Ryan on Rice

Bob Ryan had a nice column in The Boston Globe after Red Sox slugger (and dcat childhood hero) Jim Rice was inducted into the Baseball Hall of Fame in Cooperstown on Sunday.

Curt Schilling: Kind of a Big Deal

At The New Republic Jason Gay compares Curt Schilling to Ron Burgundy of Anchorman. My favorite line actually comes from a commenter who quotes someone else: "another webs article summed up Schilling perfectly: 'since Curt was a bit smarter than your average ballplayer, he mistakenly assumed he was smarter than the public at large . . . being the tallest jockey in the racetrack locker room doesn't make you a giant'."

I am in the camp that, his bombast aside, Schilling belongs in the Hall of Fame. Everyone will look at his win totals, which at 216 are very good but not great, but of course wins are not necessarily the greatest metric for assessing how good a pitcher is given how team dependent a statistic it is. Think of it this way: Who pitched a better game, a guy who struggles through five innings, gives up six runs, but happens to benefit froma slugfest, or the guy who goes eight, gives up one, but loses 2-1? Surely one outcome is better than the other, but strictly looking at the pitching performances, the guy who lost did a much better job than the guy who won. In nearly every other statistical measurement, Schilling is clearly Hall-worthy, with the understanding that his postseason performances put him over the top.

The Best of Rickey Being Rickey

In honor of Rickey Henderson's induction into the Hall of Fame, here is an amusing ranking, from a few years back, of the Top 25 Rickey Henderson moments. Suffice it to say I'm looking forward to that speech in the summer.

Hat Tip to my buddy Bill.

Rice to Cooperstown

There are no loyalties like childhood loyalties. So my happiness that Jim Rice gained entry to the Hall of Fame surprises even me. Here is one-time Rice antagonist Dan Shaughnessy's take. Shaughnessy became a vocal advocate of Rice's entry into Cooperstown. Boston Globe sportswriter Nick Cafardo's story is here. And here, from a poster at Sons of Sam Horn, is a nice gathering of other articles on Rice's election. When I was a kid I was sure I would succeed Jim Rice as the leftfielder for the Boston Red Sox. In my mind he was a God. Now he is set to be enshrined in baseball's Valhalla.

Jim Rice's Last Shot

Tomorrow baseball fans will discover which legends will be enshrined in the 2009 class of the Baseball Hall of Fame in Cooperstown. Tomorrow, Jim Rice will find out if he will gain entrance into that hallowed Hall in his last year of eligibility (through the traditional process.) Twice in the past I have addressed this issue directly, in December 2005 and December 2007 and I touched upon the question of his induction in March 2006. Today Bob Ryan tackles the question, showing how difficult a "borderline" case can be.

My argument has always been the same: Jim Rice was my favorite player growing up, and as a consequence would always get my vote. I know all of the rational arguments against him, but childhood loyalties are the fiercest loyalties, and in my mind Jim Ed Rice will always be the fiercest hitter around. I hope enough voters saw it that way this year, and that Rice will not be subject to the wait and the whims of the veteren's committee process some years down the line.

Jim Rice to the Hall of Fame?

Will 2008 be the year that Big Jim Ed Rice receives the call from Cooperstown telling him he has been elected to the Baseball Hall of Fame? Rice was my favorite player growing up, and so I really hope so. And Dan Shaughnessy thinks it is going to happen this time around. I know all of the arguments against -- his prime was too short, he missed by just a few on a couple of the magic numbers -- but the gods of your childhood will always be gods, and I think that he also has a compelling case for admission, especially with voters looking with fresh eyes at the most feared power hitter of his era in the wake of the steroids scandal.