The Hall of Famers: The 5 Levels of Greatness – Part 4

In this article (the last in this series), I will present the Level 5 players who posted Hall of Fame numbers during the 20 ^th century.  In Levels 1 through 4, there were eighty-eight (88) position players who had a CAWS career score of at least 280.  In Level 5, we have the other twenty-eight (28) players who posted HOF numbers even though they did not achieve the 280 mark – those players who might be considered the “marginal Hall of Famers.”

I will also list in this article those forty-seven (47) major league position players who are in the Hall of Fame – but who did not post HOF numbers according to the CAWS Career Gauge.

Level 5  -  Players with HOF numbers and a CAWS score <280

According to the CAWS Career Gauge, there are twenty-eight (28) players since 1901 who have posted HOF numbers during their playing careers but who did not register a CAWS score of 280 or more.  The CAWS benchmark for each position for obvious HOF numbers is as follows:

1. Left fielder, right fielder, first baseman and designated hitter = 280
2. Center fielder and third baseman = 270
3. Second baseman = 260
4. Shortstop and catcher = 250.

The following players have Hall of Fame numbers according to these benchmarks.

In terms of their career numbers, some fans would probably call these Level 5 players borderline Hall of Famers.  And that may be a fair assessment of players like Jimmy Wynn, Stan Hack, Lou Whitaker and Ted Simmons.  But recall that the CAWS Gauge has identified a total of only one hundred sixteen (116) 20 ^th century position players who have HOF numbers – and these twenty-eight (28) players are among this special group.

All numbers include the 2010 season

Bold  =  Hall of Famer
CWS  =  Career Win Shares
CV      =  Core Value (sum of win shares for 10 best seasons)
CAWS  =  Career Assessment/Win Shares  =  CV  +  .25(CWS – CV)
*  =  deadball era

Center Fielders: CAWS = 270

Player	Years	CWS	CV	CAWS
Jimmy Wynn	1963-1977	305	269	278
Richie Ashburn	1948-1962	329	257	275
Max Carey*	1910-1929	351	245	272
Earl Averill	1929-1941	280	268	271

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Jimmy Wynn is in very good company here with three current Hall of Famers. Yet, when he was eligible for election to the Hall on the 1983 BBWAA ballot, he got no votes at all. You will note that for his ten best seasons he averaged almost 27 win shares per season – a very impressive number and better than any of the other three center fielders here. And you will also note below that there are four other center fielders in the Hall whose career achievements do not come close to Wynn’s.

Jimmy Wynn is the only 20 ^th century center fielder who has HOF numbers and has been eligible and is NOT in Cooperstown.

Third Basemen: CAWS = 270

Player	Years	CWS	CV	CAWS
Brooks Robinson	1955-1977	356	247	274
Stan Hack	1932-1947	316	256	271

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Brooks Robinson is in the Hall primarily because of his defensive skills – and he deserves his spot. Many consider him to be the best fielding third baseman ever.

Stan Hack is the only third baseman with HOF numbers who has been eligible and who is not in the Hall.

Second Basemen: CAWS = 260

Player	Years	CWS	CV	CAWS
Jeff Kent	1992-2008	339	252	274
Bobby Grich	1970-1986	329	253	272
Lou Whitaker	1977-1995	351	232	262

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Here we have three second basemen with HOF numbers and a CAWS score < 280.  Jeff Kent is not yet eligible for the Hall while Bobby Grich and Lou Whitaker have been passed over for the honor.

In terms of who is and who is not in the Hall of Fame, this position may be the strangest of all.  Below you will see that there are eight (8) second basemen in the Hall whose numbers do not come close to Bobby Grich (or Lou Whitaker).  How could they all be elected ahead of Grich?

Shortstops:  CAWS  =  250

Player	Years	CWS	CV	CAWS
Ernie Banks	1953-1971	332	247	268
Pee Wee Reese	1940-1958	314	246	263
Lou Boudreau	1938-1952	277	255	261
Alan Trammell	1977-1996	318	238	258
Bobby Wallace*	1894-1918	345	227	257
Miguel Tejada	1997-	279	243	252
Ozzie Smith	1978-1996	325	226	251

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Alan Trammell is the only shortstop in this group who has so far been snubbed by the BBWAA (Miguel Tejada is not yet eligible). Trammell was on the 2011 HOF ballot but received only 24% of the vote in his tenth year on the ballot.

