and .899 OPS ironically echo his HOF status: Not Quite.
Mel Barfield – This 2B went to 7 All Star games, won a Gold Glove and 4 Silver Sluggers. A very similar player to Gipson! Hard to complain about 300 HR, 500 SB and an .885 OPS, but with the difficulty of getting in, he probably won’t see the HOF.
Geronimo Ordaz – Almost made it to 3000 H as a SS and compiled an .850 OPS. He compares in some ways to Desi Rodriguez, but never won a gold glove and only went to 3 All-Star games. One step below.
Alberto Sosa – Hard to argue against players with 550 HR, but this RF is going to come up a hair short with his .890 OPS, and the fact he only played in 2 All Star games.
Clyde Unroe – 500 HR and 1500 RBI for someone who played 2B/LF is always good. Only 2 All Star games and an .895 OPS make me think twice.
Julio Iglesias – Played 3B and SS, went to 6 All Star games and won 3 SS and a GG. 300 HR and almost 300 SB, with a .903 OPS. I think he’s just below the HOF.
Don Wilson – Has the magic .300/.400/.500 mark, but just barely, registering a .910 OPS. Went to 4 All Star games, and was an excellent hitter. Too much competition here for him though, with Prieto and Henry in front of him.
Tyler Henderson – With 444 Saves and a 3.47 ERA, 6 All Stars and 2 Firemen, he’s a poor man’s Nerio Miller. Not quite enough.
Matthew Torres – Made 4 All-Star games and 1 Fireman, pitched a lot for a reliever, racking up over 1600 IP, 108 W, and 208 saves. His 3.72 ERA keeps him out of the elite reliever discussion.
Short Career
Ryan Parrish – RFer Parrish was a masher, compiling a .991 OPS with over 300 HR, but with only 8 full seasons it’s probably not quite enough for the HOF.
Dustin Scott – Also a RFer, put together a .940 OPS and 250 HR. His 8 seasons were not quite enough.
Walter Webb – Had some massive seasons early as a C, but was too old. Finished as a DH with fewer than 300 HR.
T.J. Smart – Another early C with huge seasons, but a too short career. Has a massive .998 OPS, but fewer than 1000 H and only 175 HR.
No Shot
Marvin Bryant – This 2B/SS was a nice player, but an .851 OPS with no speed will not get you a HOF spot.
George Brow – He played a nice CF and came to play every day, and contributed with a .293 AVG. Not a real HOF candidate though.
Henry Sullivan – Awards don’t tell the whole story, but the fact that in 8 seasons this 3B didn’t win any probably tells enough.
Peter Mitchell – Did some catching, but mostly a DH. Put up a huge .423 OBP, but the rest of the numbers are not enough for a pure hitter to make it.
Shawn Morton – HOF voters have to remember how hard it is to pitch in this league. A 3.78 career ERA is very good. I just don’t think his 108 W and 1800 IP are enough.
John Kennedy – Won a CYA and has a 3.87 ERA. Again, I think 109 W and 1500 IP don’t cut it.
Matty Ortiz – His 3.98 ERA and 132 W probably won’t do it. He almost made it to 2000 IP though.
Zachrey Cohen, Esteban Tejera– Do not belong on this list.
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