As a wee tyke, our three favorite baseball players were Rod Carew, Rickey Henderson and Kent Tekulve.Two out of three in Cooperstown on the first ballot isn't bad, is it? Now we just have to get started on our Veteran's Committee lobbying campaign to get Tekulve appropriately enshrined.
And a thought on Jim Rice
Scary, schmary. Dwight Evans was a better player than Rice was anyhow.
Dwight Evans better than Jim Rice? I can't tell if that's a serious comment or if I'm missing something. Look at the numbers. Rice was top 5 in MVP voting 6 times. Almost a career .300 hitter. Evans was a .272 career hitter who hit 30 HR only 3 times and drove in 100 only 4 times. He had 1 really good year. Rice had about 5 really good years.
ReplyDeleteYou must have loved Eichhorn when he arrived in 1986.
ReplyDeleteWould those shades be legal now for a pitcher to wear? I'm surprised some closer doesn't come to the hill wearing aviators.
Tao,
ReplyDeleteMight be remembering Evans in the field as being way more of a contributor than Rice, and I was too young to know Rice in his better days, but I too think Rice probably wins overall between the two - both, however, are a bit far from HOF material.
Neither Rice nor Evans belong in the Hall of Fame, but if we were suddenly plunged back into 1985 and we had to choose between the two, we're taking Evans.
ReplyDeleteIf counting stats are your thing, Evans actually outhomered Rice for their careers, albeit in 600+ extra ABs...but shouldn't longevity count for something?
Also, Evans hit 110 extra doubles for his career.
Evans was an excellent fielder with a plus arm, while Rice was a bit of a lumbering fool whose deficiencies were minimized by Fenway's left field dimensions.
We'll confess that it is a bit of a specious and pointless argument...but we like Dewey better. Sue us.
I agree. Pointless arguement. Neither are really HOF material in my opinion. I was just curiuos as to why you Evans was a better play. Better all around - I'd agree. Evans had a canon of an arm. But Rice was a much better hitter.
ReplyDeleteTao:
ReplyDeleteThanks for the grin today.
Nothing to do up here but shiver yet thinking back about watching that strange bird pitch brought back some fun memories.
I've always had a soft spot for firemen with funky deliveries: Eichhorn, Frohwirth, Bradford, Quiz et al but that ol' stork Tekulve was probably the most fun to watch.
Gawd, I feel old.
Best Regards
John