Opinion: The PNWS 2021 Major League Baseball Hall of Fame Ballot
Chris Phillips
|
Andruw Jones – Fourth
“I thought you said players who avoided the steroid or PED stigma?” Yes, and as of my knowledge, Andruw Jones is only thought to have used. He came to the bigs a year before Mark McGwire and Sammy Sosa saved baseball with their home run chase. Jones played during the peak of the steroid era. So, yes, it’s very logical to assume he used steroids, especially when you see how his numbers and production just fell off a cliff during the traditional peak of a player’s career. Speculation and evidence are two different things.
During his heyday, he was arguably the best center fielder in the National League. Some kid in Seattle who wore #24 lays claim to the A.L. Jones did Ronald Acuna things before Acuna was even born. The Curacao native debuted in 1996 for an excellent Atlanta Braves team at 19-years-old. He spent 11 years in Atlanta, and in that time, the Braves only had one losing season.
With 10 Gold Gloves on defense alone, Andruw Jones is deserving of Cooperstown. He also slugged 434 home runs and finished with a career .836 OPS.
Torii Hunter – First
A nine-time Gold Glover with a .277 average over 2,400 hits and over 350 home runs. Referred to as Spider-Man in center field. Torii Hunter may be the third-best center fielder I’ve seen. He falls into Scott Rolen’s “boring 2nd fiddle” tag, to a degree. But he was a perfect blend of great defense and offense. And unlike Rolen, Hunter hit well in the playoffs with a .274 average. Hunter may not be a first ballot, but he should get in.
Who’s on your Major League Baseball Hall of Fame ballot? Let us know in the comments section below or on social media.