The 2008 Hall Of Fame Veterans Committee Olde Tymers (Pre-1943 Debut) Ballot

Last year, the Baseball Hall Of Fame re-vamped the Veterans Committee, and tasked the new version with voting on four ballots. The third and fourth of these ballots get their first voting cycles this year -- one for players who made their major league debut before 1943, the other for those who debuted in 1943 or later. The Hall recently announced the ten-candidate ballot for the pre-1943 subcommittee. Let's have a look.


1. Bill Dahlen
Primary position: shortstop.

Playing career: 21 seasons, 1891-1911 -- Chicago Colts/Orphans (Cubs) 1891-98, Brooklyn Grooms/Bridegrooms/Superbas (Dodgers) 1899-1903 & 1910-11, New York Giants 1904-07, Boston Braves 1908-09.

Standout season: 1894 (.357/.444/.566, 149 runs, 179 hits, 32 doubles, 15 HR, 107 RBI, 42 SB, 136 OPS+.)

Other noteworthy seasons: 1896, 1898, 1899.

Career highlight stat: 1589 runs scored. Shortstop Range Factor of 5.79, above league average for his career.

Honoraria and statistical crowns: Played most of his career before the big awards were inaugurated. Led the NL in RBI once. Was in the Top Five or Top Ten many other times. Once hit two triples in one inning. Member of the 1905 World Series champion Giants, though he had an awful Series, hitting 0-15 with three walks and one run scored. Also a member of the 1899-1900 NL champion Superbas and the 1904 NL champion Giants, which refused to participate in a World Series.

BBWAA voting: one ballot, peaking at one vote (below 1%).
VC voting: never nominated, 2003-07.

Baseball bonus points: Dahlen was manager of the Brooklyn Dodgers from 1910-13 (technically a player/manager for the first two seasons, but only put himself into four games, so he certainly wasn't abusing the privilege). Results were not impressive, finishing sixth or seventh each season, never getting close to a winning record.

Dahlen was a very good player at a tough position during an era when hitters went for singles and infield defense was difficult under the best of conditions. And it's good to see a real olde tymer on the VC ballot. But Dahlen's era has been pretty well picked over, and while he's not a bad candidate, I cannot see him as a Hall-class one. There's a lot of good to very good in his career record but not enough greatness. Others may disagree.

Chipmaker's vote: No.


2. Wes Ferrell (reviewed in 2007)
Primary position: RH starting pitcher.

Playing career: 15 seasons, 1927-41 -- Cleveland Indians 1927-33, Boston Red Sox 1934-37, Washington Senators 1937-38, New York Yankees 1938-39, Brooklyn Dodgers 1940, Boston Braves 1941.

Standout season: 1930 -- 25-13 (.658), 296.2 IP, 143 K, 3 saves, 1 shutout, 3.31, 146 ERA+.

Other noteworthy seasons: 1932, 1935.

Career highlight stat: 193 wins, .601 winning percentage.

Honoraria and statistical crowns: Two All-Star selections (but did not play either time). Finished second in the 1935 AL MVP voting. Led AL in wins once, innings pitched three times, complete games four times. Numerous other Top Ten finishes in desirable categories. Major league records for home runs by a pitcher in a career (37 of his 38 total) and in a season (9, 1931). Pitched a no-hitter against the St. Louis Browns in 1931. Member of the 1938-39 World Series champion Yankees, though he did not play in either Series.

BBWAA voting: four ballots, peaking at 3.6%.
VC voting: 2003, 14.8%; 2005, 11.3%; 2007, 8.5%.

Baseball bonus points: Generally recognized as The Best Hitting Pitcher In Major League History (not named Ruth, anyway). Holds the career record for home runs by a pitcher with 37, including nine in 1931 (yes, Ruth hit hundreds, but very few while playing as a pitcher). Good enough that he was often used as a pinch-hitter. His 1931 batting season is worth including -- .319/.373/.621, 37 hits in 116 AB including six doubles, one triple, nine homers, 24 runs scored, 30 RBI, 151 OPS+. Career lines of .280/.351/.446, 38 HR, 208 RBI, 129 walks. Brother of Rick Ferrell, who is in the Hall Of Fame, though looking over his career record it is difficult to understand why.

