Phil Rizzuto--Hall of Fame shortstop, former Yankees broadcaster, and previously the oldest living Hall of Famer--has passed away, leaving behind him a rich legacy, and, also, a hopefully lasting wisdom.

"Scooter" was not the prototypical baseball star. He did not hit for power, batted .273 in his career, and--excepting a 200-hit MVP campaign in 1950--never had more than 169 hits in a season. Some have wondered, in fact, whether Rizzuto was truly deserving of his induction in 1994. In fact, when BaseballEvolution.com decided to create its own Hall of Fame in 2006, they did not include Rizzuto.

However, Rizzuto belonged to that special class of people whose statistics could only begin to express their accomplishments. Perhaps you know of whom I speak.

Does it not strike you as more than slightly uncoincidental that in Rizzuto's thirteen years in the Majors, nine out of the thirteen years his teams went to the World Series? Or that seven of those teams won the Series? Or, perhaps, that ten out his thirteen teams ended up winning the pennant?

Fact was, "Scooter" Rizzuto was the invaluable sparkplug of his team. He was the team player who spent his at bats bunting and trying to get on base while everyone else was swinging for the fences. He stole bases. He walked more than he struck out. He was a spectacular defensive shortstop. He was a true fan favorite and clubhouse presence.

He was a true Hall-of-Famer, the one who would contribute while the statisticians weren't looking.

Yet this type of player--perhaps due to Sabermetrics--is swiftly becoming a dying breed. They may contribute, but they just might not have the stats. But I ask you this: if you had a choice, and you had to choose, which would you rather take, a team of Adam Dunn's or a team of Phil Rizzuto's? Think carefully...

But while this type of player is becoming a dying breed, it is not all extinct. It is true, I have spoken before about Wally Joyner having many of these same characteristics. But there is another, a player still active today.

Perhaps you've heard of him. He plays shortstop for the St. Louis Cardinals. You know, the 2006 World Series MVP.

Perhaps, with Rizzuto's death, we would take the opportunity to reflect on the type of player he was, to appreciate that player. It is not enough to recognize players such as Rizzuto, Joyner, and Eckstein as fan favorites; we must recognize the inherent value that comes from such players.

And what a value it is.

For more on Phil Rizzuto, see here, here, and here.

As Barry Bonds closed in on Hank Aaron's home run record, I'm sure you noticed at least one site/newspaper maintaining coverage by some sort of countdown tracker. As you may well know, the pursuit is over, and Bonds is the new home run king.

But now that it's over, it seems a blasted shame not to track other incoming milestones in a similar manner. As such, I've chosen four players approaching milestones to cover their pursuit. Two are quite conventional, covering milestones projected by the end of the season. The other two are, shall we say, rather unconventional , tracking milestones that shouldn't occur until the next few seasons, and may not even occur at all.

First, the conventional milestones:

-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Jim Thome: March to 500 home runs

         Current total: 490

       Amount needed to reach goal: 10

       Last Game: (8/12/07) 1 for 4, 2B, K

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Ken Griffey, Jr.: March to 600 home runs

       Current total: 590

       Amount needed to reach goal: 10

       Last Game: (8/12/07) 0 for 0, BB

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And now the unconventional milestones:

-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Mike Mussina: March to 300 wins

       Current total: 247

       Amount needed to reach goal: 53

       Seasons projected: 4

       Last Game: (8/12/07) 7 2/3 IP, 8 hits, 2 ER, 0 BB, 6 K's

------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Luis Gonzalez: March to 3,000 hits

      Current total: 2,478

      Amount needed to reach goal: 522

      Seasons projected: 3.5

      Last Game: (8/13/07) 0 for 3, BB, K

      Bonus Milestone: 33 away from 600 career 2B's

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Updates will commence each day of the season I happen to post something else. Though I didn't include Manny Ramirez--as he's not projected to reach 500 home runs until next season--I'll make a milestone tracker as soon as he gets close.

All in all, it seems like close milestone coverage will not end anytime soon--at least on this blog.

By now you know that Barry Bonds has hit his 756th career home run and eclipsed Hank Aaron's previous record of 755 to become the new all-time home run champion. This has met with mixed response from the baseball community, for obvious reasons.

If there was any doubt, Barry Bonds has become--statistically--the greatest position player in Major League history. But while this feat tosses legitimate debate onto his Hall of Fame resume, this means almost nothing for the all-time home run record.

Why? Read this article, like I did, and find out.

Anyone who read my first post probably knew I would get a kick out of this.

The San Diego Padres have one of the top pitching staffs in the Major Leagues, one self-evident by premier closer Trevor Hoffman and two Cy Young Award candidates in Jake Peavy and Chris Young. What they don't have, however, is consistent hitting, being--I believe--last in the league in those categories.

