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- Joined: Tue Aug 28, 2012 5:32 am
Ninersphan wrote:It's called the BASEBALL hall of fame not the BASEBALL HITTER/FIELDER AND PITCHER hall of fame. Last time I checked the DH was part of the game. The voters don't really consider pitchers batting statistics or fielding as criteria so why should the fact DH's don't play the field be held against them. If they are one of the best hitters of their era, they deserve to be in, at least in this fans opinion. Of course I don't vote. YMMV.
Yes it's called the baseball Hall of Fame, and part of playing baseball, if you're a position player, is playing defense. Designated hitters completely eschew participation in that part, and are, thus, part-time/incomplete players...and part-time incomplete players have no place in the Hall of Fame.
And your comparison to pitchers' hitting and fielding is both a specious and an inapt one. Pitchers' haven't been judged on their hitting or fielding for almost a century. Baseball people and writers correctly see their production there as a bonus to what they accomplish on the mound, not 1/2 of their expected game or even close to it. So, it is not an apt comparison. An outstanding pitcher who doesn't hit or field particularly well is still a complete and outstanding pitcher. A DH who spends most of his time in the dugout without playing defense is not a complete player.
So, excellent full-time DH's deserve the accolades they receive for their excellent hitting, but, as part-time/incomplete players without a position, they don't deserve a place in the HOF.