Ferrell was a very good pitcher and certainly a workhorse, winning 20+ games six times in an eight year span (1929-36). He mostly played on not very good teams (by the time of his Yankees tenure, he was nearly washed up) and never played in the World Series as a result. He definitely had good stuff (and was a very good fielder), but began losing it at age 29 and was done after 33. So most of his value is packed into those eight years, and while they were very good years, he never really rose to greatness, maybe bumping the underside but not grabbing hold. I think the writers, and the VC, got this one right. Not Hall class. I didn't support him in 2007 and I see no reason to change that opinion.

Chipmaker's vote: No.


3. Joe Gordon (reviewed in 2007)

Primary position: second baseman.

Playing career: 11 seasons, 1938-43 & '46-50 -- New York Yankees 1938-43 & '46, Cleveland Indians 1947-50.

Standout season: 1942 -- .322/.409/.491, 88 runs, 173 hits, 29 doubles, 4 triples, 18 HR, 103 RBI, 79 walks, 155 OPS+.

Other noteworthy seasons: 1940, 1947, 1948.

Career highlight stat: 253 home runs.

Honoraria and statistical crowns: 1942 AL MVP. Collected MVP votes in eight of his 11 seasons, finishing in the Top Ten four other times. Eight consecutive All-Star selections, including five starts. Led AL in games played twice. Held major league record for home runs by a second baseman until HOFer Joe Morgan surpassed him; currently fourth among 2Bmen. Member of six World Series teams, including five champions (1938-39, '41, '43, '48).

BBWAA voting: eleven ballots, peaking at 28.5%.
VC voting: 2003, 23.5%; 2005, 17.5%; 2007, 12.2%.

Baseball bonus points: Gordon was a manager for four different teams over five seasons -- the Cleveland Indians (1958-60), Detroit Tigers (1960), Kansas City Athletics (1961), and first year expansion Kansas City Royals (1969). He wasn't bad at it, brought the Tigers to second place in 1959, there really was nothing to be done with the A's in that era, and a brand new expansion team is typically a disaster. His overall record was almost breakeven (305-308, .498), not at all bad for the circumstances, but clearly this part of his baseball career isn't going to help him get a bronze plaque.

If there had been a Rookie Of The Year Award in 1938, Gordon surely would have won it. He burst into the big leagues and never slowed down, only taking time off to serve two years in the military during WWII. A short career but a brilliant one, at a position not noted (at the time, and still not so much today) for bringing a lot of offensive value to the diamond. Good fielder.

Chipmaker's vote: Yes (still).


4. Sherry Magee

Primary position: left fielder.

Playing career: 16 seasons, 1904-19 -- Philadelphia Phillies 1904-14, Boston Braves 1915-17, Cincinnati Reds 1917-19.

Standout season: 1910 -- .331/.445/.507, 110 runs, 172 hits, 39 doubles, 17 triples, 6 HR, 123 RBI, 49 stolen bases, 94 walks, 174 OPS+.

Other noteworthy seasons: 1907, 1908, 1914, 1918.

Career highlight stat: 166 triples (15th all-time when he retired, 27th now), .364 OBP, 136 OPS+.

Honoraria and statistical crowns: Won the "rates triple crown" (AVG/OBP/SLG) in 1910 in the NL, which is a pretty rare thing. Led in SLG one other time, games played once, runs scored once, hits once, total bases twice, doubles once, RBI four times. Member of the 1919 World Series champion Reds, though he didn't contribute much (one hit in two AB), and the White Sox weren't trying their best to win anyway.

BBWAA voting: seven ballots, peaking at 0.9% (never got more than two votes).
VC voting: never nominated, 2003-07.

Magee makes a good example of a philosophy I try to bring to Hall ballot reviews -- sometimes a man is underappreciated in his own time, and it takes a longer look, later on, along with improved analytical tools, to gain sufficient perspective on just what he did bring to the diamond. Given that the BBWAA voting gave him very short shrift, and previous VC voting didn't even consider him, it is fair to say that Magee has been overlooked.

That, however, doesn't mean he was a Hall-class player. Clearly he was very good -- Magee piled up doubles and triples, which more than compensated for his dearth of homers, part of which was a product of the times and ballparks. He certainly could hit and hit with inside-the-park power, which is generally what corner outfielders are expected to bring. He finished in the league Top Ten in desirable statistics often.