Enter Wally Joyner.

Teams with bad hitting records tend to fire their hitting coaches, and Joyner was the lucky beneficiary. So, too, apparently, were the Padres.

On August 2nd--Joyner's first time in uniform--Padres hitters erupted in a never before seen outburst, blanking the Arizona Diamondbacks 11-0. Among other Padres hitters, recently acquired Morgan Ensberg snapped a season-long slump by hitting a pair of two-run home runs and going 3 for 4 on the night, lending credibility to the notion that vintage 2005 might be back.

The Padres went on to sweep the San Francisco Giants in the next series.

Thanks to Joyner?

I can't be sure. But knowing me, I hope so.

*This is a "retro" article, one that I would have published had I not been on an extended leave of abscence.

-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

“…you don't make 10 All-Star Games without being one of the premier (and most famous) players of your generation. “

-Ken Gurnick, MLB.com writer, on Steve Garvey

Well, good point, Mr. Gurnick—but, without context, that’s really just a bunch of fluff.

Hold on, what’s that? You were expecting me to further elaborate on Mr. Gurnick’s comment?

Fat chance.

You see, while Steve Garvey was one of the most popular—and premier—players of the ‘70’s and ‘80’s, basing something like Hall candidacy on something as subjective as All-Star selections really has little to no value.

Don’t think All-Star selections are subjective? Well, in about June of ’06 I checked the state of the All-Star voting and discovered—to my surprise—that Red Sox centerfielder Coco Crisp was actually in the Top 15 in the outfield voting, despite the fact that he was hitting about .270/2/9 (Batting Average/Home runs/RBI) at the time.

Sheesh, if I were to take All-Star selections so liberally, I would have at least given the underrated Frank Catalonotto a sympathy vote to honor his great ability to hit for percentage. Thankfully, though, I have yet to crack in that regard.

Don’t take that incident as a one-time fluke. In 2005, Carlos Beltran managed an All-Star start despite average performance; in 2004, Ken Griffey, Jr. and Sammy Sosa received All-Star starts (And helped form a 500-home run outfield) despite performance well below the implied level.

So, in short, it’s really not worth my time and effort to expound on Garvey’s 10 All-Star appearances. My analysis, instead, will focus on three aspects which should help explain why I view Garvey as a Hall-of-Famer:

6 200-hit seasons

4 Gold Gloves

5 100-RBI seasons

My analysis, instead, will focus on the question of whether anyone has ever matched Garvey in these three categories.

Multiple 200-hit seasons and multiple Gold Glove winners

I decided to start here, as the list of multiple Gold Glove winners is far too long to post. As such, I decided to narrow the list to something more manageable, all the while furthering the aforementioned purpose.

Todd Helton

Hank Aaron

Curt Flood

Pete Rose

Tony Gwynn

Roberto Clemente

Don Mattingly

Cecil Cooper

Wade Boggs

Derek Jeter

Cal Ripken, Jr.

Alex Rodriguez

Kirby Puckett

Ichiro Suzuki

Bernie Williams

Steve Garvey

The names above shouldn’t be glossed over, as we’re just getting started. You may, however, note that most of the guys listed are either current or future Hall-of-Famers.

I then decided to further narrow the list by adding the final category.

Multiple 200-hit seasons, multiple Gold Gloves, and 5 100-RBI seasons

Todd Helton

Hank Aaron

Don Mattingly

Alex Rodriguez

Bernie Williams

Steve Garvey

Wow, that sure trimmed the field.

You see, when I first selected ‘5 100-RBI seasons’ to further narrow the list, my thoughts were that we’d see less names as I removed the singles hitters. Then again, not all the names removed were singles hitters, and I wasn’t expecting nearly so many names to leave.

Then again, it’s generally the singles hitters that rack up 200-hit seasons, and it’s generally the power hitters that rack up 100-RBI seasons. Doing both is a rare achievement.

I’m starting to see where this is going (I’m technically doing this analysis as I type), and it’s nowhere near what I was expecting. It’s probably for the best, in any case.

Trying to trim the list further, I narrowed one of the categories.

6 200-hit seasons, multiple Gold Gloves, and 5 100-RBI seasons

Steve Garvey

Whoa.

Whoa.

This was not what I expected when I started. I had thought that Aaron, Mays, Clemente, or one of many highly regarded players would step up to the plate and match Steve Garvey. In the end, all fall short.

For emphasis:

Steve Garvey is the only player in Major League history to have 6 200-hit seasons, 5 100-RBI seasons, and win 4 Gold Gloves. For that matter, he’s also the only player to match those standards of hitting and still win multiple Gold Gloves.

