Bert Blyleven's Boosters

Happy Belated Birthday to Bert Blyleven (April 6th)! I hope it was a great one!

With Paul Orndorff: Legacy – I just got recognized as one of their top fans! 🎉

With Lando Kalriz – I just got recognized as one of their top fans! 🎉

Be thankful that I am not a BBWAA voter. Not because I value certain traits over others or couldn't calculate WAR, but because I value certain behaviors by the players. Dave Kingman would never get into Cooperstown despite 442 home runs. Steroid users and repeated gamblers will never get my vote. You can argue these cases with me over and over, but there are three former ballplayers who aren't in Cooperstown who would get my vote. Each time and every time. Steve Blass, Pete Harnisch, and Jonathan Lucroy. Why these guys? I will tell you. I met Steve Blass, courtesy of my late uncle, Howard Goldstein, and his wife, Helene. Blass, who was born in Canaan, CT, had a record of 103-76. Steve had sixteen shutouts and two saves. His career WHIP was 1.349. Blass had five shutouts in 1971. His best year was 1972. As an All Star, he had nineteen wins and eight losses. His ERA was 2.49. Blass had 84 walks, 117 strikeouts, and a WHIP of 1.246. If it weren't for Steve Carlton's amazing year for Philadelphia, Blass would have won the Cy Young Award. Carlton won the award for a Phillie team that won 59 games; the Pirates won 96. However, Blass's luck took a disastrous turn the following year. He went three and nine with an ERA of 9.85. Worse, Blass only 27 strikeouts. Yet, he'd get my vote. Why? I traded a magazine with Clemente on the cover for a baseball, two baseball cards, and a BIG picture of him with Manny Sanguillen; all autographed. Pete Harnisch, like Blass, is a one-time All Star. Harnisch was born in Commack, NY. A former student from Fordham University in New York City, Harnisch won 111 games and lost 103. He also had eleven shutouts and a WHIP of 1.296. Harnisch had four shutouts in 1993. Harnisch had his best year in 1991. He won twelve games and lost nine with an ERA of 2.70. Harnisch had two shutouts, 83 walks, 172 strikeouts, and a WHIP of 1.163. So why would he get my vote? I read an article in Sports Illustrated that said something about one of his family members that was having problems. I wrote a cheery note wishing the family well and that he would have a great season. Some time later, I received an autographed baseball card...free of charge. Finally, I would save most of my energy for defending the reasons why Jonathan Lucroy belongs in Cooperstown. The native of Eustis, FL was a catcher and first baseman for several teams. Lucroy mostly played for the Brewers and the Rangers. Lucroy was an All Star in 2014 and 2016. In 2014, Jonathan had 176 hits, including 53 doubles. This tied the club record held by Lyle Overbay from 2004. Also, Lucroy had two triples, thirteen home runs, and 69 RBI's and a batting average of .301. So why does this man get my vote? When his wife accidently dropped a suitcase that caused a wrist injury and forced Lucroy to go one the Disabled List, his wife got death threats. Classy. I wrote a note reminding Lucroy that the idiots who wrote the death threats weren't real fans. Like Harnisch, Lucroy went me an autographed baseball card for free. What pushes me over the top with Lucroy is what happened several years later. I sent him three baseball cards later along with a SASE. I did the same thing to two other baseball players. Lucroy was the only man who signed all three cards. Remember your heroes and have a peaceful new year.