Magee also had awful timing inflicted upon him -- he went from the 1914 Phillies to the 1915 Braves, just missing two World Series appearances. The Phils won the NL in 1915, after he left, and the Braves in 1914, just before he arrived. He finally did get a wee bit of October time in 1919, his last time on the major league diamond; pity that Series is remembered for other, darker reasons.

Magee was a very good hitter (and a decent fielder) with surges of greatness. He wasn't an amazingly great player, but I think he merits a Yes vote here. He would stand well in Cooperstown.

Chipmaker's vote: Yes (though if I had to throw my candidates off the ballot boat, Magee would be the first to go).


5. Carl Mays (reviewed in 2007)

Primary position: RH starting pitcher.

Playing career: 15 seasons, 1915-29 -- Boston Red Sox 1915-19, New York Yankees 1919-23, Cincinnati Reds 1924-28, New York Giants 1929.

Standout season: 1921 -- 27-9, 336.2 IP, 30 complete games, 1 shutout, 7 saves, 70 K, 3.05, 139 ERA+.

Other noteworthy seasons: 1917, 1919, 1920.

Career highlight stat: .622 winning percentage (207-126).

Honoraria and statistical crowns: Led in wins once, games pitched once, saves twice, innings pitched once, complete games twice, shutouts twice. Numerous Top Ten finishes. Won 20+ games five times. Member of four World Series champion teams (1915, 1916, 1918, 1923, though he did not play in the first and last of these) and two other league champions (1921-22).

BBWAA voting: one ballot, peaking at 2.3%.
VC voting: 2003, 19.8%; 2005, 15.0%; 2007, 7.3%.

Mays was a good pitcher with a few very good seasons and flashes of greatness. A reasonably good hitter as pitchers go, and a very good fielder for his position. But he never sustained the greatness that the Hall seeks to honor.

Mays also carries around one of the heaviest spiritual anchors in the history of the game, that of being the man who threw the pitch that lethally injured Ray Chapman. It was an accident, I do think, and though Chapman obviously had the worse outcome, Mays had the unenviable task of living with it. It's understandable that no one really wants to go near him, with that event on his career record.

Anyway... I wasn't a Mays proponent in 2007, and I see no reason to change that now.

Chipmaker's vote: No (and, for me, it has nothing to do with Chapman).


6. Allie Reynolds

Primary position: RH starting pitcher.

Playing career: 13 seasons, 1942-54 -- Cleveland Indians 1942-46, New York Yankees 1947-54.

Standout season: 1952 -- 20-8, 244.1 IP, 24 complete games, 6 shutouts, 6 saves, 160 K, 2.06, 162 ERA+.

Other noteworthy seasons: 1947, 1951.

Career highlight stat: .630 winning percentage (182-107).

Honoraria and statistical crowns: Six All-Star selections (playing in two), AL MVP votes in five seasons, once finishing second and another time third. Led AL in ERA once, strikeouts twice, shutouts twice, numerous other Top Ten finishes in the good categories. Member of six World Series teams (1947, '49-53), all champions, and he was a strong contributor (7-2, 2.79 in 15 games, 9 starts). Threw two no-hitters in 1951, against Cleveland in July and Boston in September.

BBWAA voting: twelve ballots, peaking at 33.6%.
VC voting: 2003, 19.8%.

Reynolds was a good pitcher for most of his career but had only one truly great season, and I really like seeing great seasons rather than just looking at career summary stats. I'm also not big on pitcher's wins, but given that he only won 20 (and that time, exactly 20) despite having the powerhouse, repeat champion Yankees behind him, it rather underscores that Reynolds was not an elite level player. The Hall seeks greatness; the level of good that Reynolds delivered is an asset on the field but really does not measure up to what belongs in Cooperstown.

Chipmaker's vote: No.


7. Vern Stephens

Primary position: shortstop.

Playing career: 15 seasons, 1941-55 -- St. Louis Browns/Baltimore Orioles 1941-47 & '53-55, Boston Red Sox 1948-52, Chicago White Sox 1953 & '55.

Standout season: 1949 -- .290/.391/.539, 113 runs, 177 hits, 31 doubles, 39 HR, 159 RBI, 101 walks, 138 OPS+.

Other noteworthy seasons: 1943, 1944, 1945, 1948, 1950.

Career highlight stat: 247 home runs, which was a lot coming from a shortstop.

