Next up in my HOF series is Gary Sheffield. Sheffield has already been out of the game for a few years so his numbers are final. He will be on the ballot in 2015. To me Gary Sheffield was always kind of an afterthought when discussing the top sluggers of the 90s and 00s. He had a great career and put up some big numbers but he was never one of the first names I thought about when thinking of the great players of that era.
If you look at Sheffields numbers you could easily argue that he should be in the HOF. Hes in the 500 home run club which used to be an automatic ticket to Cooperstown. That stat doesnt mean quite as much as it used to but it is still impressive. Sheffield also has 1676 RBI which puts him at 26th all time. A career .292 average (he hit over .300 ten times) and 2689 hits arent overly impressive but they are certainly solid numbers to go along with the big power numbers. Some people are of the mindset that if you have to research someones numbers to determine if theyre a hall of famer they are likely not a hall of famer. You should just know a hall of famer when you hear his name. Im not sure I agree with that (as is evident by this series Im doing for which I have many more names in mind) but I understand that viewpoint.
I think Sheffield was somewhat of an afterthought to me because he never stayed in one place for very long. Most hall of famers are associated with a certain team even if they played for a few throughout their career. Sheffield had some great years with a few different teams but he was never the face of the franchise for anyone because he bounced around so much. The longest he ever spent with one franchise was when he was traded to the Marlins about halfway through the 1993 season before he was traded from them early in the 1998 season. I think if Sheffield put up the exact same career numbers but spent ten to fifteen years with one team it would be easier to picture him in Cooperstown.
I think if I had a vote I would probably vote Sheffield in but hes not a lock despite those 500 plus home runs. What do you think?
If you look at Sheffields numbers you could easily argue that he should be in the HOF. Hes in the 500 home run club which used to be an automatic ticket to Cooperstown. That stat doesnt mean quite as much as it used to but it is still impressive. Sheffield also has 1676 RBI which puts him at 26th all time. A career .292 average (he hit over .300 ten times) and 2689 hits arent overly impressive but they are certainly solid numbers to go along with the big power numbers. Some people are of the mindset that if you have to research someones numbers to determine if theyre a hall of famer they are likely not a hall of famer. You should just know a hall of famer when you hear his name. Im not sure I agree with that (as is evident by this series Im doing for which I have many more names in mind) but I understand that viewpoint.
I think Sheffield was somewhat of an afterthought to me because he never stayed in one place for very long. Most hall of famers are associated with a certain team even if they played for a few throughout their career. Sheffield had some great years with a few different teams but he was never the face of the franchise for anyone because he bounced around so much. The longest he ever spent with one franchise was when he was traded to the Marlins about halfway through the 1993 season before he was traded from them early in the 1998 season. I think if Sheffield put up the exact same career numbers but spent ten to fifteen years with one team it would be easier to picture him in Cooperstown.
I think if I had a vote I would probably vote Sheffield in but hes not a lock despite those 500 plus home runs. What do you think?