Catchers: CAWS = 250

Player	Years	CWS	CV	CAWS
Carlton Fisk	1969-1993	368	240	272
Joe Torre	1960-1977	315	244	262
Ted Simmons	1968-1988	315	240	259
Mickey Cochrane	1925-1937	275	250	256
Bill Dickey	1928-1946	314	235	255
Gabby Hartnett	1922-1941	325	229	253
Ivan Rodriguez	1991-	334	225	252

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Joe Torre and Ted Simmons both have HOF numbers for a catcher according to the CAWS benchmark.  We can only hope that the Veteran’s Committee will do its homework and elect these two worthy players sometime soon.  IRod, of course, is not yet eligible.

These five groups above contain the names of twenty-three (23) additional players who posted Hall of Fame numbers during their playing careers (since 1901).

The final group of five position players in Level 5 who have HOF numbers represents a very special category.  Only eleven players in the 20 ^th century managed to post a CAWS score of 255 while playing in fewer than 1800 games. And all eleven are in the Hall of Fame. The CAWS Gauge suggests that all eleven have HOF numbers.  Here are the five players (of those eleven) who have not yet been mentioned in Levels 1 to 4 discussed earlier.

Short but Great Career:  CAWS = 255 in Fewer Than 1800 Games

Player	Years	CWS	CV	CAWS
Hank Greenberg	1930-1947	267	262	263
Bill Terry	1923-1936	278	255	261
Larry Doby	1947-1959	268	257	260
Jackie Robinson	1947-1956	257	257	257
Kirby Puckett	1984-1995	281	247	256

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These six groups represent the twenty-eight (28) players in Level 5.  When added to the eighty-eight (88) players from Levels 1 through 4, this gives us the 116 position players since 1901 who have posted obvious HOF numbers according to the CAWS Career Gauge.

Note that of these twenty-eight (28) players all but seven who have been eligible have been elected to the Hall of Fame.  The seven who have been snubbed so far are: Jimmy Wynn, Stan Hack, Bobby Grich, Lou Whitaker, Alan Trammell, Joe Torre and Ted Simmons.

What this means is that of the 116 20 ^th century position players identified by the CAWS Gauge as having HOF numbers , a total of twelve have been passed over completely for election to the Hall(that is, have been eligible and not still on the ballot).  That would include six of those in the previous paragraph (Trammell is still on the ballot) plus these six: Dick Allen, Ron Santo, Will Clark, Darrell Evans and two from the deadball era: Sherry Magee and Bill Dahlen.

In light of these worthy players NOT being in the Hall, it is disappointing to find that there are forty-seven (47) position players who are in the Hall of Fame but who do not have the performance numbers to be there according to the CAWS Career Gauge.

The 47 Hall of Fame Position Players Who Do Not Have HOF Numbers

The CAWS Career Gauge has identified forty-seven (47) 20 ^th century position players who are in the Hall of Fame but who did not post obvious HOF numbers during their playing careers.  Keep in mind that in an exceptional case a player may be a worthy Hall of Famer even though he may not have HOF numbers.  Roy Campanella, for example, was a great player whose career was seriously affected by the “color barrier.”  His on-field performance in his ten-year major league career certainly attests to the fact that if he had not been unjustly deprived of his opportunity to play, he would have posted HOF numbers.

CWS = Career Win Shares
CV  =  Core Value (sum of win shares for 10 best seasons)
CAWS = Career Assessment/Win Shares  =  CV  +  .25(CWS – CV)

The Right Fielders:  CAWS needed  =  280  =  8 Players

Player	CWS	CV	CAWS
Willie Keeler	333	246	268
Enos Slaughter	323	246	265
Andre Dawson	340	234	261
Kiki Cuyler	292	244	256
Sam Rice	327	228	253
Harry Hooper	321	221	246
Chuck Klein	238	217	222
Ross Youngs	206	206	206

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The Left Fielders:  CAWS needed  =  280  =  5 Players

Player	CWS	CV	CAWS
Joe Medwick	312	267	278
Heinie Manush	285	236	248
Jim Rice	282	233	245
Ralph Kiner	242	242	242
Chick Hafey	186	176	179

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In these two groups, only Joe Medwick came very close to reaching the CAWS 280 benchmark for obvious Hall of Fame numbers.  With a core value (CV) of 267, an argument can certainly be made that he belongs in Cooperstown.  You will note that the next best CV in these two groups is just 246.

