Baseball's Hall of Fame or Hall of Shame (5 page)

SECOND BASEMEN (20)

Rogers Hornsby/Charlie Gehringer/Napoleon Lajoie/
Eddie Collins/Joe Morgan

These five men have been grouped together because they were not only the finest second basemen of their respective eras, but were also among the very greatest players of their time. They are clearly deserving of their places in Cooperstown.

Rogers Hornsby is considered by many to have been the greatest righthanded hitter in baseball history. His .358 lifetime batting average is second only to Ty Cobb’s mark of .367, and he was the National League’s most dominant player, and among the two or three best players in the game, for much of the 1920s. During that decade, he won seven batting titles, including six consecutively from 1920 to 1925. Over that six-year stretch, Hornsby batted .400 or better three times, reaching a career-best .424 in 1924. From 1921 to 1925, his
combined
average was over .400.

Hornsby was the best player in the game in at least three seasons. In 1922, he won the first of his two triple crowns for the Cardinals by leading the league with 42 home runs, 152 runs batted in, and a batting average of .401, while scoring 141 runs and collecting 250 hits. In 1925, Hornsby won his second triple crown and first Most Valuable Player Award by hitting 39 home runs, driving in 143 runs, and batting .403, while scoring 133 runs and tallying 203 hits. In 1929, with the Cubs, he won his second MVP Award by hitting 39 homers, knocking in 149 runs, batting .380, scoring 156 runs, and collecting 229 hits. During his career, Hornsby led the league in home runs twice, runs batted in, doubles and hits four times each, runs scored five times, on-base percentage eight times, and slugging percentage ten times. He finished his career with 301 home runs (second only to Jeff Kent all-time among second basemen), and an on-base percentage of .434, along with a slugging percentage of .577—both records for second basemen.

Charlie Gehringer was the finest second baseman in the American League from 1927 to 1938, and the best second baseman in the game for virtually all of the 1930s. In fact, he was one of the five or six best all-around players in baseball for much of that decade. Combining superb hitting and run-production with excellent defense, Gehringer was one of the most complete players of his era. Seven times during his career he drove in more than 100 runs, and 12 times he crossed the plate more than 100 times himself. He also had 200 or more hits in a season seven times, and hit .300 or better 14 times. At different times, he led the league in batting average, triples, doubles, stolen bases, hits, runs scored, putouts and fielding. Gehringer also won the league’s Most Valuable Player Award in 1937 and finished in the top five in the voting on two other occasions. He ended his career with a .320 batting average, and finished second all-time among second basemen with 1,774 runs scored and a .480 slugging percentage.

Napoleon Lajoie was the finest second baseman in baseball, and the best player in the American League, for the first decade of the twentieth century. During that ten-year period, Lajoie led the league in runs batted in three times, batting average four times, home runs once, doubles five times, hits four times, runs scored once, and slugging percentage four times. In 1901, he won the league’s triple crown by hitting 14 home runs, knocking in 125 runs and batting .426, the highest single-season batting average attained since 1900. He was also a fine fielder, having led league second basemen in fielding six times. Over the course of his career, Lajoie accumulated 1,599 runs batted in and 657 doubles, both records for a second baseman. In addition, his .338 career average and 3,242 hits place him second all-time among second basemen (behind only Hornsby in batting average and Eddie Collins in hits).

Eddie Collins bridged the gap between Nap Lajoie and Charlie Gehringer as the best second baseman in the American League, holding that distinction from 1911 to 1925. In fact, prior to Rogers Hornsby establishing himself as the National League’s best player in 1920, Collins was the best second baseman in baseball over a nine-year stretch. During his career, he led the A.L. in batting and on-base percentage once each, runs scored three times, and stolen bases four times. He finished his career with more hits (3,312), runs scored (1,821), stolen bases (744), and triples (186) than any other second baseman in history. His .333 lifetime batting average and .424 on-base percentage also rank with the best. Even though the American League did not present a Most Valuable Player Award for any of the seasons from 1915 to 1921—some of Collins’ peak years—he still managed to finish in the top five in the MVP voting five times during his career. He won the award in 1914, when he helped lead the Philadelphia Athletics to the pennant. He also won two more pennants with the Chicago White Sox in 1917 and 1919, so it could definitely be said that he possessed many of the intangibles one would look for in a Hall of Famer.

Joe Morgan was a good player with the Houston Astros from 1965 to 1971, but a great one with the Cincinnati Reds from 1972 to 1977. After Morgan was traded to Cincinnati in a multi-player deal following the 1971 season, Reds’ manager Sparky Anderson quickly recognized the intelligence with which he played the game and gave his new second baseman total freedom both at the plate and on the basepaths. The result was the maturation of Morgan into the best second baseman in baseball, and one of the finest players in the game, distinctions he held for the next six seasons. In fact, Morgan was named the National League’s Most Valuable Player in both 1975 and 1976, and, for those two seasons, was the finest all-around player in the game, leading his team to consecutive world championships. In 1975, Morgan hit 17 home runs, knocked in 94 runs, batted .327, stole 67 bases, and led the league in both walks (132) and on-base percentage (.471). The following season, he was even better, finishing the campaign with 27 homers, 111 runs batted in, and an average of .320, while leading the league in both on-base (.453) and slugging percentage (.576). Morgan finished his career with 1,650 runs scored, 268 home runs, 689 stolen bases, and an on-base percentage of .395.

