I think most of you know my position on Ron. I really love and respect the guy for what he does for JDRF, yet I think the guy is unprofessional and a horrible analyst. My one problem continues to be, does the guy really deserve to be in the Hall of Fame? I never saw him play, so I am stuck with stats. One article tells you that if you go off sabermetrics, he was invaluable to his team in terms of fielding and walks. When I look at his stats, I see an average to above average player, at best. His BA is .277. Now, I realize BA is not everything as Mike Schmidt had a .267 average; however, Schmidt had over 500 HRs. I think Baseball Reference really knocks it out of the park for me. If you subscribe to Bill James numbers, he is below average on every test. The batters he is most similar to? Dale Murphy? Adrian Beltre? Ken Boyer?

That all being said, I want to end this argument, once and for all, right here, right now. Please, convince me one way or the other.

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Bill James ranked him as the 6th best third baseman of all time about five years ago. Not sure if anyone else would have passed him by now.

pretty much the equivalent hitter as jim rice, but a better fielder at a more important position.

i gather he was kind of an a-hole and not liked by his contemporaries.

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Reality is your friend, not your enemy. -- Seacrest

I'm against the "Veterans" committee inducting any former MLB players ever again. Even the "Veterans Committee"
seems to be against inducting any former MLB players ever again.

For whatever reasons he never got the votes and/or respect of his peers or those who came before him as a legitimate HOF player. Many of those reasons may be spiteful, many may be a reaction to the SOB he was perceived as being.

But, there is 30 years of rejection by those who remember his career, despite(even because of?) his omnipresent campaigning. That has to be worth something in the final judgment.

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There are only two examples of infinity: The universe and human stupidity and I'm not sure about the universe.

You forgot to after this one.

He isn't a HOF'er. Accept it and move on.

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1926-1931-1934-1942-1944-1946-1964-1967-1982-2006-2011

The man needs to move on. He is a legend, he was a great player. Just let it go and enjoy all that you have left.

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That's my purse! I don't know you!

Santo started up in 1961. So in the last 50 years,who was a better 3rd sacker? How many names can you throw in the argument? Schmidt & Robinson,Boggs,George Brett?
Who was a better overall 3rd baseman? Schmidt,maybe Robinson? He should be in. I saw him play but never truly appreciated him until I took a step back and realized he didn't have too many guys that compared to him. There are only 10 3rd basemen in the HOF. I think Santo deserves it.

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favrefan said:"Chris Coghlan isn't gonna pay your rent, Jimmy."

brooks robinson hit .267 lifetime. he was a one-of-a-kind fielder, no doubt, but santo was no slouch with the glove himself, with much better stats at the plate. using robinson as the standard for third basemen of that era, santo should be in. my stance remains the same on the HOF in general, too many in there already.

Which is greater, the number of times Santo has been denied entry into the Hall of Fame or threads about Santo and the Hall of Fame? I'll take the former by a leg....I mean nose.

If Santo gets in, the clamor will build for Willie Smith, Don Kessinger and Glenn Beckert!!!!

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There goes one over the fence..Tru Link Fence..Beauty, Privacy Security....Call Tru Link.
Murph's Union 76 Truck Stop....A great Thanksgiving Tradition!!!!

WOO LIFE!!!!

What about Arne Harris?
He brought 'The Hat Shot' to televised baseball games...."The Hat" with a whole hell of a lot of T & A!!!!!

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There goes one over the fence..Tru Link Fence..Beauty, Privacy Security....Call Tru Link.
Murph's Union 76 Truck Stop....A great Thanksgiving Tradition!!!!

WOO LIFE!!!!

How about former Cubs TV announcer Jimmy West......the RALLY SPECIALIST?

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There goes one over the fence..Tru Link Fence..Beauty, Privacy Security....Call Tru Link.
Murph's Union 76 Truck Stop....A great Thanksgiving Tradition!!!!

WOO LIFE!!!!

Let him in, make him happy. The Baseball HoF and the selection process are so stupid it doesn't matter. The "sanctitity" of the place is long gone and when they start putting roid guys in it will only get worse. Some people are as passionately against him getting in as Santo is for himself getting in.

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That's my purse! I don't know you!

Hey,I like Jim West! His trademark catch phrase when he did the Hawk Games: "Look Out Here"

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favrefan said:"Chris Coghlan isn't gonna pay your rent, Jimmy."

Good post. I am in the same situation, never saw this guy play, was just being born at the time, but guys like my dad and his generation of cub fans OF COURSE say he's the second coming at 3rd base. But like you mentioned, when you look at the #'s it's average. And the first few times he was on the ballot I guess he didnt even get that # of votes.

I know #'s dont tell the whole story, but it's hard for me to go off guys like my dad's generation where that loser 1969 team is the greatest team of all time when they didnt win shit. It sort of blows any credibility I have when I hear that crap about that team from guys from that generation ..... i.e. Mike Murphy.

Sadly, if he gets in, it'll be when he's gone. Santo knows it too. Thats the way the Veterns Committee works, and Santo's their bitch.

BTW, thanks to all for posting, it helped.

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