Some time ago, I wrote that Dale Murphy was not a Hall of Famer. Later, I said that he was. I thought that it would be appropriate to say why he is. Part of the reason is his work ethic; part of the reason is Andre Dawson. Both were great outfielders. Both ballplayers played mostly in the National League. Andre Dawson was enshrined in 2010. Murphy could be enshrined this year if the Veteran's Committee agrees. There are approximately twenty ballplayers who have won multiple MVP awards. Four of them are still playing as of November 25, 2025. About three of them are linked to steroids. Albert Pujols and Miguel Cabrera will be eligible soon. That just leaves Roger Maris and Dale Murphy as the only two players who are not in Cooperstown. I may review Maris's case for enshrinement sometime. Murphy won the Most Valuable Player award in 1982 and 1983. His WAR was 13.2. Murphy had 346 hits, 47 doubles, six triples, 72 home runs, and 230 runs batted in for 1982-3. He stole 53 bases and was caught stealing six times. His batting average was .291. Dawson's WAR was 14.8 and he had 372 hits. Dawson had 73 doubles, 27 triples, 55 home runs, and 196 runs batted in. Dawson stole 64 bases and was caught stealing twenty-one times. His batting average was .300. Dawson was the first runner-up to Murphy for Most Valuable Player in 1983. IMHO, Murphy was arguably the batter player for 1982-3. So why is Dawson in Cooperstown and Murphy isn't? Endurance. Dawson won the National League Rookie of the Year in 1977 with Montreal. Andre also won the Most Valuable Player Award with the Cubs a decade later. Dawson was an eight-time All-Star, an eight-time Gold Glove winner, and a four-time winner of the Silver Slugger. Not bad for a guy with bad knees who was drafted in the 11th round from Florida A & M. Murphy was the fifth overall pick who was drafted in June 1974. Like Dawson, Murphy had bad knees and four Silver Slugger awards. Unlike Dawson, Murphy was a seven-time All-Star and a five-time Gold Glove winner. Murphy's career batting average was .265 and he had 398 home runs. Dawson's career batting average was .279 and he had 438 home runs. In short, Murphy was better than Dawson for two seasons, but Dawson might have had a better career than Murphy. Murphy tried to be Atlanta's answer at catcher, but he ended up being a stellar center fielder instead. Does this mean that Dawson doesn't belong in Cooperstown. No. Of the eight baseball players with 300 home runs and 300 stolen bases, only Andre Dawson and Willie Mays are in Cooperstown. Moreover, there are nine baseball players who have 2000 hits, 400 doubles, 49 triples, 300 home runs, 200 stolen bases, and an MVP award. They are Hank Aaron, Barry Bonds, George Brett, Dawson, Reggie Jackson, Willie Mays, Frank Robinson, Larry Walker, and Andrew McCutchen. Of those nine baseball players, only Barry Bonds and Andrew McCutchen are not in Cooperstown. Bonds isn't in due to BALCO and McCutchen was still playing in the major leagues. What I am saying is this...Dawson belongs in Cooperstown. So does Murphy. Good luck #3. Happy Thanksgiving!

I thought while I had some time, why not research the case of Fred Lynn. So I did. Of two major league baseball players, he was the first one to win Rookie of the Year and Most Valuable Player in the same year. Hall of Famer Ichiro Suzuki was the other. In 1979, Lynn placed fourth in the MVP voting despite an 8.9 WAR. California's Don Baylor won the award. Baylor's WAR was 3.7. Ken Singleton of Baltimore was second and George Brett of Kansas City was third. Lynn was a nine-time All-Star from 1975-1983. Fred also won a Gold Glove in 1975, 1978, 1979, and 1980. He only had 100 strikeouts in 1985. He had more walks than strikeouts from 1978 to 1980. His career OPS was .845 and his batting average was .283. Unfortunately, that is where the good news ends. Lynn's career WAR is 50.2 and he has only 306 home runs. Worse, out of 126 stolen base attempts, Lynn succeeded just 72 times. I like Fred Lynn, but it would take a lot to convince me to cast a ballot for him for Cooperstown if I were a voter for the BBWAA. Next up, Dale Murphy and why I changed my mind on him.

I said I would do it so if you hate my talking about The Hawk, please stop reading this post. Andre Dawson IS a Hall of Famer, period. But what about his career WAR of 64.8? WAR? Good G-d, y'all! What is it good for? Absolutely nothing! Some Hall of Famers have a higher WAR, true; but Bill Mazeroski (36.5), Dick Allen (58.8), and Dave Parker (40.1) are also Hall of Famers and have a lower WAR than Dawson. They got elected via the Veteran's Committee. Touche. What else? Prior to 1999, Dawson's 1039 extra-base hits were the most of anyone who wasn't enshrined. Dawson is one of the eight men who is a member of the 300 home run-300 stolen base club. The other seven are Carlos Beltran, Barry Bonds, Bobby Bonds, Steve Finley ,Willie Mays, Alex Rodriguez, and Reggie Sanders. Only Willie Mays is the other man who belongs to this group to be in Cooperstown. If that list doesn't do it for you, how about this one? There are nine baseball players who have 2000 hits, 500 doubles, 49 triples, 300 home runs, 1100 runs batted in, 200 stolen bases, and an MVP award. Andre Dawson is on the list. The others? They are Hank Aaron, Barry Bonds, George Brett, Reggie Jackson, Willie Mays, Andrew McCutchen, Frank Robinson, and Larry Walker. Only Barry Bonds (BALCO) and Andrew McCutchen (currently playing) are not in Cooperstown. Need more data? How about this? Read The Real 100 Best Baseball Players of All Time...and Why! by Ken Shouler. Dawson is the 72nd best hitter. He ranks over Hall of Famers such as Jim Rice and Tony Perez. Oh, the Hawk is also above Richie Allen, Richie Ashburn, Max Carey, Orlando Cepeda, Ed Delehanty, Bill Dickey, Nellie Fox, Billy Hamilton, Gil Hodges, Willie Keeler, Chuck Klein, Fred McGriff, Joe Medwick, Kirby Puckett, Tim Raines, Sam Rice, Ron Santo, Bill Terry, and Zack Wheat. They are all in Cooperstown. Granted, Dawson's career OBP is very low (.323), but his SLG is .482. It mattered to Reds manager Lou Piniella. In a tight game on May 22nd, 1990 at Wrigley Field; Piniella ordered that his pitchers intentionally walk Dawson FIVE times in a 16-inning contest. The Reds lost 2-1. The Reds, however, swept the Athletics in four straight games to win the 1990 World Series. Dawson's 438 home runs, 1591 runs batted in, and 1039 extra base hits are still in the top fifty among all baseball hitters. All 23,615 of them. Next time, I will discuss Fred Lynn, a man who won the MVP award and the Rookie of the Year award in the same season like Ichiro Suzuki.