Frankie Frisch/Jackie Robinson/Rod Carew

These three men form the next tier of outstanding second basemen who clearly earned their places in Cooperstown.

Only Rogers Hornsby kept Frankie Frisch from being the National League’s best second baseman for virtually all of the 1920s. Still, Frisch was the league’s top player at that position in 1927, and from 1930 to 1934. In fact, he was the best second baseman in baseball in both 1927 and 1931, finishing second to Paul Waner in the N.L. MVP voting in 1927, and winning the award in 1931. In the first of those two years, Frisch had probably his finest all-around season after being traded to the Cardinals from the Giants during the off-season for Hornsby. That year, Frisch hit .337, led the league in steals, and handled a record 1,059 chances (including a record 641 assists). During his career, Frisch topped the .300 mark 13 times, including 11 straight seasons from 1921 to 1931. He also surpassed the 100 RBI-mark three times and scored more than 100 runs seven times. He led the league in hits and runs scored once each, and also topped the circuit in stolen bases three times. Frisch ended his career with a batting average of .316, 2,880 hits, and 419 stolen bases.

The historical significance that Jackie Robinson had on the game of baseball, in itself, probably earned him his place in Cooperstown. The strength and courage he showed in the face of the taunts and abuse he had to endure from fans, opposing players, and even his own teammates in some instances were the embodiment of the best the human spirit has to offer. However, Robinson was also a superb baseball player who, had he not had to deal with the overwhelming pressure of being the first black player to play in the major leagues, would undoubtedly have been even better. As it is, he was the best second baseman in the game from 1949 to 1953, hitting well over .300 each season and scoring more than 100 runs in four of those years. Robinson had his finest season in 1949, when he hit 16 home runs, knocked in 124 runs, scored 122 others, had 203 hits, and led the league with a .342 batting average en route to winning the Most Valuable Player Award. His competitive spirit and desire to win were recognized as one of the driving forces behind the Dodgers’ success during his years in Brooklyn, since the writers who voted annually for the league’s MVP placed him in the top 10 in the balloting in four of his ten seasons in the league.

Although Rod Carew spent the second half of his career playing first base, he was the best second baseman in the American League from 1967 to 1975, and the best in baseball in at least two or three of those seasons. During his career, Carew won seven batting titles, leading the league each year from 1972 to 1975. He also led the league in hits three times, runs scored once, triples twice, and on-base percentage four times.. He had more than 200 hits four times, stole more than 30 bases four times, and hit over .300 fifteen years in a row, from 1969 to 1983, including five seasons of .350 or better. His career batting average of .328 was, at the time of his retirement, the highest career average of any player who played in at least 1,000 games since Ted Williams retired in 1960. Carew also was voted the American League’s Most Valuable Player in 1977 when he reached career highs in batting (.388), home runs (14), runs batted in (100), slugging percentage (.570), triples (16), hits (239), and runs scored (128), and led the league in five different offensive categories. In addition, he was selected to the All-Star team on 18 different occasions.

Ryne Sandberg

As one of the finest all-around second baseman ever to play the game, Ryne Sandberg was clearly deserving of his 2005 election to Cooperstown. For a nine-year period, beginning in 1984 and ending in 1992, Sandberg was the best second baseman in baseball. Over that stretch, he hit more than 25 homers five times, knocked in 100 runs twice, scored more than 100 runs six times, and batted over .300 four times. Sandberg was voted the National League’s Most Valuable Player in 1984 when he hit 19 home runs, knocked in 84 runs, batted .314, collected 200 hits, and led the league with 19 triples and 114 runs scored in leading the Chicago Cubs to the N.L. East title. The following year, he stole a career-high 54 bases, and, in 1990, he became only the third second baseman in major league history to hit 40 home runs in a season (Rogers Hornsby and Davey Johnson were the others). In so doing, Sandberg also became the only player ever to have seasons in which he hit 40 home runs, stole 50 bases, and compiled 200 hits. In all, he hit more than 25 homers six times, stole more than 30 bases five times, and scored more than 100 runs seven times. Sandberg led the National League in runs scored three times, and in home runs, triples, and total bases once each.

As good an offensive player as Sandberg was, he was even better in the field. His defensive resume is as impressive as that of any second baseman who ever played the game. In addition to winning nine Gold Gloves, he is the all-time leader in fielding average among major league second basemen, with a mark of .990. From June 21, 1989 to May 17, 1990, he played 123 consecutive games and accepted 582 chances without making an error, both records for National League second basemen.. During his career, he put together streaks of 30 or more errorless games 15 times.

Sandberg also fared extremely well in our other selection criteria. In his 15 seasons as a full-time player, he was selected to 10 All-Star teams and also finished in the top five in the league MVP voting on three occasions.

Paul Molitor

Whether viewed as a second baseman, third baseman, outfielder, or designated hitter, Paul Molitor was one of the finest players of his time. Over 21 major league seasons, with three different teams, Molitor compiled a lifetime batting average of .306, with 3,319 hits and 1,782 runs scored. He batted over .300 twelve times, scored more than 100 runs five times, compiled more than 200 hits four times, knocked in more than 100 runs twice, and stole more than 30 bases eight times. Molitor led the American League in runs scored three times, and in base hits, doubles, and triples once each.