Salty wrote:doug_tucker10 wrote:Suggested card add theme...vote to add 25 middle infielders SS/2b...only middle infielders..
This could be nice idea if we added in Cs and 3Bs,
who got zero representation this add.
While I like this idea, I have some concern that catchers and 3rd basemen may dominate the voting, as they typically have greater power numbers than middle infielders.
Relief pitchers usually don't fare too well in the voting. Should there be a special vote for relief pitchers only, or maybe a special add for relief pitchers and starting pitchers only?
Perhaps a special vote could be held for players with 2 or fewer cards, including those players with 0 cards. Alternatively, perhaps a special vote could be had for players with 0 cards and players that only have cards costing less than $3 million (or some other number).
We've previously had a card add of players without cards and the choices seemed somewhat limited. There are many good players who have one or two cards that are clearly not their best seasons. Most such players are not superstars, and would have little chance of getting added during an open election, but were solid players who could be good values in lower to mid cap leagues. Ken Henderson, a switch hitting 15 season OFer with decent power and OBP who has 1 crummy little used card at less than $1 mil comes immediately to mind:
Ken Henderson, 1970 Giants: .294 17 88 .394 .460 .854, 20 SBs; Played all 3 OF positions as a 2(-2).
Ken Henderson, 1974 White Sox: .292 20 95 .360 .467 .827, 12 SBs; Played in all 162 games. Led AL CFers in PO, 2(-2).
or Larry Bowa, a 16 year switch hitting perennial 1 fielding SS, with just 2 cards, but no cards for his two best seasons:
Larry Bowa, 1975 Phillies: .305 2 38 .334 .377 .711, 24 SBs; Career highs in BA, OBP, SLG & OPS.
Larry Bowa, 1978 Phillies: .294 3 43 .319 .370 .689, 27 SBs; Won 2nd gold glove, 3rd in MVP voting.
or Johnny Mostil, a fleet footed CFer and 10 year veteran, who from 1921 to 1926 was arguably the best defensive CFer in baseball (he is the only CFer in MLB history to record a PO in foul territory), before being slowed by injuries and mental illness, who has just 1 card (1923), which represents his worst offensive season during that period, with his lowest BA and OPS in that span. Any of his other 5 seasons during that time would have been better, but here's his best:
Johnny Mostil, 1926 White Sox: .328 4 41 .415 .467 .882, 41 DO, 15 TR, Led AL w/10 HBP & 35 SBs; Career highs in BA, DO, OBP & OPS. Led AL in CFer PO. 2nd in MVP voting.
or Heinie Zimmerman, a 13 year big leaguer and 3 time RBI champ with just 1 card of under $1 million, who won the Triple Crown in 1912, but wasn't recognized for it until more than 100 years later when there was an RBI recount. To add insult to injury, he finished 6th in MVP voting that season!
Heinie Zimmerman, 1912 Chicago Cubs (3b & 1b): .372 14 104 .418 .571 .989, 41 DO, 14 TR, 23 SBs; Led league and had career highs in hits, DO, BA, HR, RBI, SLG, OPS, OPS+, TB & offensive WAR.
Although I could go on and on, the players cited above are just the tip of the iceberg of dozens of players with 2 or fewer cards that had far better seasons than those seasons for which there are ATG cards. The point is that with so many players with just 1 or 2 inferior cards, it would be unfair to exclude them from getting another card by limiting the voting to players with 0 cards.
If another card add of players with 0 cards is being considered, how about expanding the potential player pool a little to make players with 0-2 cards eligible? The end result could be a new batch of cards with greater usability.