So when anyone ever asks you who was the most complete player you ever saw…

Whoa, what’s that? We were talking about the Hall of Fame?

I don’t think, after reading this analysis, that there should be any question that Steve Garvey belongs in the Hall of Fame. Beyond the aforementioned statistical goodness, Garvey was an exceptional hitter in the postseason and the former record-holder of the highest career fielding percentage by a first baseman who played 1,600 games (I don’t know who holds it now—Todd Helton?).

So, no, Crawly, Garvey wasn’t “a piece of garbage.”

It’s unfortunate that Garvey has been underrated over the years, as people have often taken his relative lack of power (At least to a first baseman) as a sign that was actually overrated. The truth is, however, that power is one the most overrated—if not the most overrated—aspects of baseball. It allows a player that has no actual clue with what he’s doing at the plate to simply swing away and let his physique turn him into something of a national icon. I mean, how else can you explain the popularity of Dave Kingman?

Speaking of national icons, we have the cases of Sammy Sosa and Mark McGwire. In all fairness, they really owe nothing else to their popularity than their power, and while it wouldn’t be fair to say they know nothing about hitting, it would hardly be a stretch to call them one-tool players (i.e. only exhibiting the tool of power).

Garvey, however, had none of those issues. Having 6 200-hit seasons is an achievement matched by only a handful of Hall-of-Famers, Ichiro, and Pete Rose—and having 5 100-RBI seasons is no easy feat, either. As I  mentioned before, having the two statistics juxtaposed together is very rare, indeed. In fact, my limited research has only come up with one name, and that’s of Lou Gehrig.

Speaking of which, it’s probably not entirely fair to have included the official-looking Gold Glove into the mix. A number of Gold Glove choices can only be explained by subjectivity, and they’ve only been around since 1957, leaving a lot of good players in the dust. Then again, Garvey’s career fielding percentage of .9959 is indicative that the awards were quite deserved, so there should be no doubt he was fairly awarded. Then again, Gehrig was one of those pre-1957 players that likely would have been rewarded had the Gold Glove existed at the time, or at least that’s the indication of my sources. Given his power (Combined, yes, with equal hitting ability), however, odds are that Gehrig was actually the better player (But everyone already knew that).

But if we’re talking of the Hall of Fame, being compared solely with Gehrig is pretty lofty.

It’s unfortunate that Garvey was shafted in the recent Hall of Fame election, as it’s quite clear that he was quite deserving. He’s now going to have to face the unforgiving and thus far incorrigible Veteran’s Committee, leaving his eventual Hall of Fame chances in serious doubt.

Hopefully, they’ll come around, as support for guys like Ron Santo has slowly grown, though if Santo has actually encountered resistance, Garvey’s fate is far more uncertain.

It really shouldn’t have come to this. Unlike in some other cases, voters knew what they were doing when they gave Garvey 10 All-Star appearances. Hopefully, another, bronzed appearance lies in Garvey’s ultimate future.

As my limited (Judging from the amount of comments) audience might know, I have taken an extended leave of abscence from my MLB blogging. The reason for this may have been technical issues--which still deny me the ability to edit my posts, the time-consuming nature of my posts, some frustration at not being read (Hopefully minor), or the astonishing fact that there are other things I do in my life beyond posting. Shocking, I know.

All of that now gets kicked to the curb now that I'm back, hopefully with increased regular attendence. That said, my last posts left me in an uncomfortable quandrary as I had some glaring errors.

As readers must have noticed in my two-part Albert Belle Hall of Fame case, Part I ends inconclusively (Having been both too long and uneditable), and I neglect to explain why I believe Ken Griffey, Jr. to be a trustworthy source and why comparing doubles to home runs in power hitters is significant (Done, but not very clearly). The last two shall hopefully be dealt with in later posts.

Other errors, less significant, also pop up.

I hope readers will forgive me for having made these unfortunate errors, it having been a long and extensive argument. I recognize the human tendancy for error, but that makes it no less easier when actually committed. Hopefully, future posts will not contain this same level of errors.

On another note, given the amount of time elapsed from my last post 'til today, I plan to publish a number of "retro" articles to compensate for the missed time. My first will come today, an argument for Steve Garvey's Hall candidacy that I intended to publish after Albert Belle's, but was apparently too exhausted to do so. I hope it serves as a persuasive account of the legitimacy of Garvey's Hall case, but then again, all persuasive writers hope that.

*My apologies for those that wanted to see this case whole, but it proved to be too long for one entry, sizewise.

____________________________________________________________________

Now, some people may have objecttions that transcend the statistical record. Let's address those accordingly.

• Character

Let's cut to the chase.

