Fred McGriff will be eligible for the Hall of Fame next year, and the folks in Tampa (his home town, and where he currently works) are already banging the drum for his induction.
His basic numbers are pretty good — 493 homers, 1,550 RBIs, a .284 average. Further research by Rays VP Rick Vaughn makes them look even better, noting that all eligible players with similar triple crown category numbers are in and that McGriff compares very favorably with other first baseman in the Hall, as well as those in his era.
As good as McGriff was -- and he was very, very good -- the mention of his name has never sparked the imagination of casual baseball fans. As a player, he was quiet and classy. He didn't court trouble or attention. He didn't win any MVP awards. He just smashed 30-35 home runs and drove in 100 runs every year for 19 seasons.
Over a 15-year stretch from 1988-2002, McGriff was sixth in home runs, trailing Barry Bonds, Mark McGwire, Sammy Sosa, Rafael Palmeiro and Ken Griffey Jr. Over the same stretch, only Bonds and Palmeiro drove in more runs.
And one more thing: Of the players mentioned above, only Griffey and McGriff have never been connected to steroids.
Whatever you think of juicing, it has become quite clear that Hall of Fame voters do care, and are prepared to punish anyone connected to steroids or suspected of using them. Just ask Mark McGwire.
So in contrast, will voters reward McGriff for a resume that is perceived to be clean? The Crime Dog tells the New York Times that he's not sure it should matter:
"I think even without those guys being accused of this and that, my numbers stack up pretty good against those guys," McGriff said. "It's not like they were that much better. If you really start to look at the numbers, I was still right there."
Well said, Fred.
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Out of all the players under the cloud of suspicion, how hasn't anyone raised an eye brow at Fred McGriff? I mean to me he got better with age... didn't some guy named Clemens do the same? With a lil extra help.
@ Scott Keup
Why do you think he should be under suspicion? How did he get better with age? All he ever did was consistently hit with with power and drive in runs his whole career. He got off to a quick start hitting 34 home runs in his 2nd full year, and then proceeded to hit 30+ HR for the next 6 years. He never hit less than 19 hr (when he switched to the AL at age 34) and never more than 37 split between the Padres and the Braves at age 29. He averaged 32 per 162 games for his career. His OPS was between .797 and .957 for his entire career. This is one of the few guys where you look at his career and you don't see any sort of outlier season or sudden increase. He didn't fall off a cliff and then all of a sudden undergo a career resurgence. He almost never had any major injuries, characteristic of so many PED users.
Take a look for yourself: http://www.baseball-reference.com/players/m/mcgrifr01.shtml?redir
Either you're seeing something that nobody else is seeing or you just made an ignorant, off the cuff statement.
Right on target Tommy-1253778. He is a class act and was always under the radar screen because he never had to have the limelight. All he did was produce. Pretty impressive numbers. Thanks for researching the numbers. Pretty clear he should be seriously considered for the Hall.
Hank Aaron had the same similar HR totals year in and year out, just a few more seasons and home runs per year. The point is the consistancy that makes him not have any cloud of suspicion. He could easily have better numbers if he weren't stuck with the awful Devil Rays for the end of his career with nobody to protect his bat. With steroid users it was never about the numbers but how they increased with age. Some players, like Fred stayed constant, or tailed off at the end, like your suppose to do. If Palmeiro wasn't tested positive he may be in the same boat though as well. Very similar production with no major explosion in numbers like some. Thats why we don't know and may never know. I hope he gets in though, in my mind he was clean and a true professional.
Unfortunately, his numbers are going to be compared to his steroid era counterparts. He was overshadowed by the players previously mentioned in the article. However, in hindsight, this guy should be a no brainer for the hall. He was dominant at his position for a decade. Very good, if not great, postseason stats. And, of course, one of the best nicknames in the biz.