Jim Rice and Andre Dawson were elected by the writers to the Hall in 2009 and 2010, respectively – meaning that the BBWAA continues to elect some players who are not truly worthy.

The Center Fielders:  CAWS needed  =  270  =  4 Players

Player	CWS	CV	CAWS
Edd Roush	314	250	266
Hack Wilson	224	220	221
Earle Combs	227	217	220
Lloyd Waner	245	207	217

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Edd Roush could be considered a borderline Hall of Famer with a CAWS score of 266 and a CV of 250.  But what about Jimmy Wynn with a CAWS score of 278 and a CV of 269?  That is significantly better than any of these four.

The First Basemen:  CAWS needed  =  280  =  6 Players

Player	CWS	CV	CAWS
Tony Perez	349	249	274
Orlando Cepeda	310	251	266
George Sisler	292	239	252
Jim Bottomley	258	214	225
Frank Chance	237	206	214
George Kelly	193	177	181

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Tony Perez is close to the benchmark with a CAWS score of 274.  And Orlando Cepeda has a very respectable CV of 250.  But none of the other four is even close to reaching the 280 benchmark.  And how was George Kelly ever elected to the Hall of Fame?

The Second Basemen:  CAWS needed  =  260  =  8 Players

Player	CWS	CV	CAWS
Nellie Fox	304	242	258
Billy Herman	298	243	257
Bobby Doerr	281	223	238
Johnny Evers	268	226	237
Joe Gordon	242	233	235
Tony Lazzeri	252	215	224
Red Schoendienst	262	204	219
Bill Mazeroski	219	173	185

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Nellie Fox and Billie Herman are relatively close to the 260 benchmark for second basemen – so, their elections are not too much of a surprise.  But what about the other six players?  Joe Gordon was elected by the Veteran’s Committee in 2009 – which means that mistakes are still being made in the election process.  Meanwhile, Bobby Grich and Lou Whitaker (who have HOF numbers) are still on the outside looking in.

The Third Basemen:  CAWS needed  =  270  =  4 Players

Player	CWS	CV	CAWS
Jimmy Collins	274	242	250
Pie Traynor	274	228	240
George Kell	229	192	201
Fred Lindstrom	193	182	190

None of these four players came close to the benchmark of 270. And yet Stan Hack’s 316 win shares, 256 core value and a CAWS score of 271 have him sitting on the sidelines.

The Shortstops: CAWS needed = 250 = 7 Players

Player	CWS	CV	CAWS
Joe Sewell	277	233	244
Dave Bancroft	269	222	234
Rabbit Maranville	302	206	230
Joe Tinker	258	211	223
Phil Rizzuto	231	218	221
Luis Aparicio	293	193	218
Travis Jackson	211	191	196

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As you can see, there are seven questionable shortstops on this list who are in the Hall of Fame.  Rabbit Maranville and Luis Aparicio were both exceptional fielders whose election is almost certainly a tribute to their glove work.  But none of these seven really has the combination of offensive and defensive skills that would truly justify his place in Cooperstown.

The Catchers:  CAWS needed  =  250  =  5 Players

Player	CWS	CV	CAWS
Roy Campanella	207	207	207
Roger Bresnahan	231	191	201
Ernie Lombardi	218	167	180
Ray Schalk	191	167	173
Rick Ferrell	206	150	164

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As mentioned earlier, given what he did accomplish in his ten years in the major leagues, Roy Campanella almost certainly would have posted true Hall of Fame numbers if he had not been prevented from playing earlier by the infamous baseball “color barrier.”

These then are the forty-seven (47) 20th century position players who are presently in the Hall of Fame – but who do not appear to have the career numbers that would really justify their being in Cooperstown.

Thanks for your time.

Mike Hoban
Professor Emeritus – City U of NY
Author of A GOOD CAWS: A Hall of Fame Handbook(2011)
http://booklocker.com/books/2968.html