Albert Belle, to make an understatement, was not the most popular baseball personality in his time. Some might say he was the worst in baseball history.

It was his character, not his record, that stymied me when he first came on the ballot. You see, I value character when I look at Hall of Fame ballots, even if I don't have a vote.

I value character a lot.

So Belle, with all his awesome stats, was, ah, something of an issue for me.

Then I saw this quote:

"Just look at his numbers. That's all you have to do. He's really different from how he's portrayed; you guys don't give him a chance. Everything is blown out of proportion."

-Ken Griffey, Jr.

I don't know about you, but I trust Ken Griffey, Jr. He's one of the most trustworthy people in the game, and as a multiple All-Star, he's someone who would know, having played alongside him multiple times in the Midsummer Classic.

I decided, right there and then, that Albert Belle is a Hall-of-Famer.

I think I've made the right choice.

If you think Belle was all unspeakable incidents, you'd be wrong. There's another side to Belle, as I learned when reading his quotes on albertbelle.net.

Here are a few, taken directly from the site:

"Moral values have been thrown out the window. Christianity is out the window. And that's wrong. Parents should be at home, teaching kids right from wrong, making sure they get a great education so they can be a success in life."
- Associated Press...

September 26, 1998

"In the past I've tended to overreact. I was sure I'd be a superstar by the time I was 21. Baseball messed up my plan of life. When I fail I get upset. Sometimes I get upset too quickly, without thinking of consequences."
- Sports Illustrated...

June 24, 1991

"I am concerned there is a lot of negative publicity about Albert Belle, and a lot of positive things I do haven't been brought to the surface. Maybe it's my fault for not being accessible to the media. So I guess I'm going to work on changing my image."
- The Sporting News...February 26, 1996

"Even Jesus Christ got angry at times, and He was perfect. Try as I might, I'm not perfect. I have to work on my shortcomings."
- The Times-Picayune...June 25, 2005

"Baseball's a team sport. In order for me to be successful the other guys on the team have to be successful. So, if you're gonna acknowledge me, you have to acknowledge all the guys I've played with. You know, if it wasn't for them, to put me in a situation where I have a chance to produce, I wouldn't be able to produce."
- The Kenny Roda Show...July 19, 2001

He doesn't sound like the heckbent demon the media tend to portray. He sounds considerate. He sounds respectful. He even sounds humble.

He sounds...human.

If this is who he is, why was he once the most hated man in baseball?

The answer is in his competitive spirit.

"Albert has a very intense personality, and that can be a double-edged sword. It contributes to his success, because he's so driven. But it's not something you can turn on or off."

-Paul DePodesta, former Dodgers' General Manager, who used to work in the Indians' organization (From here)

"He uses his emotions to propel him, especially anger."

-Frank Mancini, Indians clubhouse attendant and friend (From here)

"I mean, people think I'm too intense for baseball. I've always excelled to be the best, no matter what, but it's like people think something is wrong with that."
-Albert Belle (From here)

Intensity. Competitiveness. Both valued traits in baseball.

It's just that Albert Belle sometimes went a "little" too far.

But according to that site, he had his reasons, though his actions are, in their extent, ultimately unjustifiable.

"I'm the kind of person that as long as you respect me and don't distract me before the game, then I'll respect you in return and accommodate you after the game. Sometimes the situation dictates that I talk, but everybody should understand I'm not going to talk every day, whether we're in first place or last place."
-

USA

Today...

February 25, 2000

"In baseball, I don't fraternize with players when it's time to hit. I'm preparing for the game. It's the most important time of the day. And I know if I don't hit, I won't have a job in the big leagues. That's why I tend to get very upset when people try to talk to me."
- Baseball Weekly...

March 8, 2000

, on talking before games

"I notice a lot of hitters fraternize with pitchers. I see guys laughing and giggling before the game. These are the same pitchers who are trying to beat them. . . . I've never seen Roger Clemens talking to hitters before the game. Bob Gibson was the same way. Man, I don't even see Maddux playing golf with hitters."
- Baseball Weekly...

March 8, 2000

Yes, Belle could have done a better job controlling himself. But that's not to say he wasn't provoked.

If you look it up, every incident had its justification. It was just that Belle took things too far.

Yes, his actions embarrassed the game. But so have all steroid users, and Mark McGwire still got one heck of a lot more votes than Belle in the last election.

Albert Belle was a better individual than people remember. I have no worries that he will explode if he gives his Induction speech.

Unless some ***** provokes him.

• Belle's hitting stats should be held to a higher standard because of the inflated numbers of his era
  
  This view has been taken by ESPN Senior Writor Rob Neyer.

Now, I really respect Rob Neyer. I really do.

So it kind of hurts to say this: Mr. Neyer, you'd be wrong.