Honoraria and statistical crowns: Eight All-Star selections (played in six), including two starts. AL MVP votes in nine different seasons, finishing in the Top Ten six times, peaking at third. Led in games played twice, home runs once, RBI three times, various Top Ten rankings. Member of the 1944 AL champion Browns.

BBWAA voting: never nominated.
VC voting: never nominated, 2003-07.

Stephens puzzles me. He was never nominated to the BBWAA Hall ballot, and in the 1960s, when he first would have been eligible, everyone got on the ballot. In the 1962 vote, 77 different players got at least one vote, and Stephens was not among them. I don't know how or why this happened. Clearly he has been overlooked by history, never to get on the ballot.

But he's not a better player now than then -- we just understand his career better. Stephens has a heap of All-Star selections and MVP votes, so certainly he was bringing something good to the diamond that contemporary writers and fans were seeing in a positive light. At the time of his retirement, he had the most home runs by a shortstop, and he held this mark by a huge margin (almost +80, going by career totals, strict position data not being available).

Stephens was no Honus Wagner, but in the annals of shortstops, he deserves to rank not too far behind the Dutchman, both at the time of his retirement and up to today. Somewhat similar to Gordon -- short career, but brilliant.

Chipmaker's vote: Yes.


8. Mickey Vernon (reviewed in 2007)

Primary position: first baseman.

Playing career: 20 seasons, 1939-43 & '46-60 -- Washington Senators 1939-43, '46-48, & '50-55, Cleveland Indians 1949-50 & '58, Boston Red Sox 1956-57, Milwaukee Braves 1959, Pittsburgh Pirates 1960.

Standout season: 1953 -- .337/.403/.518, 101 runs, 205 hits, 43 doubles, 11 triples, 15 HR, 115 RBI, 63 walks, 149 OPS+.

Other noteworthy seasons: 1946, 1954, 1955, 1956.

Career highlight stat: 2495 hits, .359 OBP.

Honoraria and statistical crowns: Seven All-Star selections, including four starts. AL MVP votes in five different seasons, with three Top Ten finishes, peaking at third. Two AL batting titles, led in doubles three times, numerous Top Ten finishes (except in homers -- peaked at eighth, once). A bit player on the 1960 World Series champion Pirates, though he didn't play in that postseason. Still holds the major league record for most double plays participated in defensively, with 2044.

BBWAA voting: fifteen ballots, peaking at 24.9% (on his final ballot).
VC voting: 2007, 17.1%.

Baseball bonus points: Vernon was a manager for the second, expansion Senators for two seasons and part of a third, 1961-63. They were a disaster, something of a tradition for both expansion teams and Washington baseball. There's only so much even a brilliant manager can do in such situations, and it certainly doesn't improve Vernon's candidacy.

Vernon had a very long career -- twenty seasons, plus two years away in military service, is rare in any era. As a first baseman, he needed to bring power, and though he played in tough home parks (mainly Griffith Stadium in Washington, a notoriously difficult hitter's park), he really didn't bring enough power often. A few great seasons but not nearly enough. Durable is good, greatness is much better. I didn't support him in 2007 and am going to repeat that here.

Chipmaker's vote: No.


9. Bucky Walters

Primary position: RH starting pitcher, though he started out as a third baseman for his first four seasons.

Playing career: 19 seasons, 1931-48 & '50 -- Boston Braves 1931-32 & '50, Boston Red Sox 1933-34, Philadelphia Phillies 1934-38, Cincinnati Reds 1938-48.

Standout season: 1939 -- 27-11, 319.0 IP, 31 complete games, 2 shutouts, 137 K, 2.29, 168 ERA+.

Other noteworthy seasons: 1940, 1944, 1945.

Career highlight stat: 242 complete games (in 398 starts).

Honoraria and statistical crowns: 1939 NL MVP. MVP votes in four other seasons, including finishing third and fifth. Six All-Star selections, including one start. Led in wins three times, ERA twice, innings pitched three times, strikeouts once, complete games three times, shutouts once -- including the pitcher's triple crown (wins, ERA, K) in 1939. Member of the 1939 NL champion and 1940 World Series champion Reds.

BBWAA voting: thirteen ballots, peaking at 23.7%.
VC voting: never nominated, 2003-07.

Baseball bonus points: Walters was manager of the Reds for part of 1948 and all of 1949, finishing seventh both times. He's not on the ballot as a manager candidate (good call, that), and this doesn't at all improve his baseball record, but it is worth noting.

