voting for Papi but not Sosa - - and other inconsistencies
Dec 16, 2021 20:26:16 GMT
klawrencio79 likes this
Post by Rey Kahuka on Dec 16, 2021 20:26:16 GMT
1. I'm not nearly as invested in baseball as I am basketball or football.
2. I've never been big on HOF arguments, as my criteria are different than most; and if anything I'm not exactly a 'small hall' kind of guy.
3. I'm a Red Sox fan, so yes I am 100% biased if we're talking David Ortiz.
Now that that's out of the way...
To me there is no comparison between Sosa and Ortiz beyond both allegedly testing positive for PEDs in an 'off the record' study. David Ortiz worked tirelessly to become a better hitter and was a centerpiece of three title teams. Sosa just wanted to hit home runs. Advantage Ortiz when it comes to legacy. On top of that is the argument against DHs in the HOF, which again I have to point out the amount of clutch hits Ortiz had, and how essential he was to bringing titles to one of the most famed franchises in the sport. That should matter. It matters to me, but again I'm heavily biased. I don't care enough to argue over it, if people don't think he belongs in the hall, so be it. But to me Ortiz is a big part of baseball history, certainly more than Sosa's magical summer that didn't amount to anything other than congressional hearings on rampant steroid use. (Oh yeah, and Sosa was also caught corking his bat, so we can be much more confident that he was willing to break the rules on a consistent basis to get ahead.)
Generally speaking, I just don't know how to deal with steroid guys. Baseball is so much about numbers, and that's what steroids threw out of whack. Bonds and Clemens were HOFers before they started juicing as far as I'm concerned, but surely you can't say that about everyone. To me, if the numbers say they're a HOFer, they are. Those numbers are skewed, but so much of baseball history is skewed. Segregation, amphetamines, you name it. There are too many factors muddying the waters of a player's projected legacy without that particular advantage, which was unavailable at other points in history. To me, you have to put 'em in if the numbers say they belong. Let history decide their legacy.
2. I've never been big on HOF arguments, as my criteria are different than most; and if anything I'm not exactly a 'small hall' kind of guy.
3. I'm a Red Sox fan, so yes I am 100% biased if we're talking David Ortiz.
Now that that's out of the way...
To me there is no comparison between Sosa and Ortiz beyond both allegedly testing positive for PEDs in an 'off the record' study. David Ortiz worked tirelessly to become a better hitter and was a centerpiece of three title teams. Sosa just wanted to hit home runs. Advantage Ortiz when it comes to legacy. On top of that is the argument against DHs in the HOF, which again I have to point out the amount of clutch hits Ortiz had, and how essential he was to bringing titles to one of the most famed franchises in the sport. That should matter. It matters to me, but again I'm heavily biased. I don't care enough to argue over it, if people don't think he belongs in the hall, so be it. But to me Ortiz is a big part of baseball history, certainly more than Sosa's magical summer that didn't amount to anything other than congressional hearings on rampant steroid use. (Oh yeah, and Sosa was also caught corking his bat, so we can be much more confident that he was willing to break the rules on a consistent basis to get ahead.)
Generally speaking, I just don't know how to deal with steroid guys. Baseball is so much about numbers, and that's what steroids threw out of whack. Bonds and Clemens were HOFers before they started juicing as far as I'm concerned, but surely you can't say that about everyone. To me, if the numbers say they're a HOFer, they are. Those numbers are skewed, but so much of baseball history is skewed. Segregation, amphetamines, you name it. There are too many factors muddying the waters of a player's projected legacy without that particular advantage, which was unavailable at other points in history. To me, you have to put 'em in if the numbers say they belong. Let history decide their legacy.