Higher standard? What did he have to do, edge out Ruth somewhere?

Wait a minute. I thought he already did.

(You know, during that whole doubles and home runs thing.)

Belle was probably the best hitter in the loaded '90's. His statistical record beats McGwire's on every aspect that doesn't say home run.

And therein lies the problem.

It's not that Belle was a better hitter than McGwire.

It's that McGwire is a member of the 500 Home Run Club and Belle isn't.

Think about what that means: a great hitter is pushed aside by an inferior simply because he didn't reach a particular milestone.

With all due respect, Mr. Neyer, Hall of Fame standards do not equal milestones. Only about 20-30% of all Hall of Famers have actually achieved a major milestone. Like it or not, players that enter Cooperstown become part of the Hall standard, and even if you think so-and-so was illegitimate, you can hardly argue against a major theme of Hall voting.

That's right, a major theme.

So many players have been inducted despite stunting of some sort--be it injuries, military service, or simply a late start--that I could say 50% and I wouldn’t be off by much. Heck, two have been inducted since Belle retired after 2000--Kirby Puckett and Bruce Sutter.

So much for being against Hall of Fame standards.

And as for the high production of the era, a large part was probably steroid fueled.

And Belle did not take steroids.

What a great segue to the next critique...

• Steroids

I haven't heard anyone take this view, but I'll make my point nonetheless.

Albert Belle did not take steroids at any point in his career.

No one who has any knowledge of what steroids do to the body ought to make this assertion. I may not know much, but I do know steroids could not possibly cause an arthritic hip.

Steroids may hurt the muscular system, but they certainly don't cause arthritis.

It wouldn't even make logical sense. How something concerned with cartilage possibly be connected to something that affects muscles?

Oh, and we also have Belle's personal statement, from that site:

"I was too scared to take (steroids). . .I was into fitness and concerned about side effects and how it would affect me later in life."
- The

Arizona

Republic...February 25, 2005, on steriods

Conclusion

Albert Belle, quite frankly, is a Hall-of-Famer.

Some may say Belle's statistics were too short for the Hall of Fame, but Hank Greenberg, Hack Wilson, and Ralph Kiner would say differently (Their stats would, at least).

Belle is tied with history's best in a multitude of categories, 30/100 seasons to extra-base hits to doubles and home runs.

Belle, arguably, is the single greatest hitter of the '90's, and few could challenge him for being its greatest player.

For that matter, Belle could very well belong on the Top 10 list of the greatest hitters of all time. His stats are just that could.

His character? Not the cobra we tend to believe.

The era? Well, Belle was on top of even his own inflated era.

Steroids? A ridiculous argument (At least against Belle).

Surely by now you've come around to my position, as otherwise you're being--with all due respect--ridiculously biased and/or stubborn.

Perhaps your standards are too high. In that case, I'll bet this is what your ballots look like:

...

...

...

Albert Pujols.

...

...

...

Okay, that's enough.

Albert Belle is a Hall-of-Famer. Few have matched his stats, and few may do so in the future. He was truly a once-in-a-lifetime player.

Despite that, he has moved on from the Writer's Ballot to, hopefully, the Veteran's Ballot. There, hopefully, he will get his due. Then, hopefully, writers, fans, players--all will have forgiven.

For if Belle can't get in to the Hall of Fame, who can?

*At this, with election results already in, I know full well that Belle was, quite undeservedly, knocked off the ballot. However, his case remains, and he should end up on the Veterans ballot some day.

____________________________________________________________________

"When I sit down and try to collect my thoughts on the whole Albert Belle debate, the one thing that always comes up is this: the focus is always on what he did wrong, not what he did right."

-Rob Dibble, former Major League closer, after Albert Belle's forced retirement

Albert Belle, statistically, is easily a Hall-of-Famer.

That's right. Not could have been. Not barely. Not squeaks by as. Not even simply deserves to be.

Easily.

A lot of people, people I respect, have said there simply wasn't enough to Belle's career, basing their opinions on his 381 career home runs--119 away from the milestone of 500--, his 1,726 career hits--1,274 away from the milestone of 3,000--and the fact that he played only 10 seasons as a regular.

In other words, those people feel his career was too short.

Based on previously inducted Hall-of-Famers, they'd be wrong.