There are some things I don't understand. Why we park on a driveway and drive on a parkway? Why some politicians feel "entitled" to their jobs instead of doing them? Why isn't Lou Whitaker in Cooperstown? I wish I understood the last one. His WAR is 75.1, which I believe is the highest of any baseball player who played his entire career with one team that isn't in Cooperstown. He has 2369 hits, 244 home runs, and 1084 runs batted in. He stole 143 bases and was caught 75 times for a 65.6 success rate. Whitaker even has more walks than strikeouts. In fact, Whitaker only struck out over one hundred times once. He struck out 109 times in 1987. One year, 1991, he stole 90 bases and was caught 45 times. Whitaker was the Rookie of the Year in 1978. He was a five-time All-Star (1983-7), a three-time Gold Glove winner (1983-5), and a four-time Silver Slugger (1983-5 and 1987). He walked 1197 times and had 1099 strikeouts. Unless his batting average of. 276 is an issue, I am at sea on this one. His batting average is a little below Andre "The Hawk" Dawson (.279), but still...more on Andre Dawson next time.

I alluded to this, so I will say it....Bill Mazeroski is a Hall of Famer. You can't convince me to the contrary. To be fair, I am a Pirates fan. To be fair, I can prove it. In The Big Show by Keith Olbermann and Dan Patrick, Mazeroski is #58 of the 100 players who belong in Cooperstown. Granted, his fielding was better than his hitting. By a lot. This guy led the league in double plays turned surapassing Lou Whitaker and Alan Trammell of the Detroit Tigers (I believe the number is seven hundred.) It breaks down to thirty-six runs saved or so. Mazeroski also won eight Gold Gloves at second base. You can find this information on pages 166-7 of the book by Olbermann and Patrick. He was the Ozzie Smith of his day. In some ways, his batting was worse than Ozzie's. Mazeroski had only 2016 hits, including 494 extra-base hits. He tried stealing a base fifty times. Mazeroski only succeeded 27 times. That's 54%. He was a ten-time All-Star from 1958 to 1967 (some years had two All-Star games a year). His on-base percentage was an embarrassing .299. So why is Mazeroski in Cooperstown? The Veterans' Committee. Joe E. Brown, former Pirates General Manager, stumped for him and Mazeroski got the votes. Oh, yeah, the home run to win the 1960 World Series helped. It allowed the Pirates to edge the Yankees and win 4 games to 3 despite being outscored in aggregate. Need more literature? Read Twin Killing: The Bill Mazeroski story by John T. Bird. His teammates will tell you all about him and his many accomplishments from Steve Blass to Dick Groat to Elroy Face. Even Bobby Richardson of the Yankees chimes in on this 315 page book. When it comes to second baseman, Mazeroski is one of the best. Whitaker might be better overall, but that is a topic for next time.

Harold Baines is a Hall of Famer. His plaque deserves an asterisk, though. Not due to drugs, but a rigged voting system. More on that later. Baines is one of eleven players to hit ten home runs a year for seventeen years or more. The others are Hank Aaron, Eddie Murray, Carl Yastrzemski, Barry Bonds, Albert Pujols, Frank Robinson, Mickey Mantle, Jeff Kent, Willie McCovey, and Andrew McCutchen. Bonds isn't in due to BALCO. Pujols isn't eligible yet. Kent isn't in Cooperstown and McCutchen is still playing as of October 29th, 2025. He has 384 home runs, a .289 batting average, 1628 RBI's, and 1062 walks. He isn't a Hall of Famer due to a horrendous WAR (38.8), 1441 strikeouts, and only one World Series appearance. Worse, he stole 34 bases. How many times was he caught?? 34. So how did Baines get in? Simple. The Veteran's Committee. In baseball, you need at least 75% of all ballots to get into the Hall. There are sixteen members in the Committee. Two of the members who elected Baines into Cooperstown were Jerry Reinsdorf, owner of the White Sox, and Tony LaRussa, former manager of the White Sox. What team drafted Harold Baines? Bill Veeck's Chicago White Sox. What a surprise! How to fix this?? Increase the number of voters in the Veteran's Committee to 32. It may not stop all stuffing of the ballots; it may dilute it. Some people said the same thing when former Pirate general manager Joe E. Brown stumped for former Pirate second baseman Bill Mazeroski. More on Mazeroski another time.

Hey, Moe. FYI.

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