Peter Aiken- USA Today Sports
For Boston Red Sox fans, when asked if David Ortiz should be inducted into the Baseball Hall of Fame, the answer is simple.
Of course.
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I’d love to believe that were true. The numbers certainly say as much. 425 career home runs, 1404 career RBIs, and a lifetime .381 career on-base percentage. Ortiz has finished top-five in the MVP voting five times in his career (although he’s never won the award), and could be well on his way to another top-five finish.
He’s also a nine-time all-star and will most likely reach 10 all-star appearances next year, something only 50 or so players have done in MLB history. The majority of those players are in the Hall of Fame.
Ortiz has Hall of Fame credentials — but his Hall of Fame status is far from a sure thing.
As far as Cooperstown goes, the designated hitter tag casts a dark shadow on any player worthy of induction.
Harold Baines was one of the most dominant hitters in the game for most of his 22-year career, hitting .289 and driving in at least 90 in nine seasons. Of players eligible for the Hall of Fame without a steroid asterisk next to their name, Baines has the most runs batted in with 1628.
But, he’ll most likely never make it into Cooperstown.
Edgar Martinez hit .356 in 1995 as a DH, finishing his career with an unheard-of .312 batting average. He also hit over 300 career HRs and had an OPS of .933. Martinez was the best at what he did for his entire MLB career.
But he’ll most likely never make it into Cooperstown, either.
It’s a shame really. I just don’t understand. If a player plays a vital role on his team, leading his organization to playoff appearances and World Series titles the way Baines, Martinez and Ortiz have, who cares if they play a position or not?
A lot of it is based on circumstance. All of those players would have found places to play and done an adequate job at 1B or a corner OF job if need be, but there teams didn’t need them to. Think about it, Adam Dunn played an abysmal left field almost the entire time he played for the Cincinnati Reds, and Ryan Howard has been playing a sub-par 1B for the Philadelphia Phillies for years now. It’s all based on the opportunities presented.
I just don’t think these guys should get penalized for that. Especially Ortiz, who has the most hits and RBI as a DH in the history of baseball. Combine Ortiz’s numbers with his postseason prowess as well (12 HR 47 RBIs in 66 career postseason games), and he should be a surefire inductee.
But he won’t be.
Unfortunately for Ortiz, there’s more than just the DH* next to his name, there’s also the steroid* next to his name as well.
In 2003, Ortiz was one of 100 players who tested positive for banned substances during random survey testing, a report that didn’t come out until 2009. The MLBPA issued a counter statement saying that not all 100 players tested positive for what could be considered steroids, but the damage was done.
David Ortiz and steroids became synonymous, ruining his image as a clean player, whether he took steroids or not.
It ruined his chance of ever making it into the baseball Hall of Fame, too.
Shawn Ferris is a Boston Red Sox and Fantasy Sports Writer for www.rantsports.com. Follow him on Twitter @RealShawnFerris, “like” him on Facebook, or add him to your network on Google.