Hank Greenberg

• 9 seasons with at least 400 at bats

• 1,628 career hits

• 331 career home runs

• Inducted: 1956

Hack

Wilson

• 6 seasons with at least 400 at bats

• 1,461 career hits

• 244 career home runs

• Inducted: 1979

Ralph Kiner

• 9 seasons with at least 400 at bats

• 1,451 career hits

• 369 career home runs

• Inducted: 1975

There are more I could have shown, but these power-hitting marvels were the best of the bunch (Yes, these are legitimate Hall-of-Famers--Greenberg is among a very select group of players--think Ruth, Gehrig, and Foxx--who have at least a .600 career slugging percentage; Wilson holds the record for the most RBI in a season--A jaw-dropping 191; and Kiner hit home runs at the third-best rate in history, just behind McGwire and Ruth. Oh, and each drove in at least 100 RBI just about every year in their careers.).

Belle's career, using the stats so often held against him, actually surpass all three.

So, no, Belle's career was not too short.

Not only was it not too short, but when put under the microscope, Belle's statistics actually surpass almost all of his '90's contemporaries, including the much vaunted McGwire.

Let's start with his basic statistical record.

Hitting Stats: SEASON TEAM G AB R H 2B 3B HR RBI TB BB SO SB CS OBP SLG AVG 1989     Cleveland Indians 62 218 22 49 8 4 7 37 86 12 55 2 2 .269 .394 .225 1990     Cleveland Indians 9 23 1 4 0 0 1 3 7 1 6 0 0 .208 .304 .174 1991     Cleveland Indians 123 461 60 130 31 2 28 95 249 25 99 3 1 .323 .540 .282 1992     Cleveland Indians 153 585 81 152 23 1 34 112 279 52 128 8 2 .320 .477 .260 1993     Cleveland Indians 159 594 93 172 36 3 38 129 328 76 96 23 12 .370 .552 .290 1994     Cleveland Indians 106 412 90 147 35 2 36 101 294 58 71 9 6 .438 .714 .357 1995     Cleveland Indians 143 546 121 173 52 1 50 126 377 73 80 5 2 .401 .690 .317 1996     Cleveland Indians 158 602 124 187 38 3 48 148 375 99 87 11 0 .410 .623 .311 1997     Chicago White Sox 161 634 90 174 45 1 30 116 311 53 105 4 4 .332 .491 .274 1998     Chicago White Sox 163 609 113 200 48 2 49 152 399 81 84 6 4 .399 .655 .328 1999     Baltimore Orioles 161 610 108 181 36 1 37 117 330 101 82 17 3 .400 .541 .297 2000     Baltimore Orioles 141 559 71 157 37 1 23 103 265 52 68 0 5 .342 .474 .281 Career Totals 1539 5853 974 1726 389 21 381 1239 3300 683 961 88 41 .369 .564 .295

Well, we can certainly see Belle hit for power and average. He hit 50 home runs in 1995, plus almost reached that total in 1996 and 1998. He also totaled some serious RBI production, hitting 100 RBI's every year from 1992-2000. He was consistent and scarily productive.

Another aspect you can see of Belle's career was his fantastic 1995 campaign, where he became the first player in Major League history to hit 50 home runs and 50 doubles in the same season.

Impressive.

Still don't think he was better than McGwire?

Very well, let's look a little more closely at Belle's numbers.

• Albert Belle is tied with Babe Ruth for third all-time in consecutive seasons of 30 home runs and 100 RBI

Yes, Babe Ruth.

According to my ESPN source, Jimmie Foxx is first with 12 and Lou Gehrig is second with 9.

Those Hall-of-Famers aside, think of what that means: 30 home runs and 100 RBI's for 8 consecutive years.

100 RBI's is an annual standard for excellance. Singles hitters rarely achieve this total, and, for that matter, such an achievement would merit serious Hall-of-Fame consideration, for it's an indication of one talented, talented clutch hitter.

It's extremely difficult for anyone other than a home run hitter to achieve, and hitting a high number of home runs--even 50--is by no means a guarantee that you'll have at least 100 RBI's. Take, for example, Alfonso Soriano's 2006 season. He hit 46 home runs, but only got 95 RBI's (Yeah, 'only'). Soriano's problem was that he hit a lot of solo homers, driving in no one other than himself.

Clearly, in order to get 100 RBI's, you're going to have to hit your homers with runners on base.

In other words, you're going to hit your homers when the pressure's on.

So, in order to get 100 RBI's, you're going to have to be able to hit in the clutch.

If you think Belle needed a nickname, don't call him Albert "Joey" Belle, but rather, Albert "Clutch" Belle (Actually, you're free to use something other than 'clutch'--or 'Joey'--if you have a better idea).

For emphasis: Belle had 9 consecutive years with at least 100 RBI's, 8 of which (The first 8) had him hitting at least 30 home runs, as well.

Let's take a look at those 30 home runs.

30 home runs in a season is a good total, unfortunately overshadowed by the totals put up by McGwire, Bonds, and Sosa (Looking at those totals, it's easy to forget that hitting 40 home runs means you had an awesome year).

