Mike Mussina Pitching: 475 points League leaders: 15 points (led league in wins, innings and FIP) Defensive bonus: 20 points A career of near-misses: 10 points (almost won 20 a bunch, almost threw a perfect game, etc.) Moose nickname: 5 points Hall of Fame Race to 400 points: 525 I’ve already written a lot about…
Author: Joe Posnanski
Joe Posnanski writes about sports for a living, particularly baseball. Here, he writes about sports and also Springsteen, Hamilton, Harry Potter, iPads, infomercials, his idolization of Duane Kuiper, his family and magic. He lives in Charlotte with his wife Margo, two daughters Elizabeth and Katie, and their dog Westley. Joe is currently working on a book about Harry Houdini in today's world.
The Ballot: Fred McGriff
Hitting: 425 points Fielding: minus-50 points Base running: -10 points League leaders: 10 points (led in HRs twice) The awesomeness of his mustache: 5 points Starring in Tom Emanski commercials: 15 points Crime Dog nickname: 5 points Hall of Fame Race to 400 points: 400 * * * I’ve said this before: My Hall of Fame…
The Ballot: Edgar Martinez
Hitting: 540 points Fielding: minus-100 points League leaders: 45 points (on-base percentage three times, doubles twice, batting twice, runs once, RBIs once) Dozens of pitchers, including Pedro Martinez and Mariano Rivera, say he’s the best hitter they ever faced: 50 points Beloved guy, credit to the game, etc.: 10 points Hall of Fame Race to…
The Ballot: Lilly and Lowe
Ted Lilly Pitching: 107 points Official Crafty Lefty status: 25 points Weirdly unhittable in 2003 ALDS against Boston: 5 points Somehow avoided being called “Tiger” or any other nickname: minus-5 points Made $80 million in his career: no points awarded; just wanted to mention that Hall of Fame Race to 400 points: 137 * *…
The Ballot: Jeff Kent
Hitting: 300 points Fielding: 20 points Won an MVP award: 25 points Probably should have lost the MVP to three other guys on this ballot — Bonds, Helton and A. Jones: minus-5 points Perfectly acceptable baseball mustache: 5 points Most homers ever for a second baseman: 10 points Hall of Fame Race to 400 points:…
The Ballot: Andruw Jones
Hitting: 130 points Fielding: 225 points League leaders: 10 points (led league in homers and RBIs in 2005) Joy of watching him play centerfield: 10 points Makes otherwise boring name cool by spelling Andruw with a U: 5 points Hall of Fame Race to 400 points: 380 * * * At the heard of the…
The Ballot: Todd Helton
Batting: 425 points Fielding: 5 points Baserunning: -10 points League leaders: 35 points (led league in on-base percentage twice; hits, doubles, RBIs, average and slugging once) Played QB at Tennessee, was replaced by Peyton Manning: 5 points Was a dominant pitcher in college, still has NCAA record for most consecutive scoreless innings: 5 points Wore…
The Ballot: Roy Halladay
Pitching: 350 points League leaders: 65 points (led league in SO/W 5 times, innings four times, WHIP once, FIP once, ERA+ once, wins twice) Multiple Cy Young winner, had stretch where he was viewed as best pitcher in the game: 50 points Threw postseason no-hitter: 10 points Threw perfect game: 10 points Race to 400…
The Ballot: Travis Hafner
Hitting: 195 points Defense: minus-75 points Was called Pronk: 10 points “Pronk” was short for “Project Donkey,” which is what they called him after watching him run the bases: 10 more points Best-ever hitter from North Dakota: 10 points Might have been the best hitter in the AL from 2004 to 2006 (a league that…
A New Year’s Voice
I woke up in this new year thinking about Nick Charles. That was a little bit strange. I didn’t know Nick well. I could even say that I didn’t know him at all. We met in person just once, eight years ago. We spent only a few hours together. I woke up in this new…