Free Baseball's Hall of Fame or Hall of Shame by Robert Cohen Page B

good a defensive player as Mazeroski was, his former Cardinals teammate Julian Javier was the best fielding second baseman he ever saw. While he may have been the best at turning the double-play, it is also difficult to imagine Mazeroski being a better all-around second baseman than either Roberto Alomar, Ryne Sandberg or Bobby Grich. Alomar was more acrobatic and had more range than Mazeroski. Sandberg is the all-time leader in fielding average among major league second basemen, with a mark of .990 (seven points higher than Mazeroski), and also holds N.L. records for second basemen by playing 123 consecutive games and accepting 582 chances without making an error. In two different seasons, Mazeroski made as many as 23 errors, quite a substantial number for a second baseman. Grich was also an exceptional fielder who finished his career with the same fielding average as Mazeroski.
    Aside from being outstanding fielders, another thing that Alomar, Sandberg and Grich had in common was that they were all much, much better offensive players than Mazeroski. Having played from 1970 to 1986, Grich was the closest contemporary of the three to Mazeroski. Let’s take a look at the career numbers of both players alongside one another:

     
    Note that, in almost 1,000 fewer at-bats, Grich finished well ahead of Mazeroski in almost every offensive category. In particular, notice the difference in the number of runs scored and home runs, and the discrepancy in their on-base and slugging percentages. In addition, Grich once led the American League in home runs and, in another season, hit 30 homers, knocked in 101 runs, and batted .294. Even if a slight edge on defense is conceded to Mazeroski, it is quite apparent that Bobby Grich was a far better all-around player. Yet, Mazeroski is in the Hall of Fame and Grich is not.
    Why?
    The answer lies in the fact that the former had friends on the Veterans Committee that elected him in 2001. One of the members of the Committee, in particular, had strong ties to Mazeroski. That would be Joe Brown, former Pirates executive during Mazeroski’s playing career in Pittsburgh.
    In his book on the Hall of Fame, published in 1994, before Mazeroski’s election, Bill James writes: “I’d like to see Mazeroski in the Hall of Fame because I’m a Royals fan and the selection of Mazeroski would greatly strengthen the argument for Frank White…” He then goes on to compare both the offensive and defensive career statistics for both players to provide evidence of what truly comparable players they were. He is right; they were truly comparable players. However, his argument is a perfect illustration of why players like Bill Mazeroski should never be elected to the Hall of Fame. They lower the standards for all the other players, and lessen the credibility of those making the selections.
    Everyone who thinks like James, and has a favorite player of his own, will say: “If he’s in, why not him?” The problem is Bill Mazeroski does not belong in the Hall of Fame any more than Frank White does, or, for that matter, any more than 100 other players of comparable, or even greater, ability. While Mazeroski may not be the worst player ever elected to Cooperstown, his selection was one of the biggest mistakes the voters have ever made, and one of the Hall’s darkest hours.
    THIRD BASEMEN (13)
    THIRD BASEMEN (13)
     

     
    Mike Schmidt/George Brett
    Their status as the two greatest third basemen in baseball history clearly establishes Schmidt and Brett as legitimate Hall of Famers.
    Mike Schmidt is generally thought to have been the greatest all-around third baseman in major league history. His 548 career home runs are not only a record for third basemen, but place him among the all-time leaders. His 1,595 runs batted in tie him with Brett for the most by a third baseman, and his .527 slugging percentage is a record for players at the position. Schmidt led the National League in home runs a record eight times, runs