Sure, Belle hit at least 30 home runs those 8 years. But Belle rarely stayed at 30. He often blew by that total.

Just like Foxx, Gehrig, and Ruth.

Belle hit at least 50 home runs once, at least 40 thrice, and at least 35 home runs 6 times. Heck, he only stopped at 30 once.

You can also look at 30 home runs and 100 RBI's as an indication of a Hall-of-Fame caliber year.

If so, Belle had 8 consecutive Hall-of-Fame caliber years.

Let's go back to the names. We only have mention of Foxx, Gehrig, Ruth, and Belle (A quick look at the updated statistical record shows that Alex Rodriguez and Manny Ramirez have tied Lou Gehrig on that list, and Barry Bonds is the new leader at 13. Considering how they're known today, no surprise there...). In other words, Belle has left quite a few star players in the dust: Hank Aaron, Willie Mays, Mickey Mantle, Frank Robinson, Ted Williams, Mike Schmidt, Ken Griffey, Jr., Reggie Jackson...

And yes, McGwire.

Wow.

*Yes, now it's fourth. But it's no less impressive...

• Albert Belle led a power-crazy 1990's in RBI's with 1,099, according to Sports Illustrated: The Baseball Book

This only serves to further cement Belle's clutch hitting. McGwire may have led the '90's with home runs, and home runs may have been hit at a higher clip than any other time in Major League history, but, in the end, it was Belle who led in RBI's.

Oh, and I also checked the RBI leader totals of previous decades since the 1920's (i.e. when RBI's were officially compiled). Only three times has anyone produced a higher RBI total in a previous decade--the '20's, the '30's, and the '60's--and those guys were named Ruth, Foxx, and Aaron.

Once again, Belle finds himself in select company.

• Albert Belle led the league in extra-base hits three times, just like Jimmie Foxx, Mickey Mantle, and Ty Cobb, according to the All-Century Team book

Belle just can't stop placing himself in exclusive company with elite Hall-of-Famers, can he? He also, it seems, can't avoid Hall-of-Famer Jimmie Foxx.

Now, let's take a look at extra-base hits. As the name implies, extra-base hits are hits that advanced past first base.

Given that you have to put a charge in the ball (Most of the time; you could theoretically run one out) in order to record an extra-base hit, extra-base hits should be a good indication of power.

We've already looked at how Belle tied with those Grade-A Hall-of-Famers, but how does he compare with the great power hitters of his time?

According to Baseball-Reference.com:

Mark McGwire- Led league in extra-base hits once

Sammy Sosa- Led league in extra-base hits once

Jose Canseco- Led league in extra-base hits once

Juan Gonzalez- Never led league in extra-base hits

Frank Thomas- Led league in extra-base hits twice

Ken Griffey, Jr.- Led league in extra-base hits twice

Jeff Bagwell- Led league in extra-base hits once

Fred McGriff- Never led league in extra-base hits

Rafael Palmeiro- Never led league in extra-base hits

Barry Bonds- Led league in extra-base hits thrice

Of those guys, only Barry Bonds matched his numbers (Because of 2001), and only Ken Griffey, Jr. and Frank Thomas led the league twice. Everyone else either led the league once or none at all, and Belle even beat all suspected steroid users except Bonds, who'd been a Hall-of-Famer prior to steroids.

Belle: the best hitter of the '90's? The case is getting stronger...

• Albert Belle was a complete hitter in both power and average, hitting almost identical totals of doubles and home runs with a career batting average of .295

I've kind of touched on this previously, but I'm really going to hammer the point home now.

There are particular tendencies one can observe in power hitters, and they come out almost unanimously across the board. Check out these numbers:

Mark McGwire

-Career HR's: 583

-Career Doubles: 252

-Career Batting Average: .263

-Career Strikeouts: 1,596

-Seasons with at least 100 strikeouts: 10

Reggie Jackson

-Career HR's: 563

-Career Doubles: 463

-Career Batting Average: .262

-Career Strikeouts: 2,597

-Seasons with at least 100 strikeouts: 18

Sammy Sosa

-Career HR's: 588

-Career Doubles: 355

-Career Batting Average: .274

-Career Strikeouts: 2,194

-Seasons with at least 100 strikeouts: 12

Harmon Killebrew

-Career HR's: 573

-Career Doubles: 290

-Career Batting Average: .256

-Career Strikeouts: 1,699

-Seasons with at least 100 strikeouts: 7

Mike Schmidt

-Career HR's: 548

-Career Doubles: 408

-Career Batting Average: .267

-Career Strikeouts: 1,883

-Seasons with at least 100 strikeouts: 12

Willie McCovey

-Career HR's: 521

-Career Doubles: 353

-Career Batting Average: .270

-Career Strikeouts: 1,550

-Seasons with at least 100 strikeouts: 5

In comparison:

Albert Belle

-Career HR's: 381

-Career Doubles: 389

-Career Batting Average: .295

-Career Strikeouts: 961

-Seasons with at least 100 strikeouts: 2

So of those gifted power hitters, Belle tops them all in every category but home runs.