It's a good thing Walters got moved to the mound, because he was no hitter at all and not particularly distinguished at fielding the hot corner (his lifetime .243/.286/.344 is pretty good for a pitcher, but for a 3Bman, that's ugly). A couple of great seasons, definitely a big part of the Reds winning the NL in two consecutive seasons, but there's a lot of mediocre or league-average seasons mixed in as well. If Walters had sustained a few more very good seasons -- not 1939 level, but better than what he did do -- I'd be inclined to support his candidacy. Given what he did do, I cannot. That MVP Award and All-Star selections are the right amount of honors for him.

Chipmaker's vote: No.


10. Deacon White

Primary position: catcher through 1879, third baseman after that, but also played right fielder, first baseman, and even pitched twice.

Playing career: 20 seasons, 1871-90 -- Cleveland Forest Citys (National Association) 1871-72, Boston Red Stockings (NA) 1873-75, Chicago White Stockings (Cubs) 1876, Boston Red Caps (Braves) 1877, Cincinnati Reds 1878-80, Buffalo Bisons 1881-85 (National League), Detroit Wolverines 1886-88 (NL), Pittsburgh Alleghenys (Pirates) 1889, Buffalo Bisons (Players League) 1890.

Standout season: 1877 -- .387/.405/.545, 51 runs, 103 hits, 14 doubles, 11 triples, 2 HR, 49 RBI, 191 OPS+ (in 59 games).

Other noteworthy seasons: 1873, 1875, 1876, 1879, 1884.

Career highlight stat: 2066 hits (in 1560 games).

Honoraria and statistical crowns: Rates triple crown (AVG/OBP/SLG) in 1877. Another batting title in 1875. Led in hits once, triples once, RBI three times, plus numerous Top Ten finishes in various positive stats. Member of six league champion teams (Red Stockings 1873-75, including the amazing 71-8 team in '75, White Stockings 1876, Red Caps 1877, and Wolverines 1887).

BBWAA voting: never nominated (no surprise, given the era in which he played).
VC voting: never nominated, 2003-07.


Baseball bonus points: White was a player/manager, very briefly, in 1872 and 1879, compiling a 9-11 record. Just tossin' it in there. White also holds the distinction of recording the first ever major league hit, doubling to lead off the top of the first on 04-May-1871.

To me, White is a perfect candidate for the pre-1943 debut ballot -- it should be used to unearth, evaluate, and recognize really olde-tymers, not guys who just scrape by the ballot cutoff by virtue of debuting in, oh, 1940 or so. Of these ten candidates, six debuted in 1927 or later, so the BBWAA ballot certainly has had its chances at them, as well as the various iterations of the VC; not that they're not worthy of evaluating again, certainly they are (even those whom have been rejected decisively, multiple times), but the pre-1943 ballot is the only doorway left for the 19th century men. White dates back to the very beginnings of major league baseball, having played in the 1871 National Association.

White's positional versatility is something rarely seen, certainly not today (maybe Craig Biggio). The game was different back then, at least how it was played and approached (the parts about hit the ball, catch the ball, throw the ball, score runs is still the same). White wasn't a great fielder anywhere, but he made up for it with his bat. The man could HIT. Seasons were shorter back in White's era -- he only played 100+ games in four seasons, and for the first time in 1884 -- but he made the most of them. Rate stats tell us what counting stats cannot, due to lack of opportunity, and White's rates are very impressive indeed, often rising to the level of greatness I think belongs in the Hall. I don't think there are many unearthed gems left in the deeps of baseball history, few injustices where men have been overlooked, but here is one of those few.

Chipmaker's vote: Yes.


Summing up...

My votes would go to Gordon, Magee, Stephens, and White.

I'm not going to make any predictions about the voting for these candidates because this is the initial cycle of this particular ballot under the current Veterans Committee format. But I will publicly place a hope -- that at least one player gets inducted, and here my preference would be for Gordon or White first.

This ballot will be voted in December at the baseball winter meetings, with the results announced a day later. The Hall will have a second VC ballot to announce sometime soon, that of players who debuted in 1943 or later, and here I hope that Ron Santo gets named on the ballot and then, long overdue but still a welcome result, gets elected as part of the Class of 2009. I'll review that ballot when it is announced, and as for Santo -- we'll see.