Let's take look at those categories.

The strikeouts and batting average go hand in hand. Home run hitters often have high strikeout totals because they're swinging for the fences, and since high strikeout totals indicate poorer command of the strike zone, the batting average usually drops accordingly.

The statistics clearly demonstrated this aspect. While you might be tempted to argue that Belle would have had more strikeouts had his career not ended prematurely, it's possible you might also have missed a more telling line:

-Seasons with at least 100 strikeouts: 2

Everyone else, of course, took Belle's total and briefly experimented with exponential growth.

The impact of Belle's average seems obvious, as it clearly rolled over those players mentioned. But would it be as readily clear that his .295 average is higher than that of approximately half of all the members of the 500 Home Run Club?

It's now time to talk about those doubles and home runs.

For all the many articles and publications that I've read, I don't think I've ever seen a writer discuss the remarkable disparity that often occurs in the doubles and home run totals of a home run hitter.

Just look at those aforementioned stats. For each guy mentioned, there was at least an 100-HR difference, and often even more.

Belle? An eight double difference.

Let's take a look at this disparity historically.

The first order of business is to see how many players hit at least 350 each of home runs and doubles and achieved the same hundredth digit (i.e. if there's a 3 at the beginning of one total, it better start the next).

Hall-of-Famers are in red.

Frank Robinson

-586 career home runs

-528 career doubles

-.294 career batting average

Rafael Palmeiro

-569 career home runs

-585 career doubles

-.288 career average

Ted Williams

-521 career home runs

-525 career doubles

-.344 career batting average

Eddie Murray

-504 career home runs

-560 career doubles

-.287 career batting average

Fred McGriff

-493 career home runs

-441 career doubles

-.284 career batting average

Frank Thomas

-487 career home runs

-458 career doubles

-.305 career batting average

Willie Stargell

-475 career home runs

-423 career home runs

-.282 career batting average

Manny Ramirez

-470 career home runs

-438 career doubles

-.314 career batting average

Gary Sheffield

-455 career home runs

-418 career doubles

-.297 career batting average

Jeff Bagwell

-449 career home runs

-488 career doubles

-.297 career batting average

Billy Williams

-426 career home runs

-434 career doubles

-.290 career batting average

Carlos Delgado

-407 career home runs

-414 career doubles

-.282 career batting average

Dale Murphy

-398 career home runs

-350 career doubles

-.265 career batting average

Johnny Bench

-389 career home runs

-381 career doubles

-.267 career batting average

Jim Rice

-382 career home runs

-373 career doubles

-.298 career batting average

Albert Belle

-381 career home runs

-389 career doubles

-.295 career batting average

Joe DiMaggio

-361 career home runs

-381 career doubles

-.325 career batting average

Johnny Mize

-359 career home runs

-367 career doubles

-.312 career batting average

Chipper Jones

-357 career home runs

-383 career doubles

-.304 career home runs

Jim Edmonds

-350 career home runs

-380 career doubles

-.289 career batting average

Look at all those great hitters. Statistically, in my opinion, those players are all Hall-of-Famers (Though you may disagree on a few).

After looking at all those names, you may be wondering why this statistic is important. After all, there may have been a name mentioned above that you don't think is a Hall-of-Famer.

Take a look at those career batting averages. This may seem irrelevant, but it's actually quite important.

Of those career batting averages, none sunk lower than Dale Murphy's .265. In fact, most were near or over .300.

The truth of the matter is, examining the disparity (or parity) of home run and double totals is one way to find a great hitter. It takes a good hitter to routinely translate natural power into home runs, but it takes a truly great hitter to balance out what doesn't go over the fence.

That's not to say all players not mentioned above are not great hitters or unworthy of the Hall (A player doesn't have to hit home runs to be truly great- think Ichiro). You'll notice Babe Ruth, Hank Aaron, and Willie Mays didn't make the list above, as each outpaced themselves in home runs.

Then again, it's Ted Williams who's considered the greatest hitter who ever lived, and he has the best home runs to doubles ratio with 521 to 525.

Fancy that.

Let's further condense the list above, looking for guys with up to a difference of 10 in their totals.

Ted Williams

-521 career home runs

-525 career doubles

-.344 career batting average

Billy Williams

-426 career home runs

-434 career doubles

-.290 career batting average