Major League Jerk

Andre Dawson acting like we don't go golfing together every month.

Andre Dawson was at a card show this weekend so I popped my head in to say “hello.”  He and I are old friends, but he likes to play this game where he pretends not to know me and then kicks me out of the show when I cut in line and refuse to pay for his autograph.  What a joker.

And of course it got me thinking what his autograph would be worth if he were to be inducted into the Hall of Fame.  But I’m not sure if he will make it.

Dawson lacks the big time numbers to secure his place in the Hall.  He only has 438 HRs and 2774 hits,  Yes, he has 500+ doubles, but he never walked and has a very meager on base percentage of .323.

When looking at current Hall of Famers who were voted in by the BBWA, it becomes apparent that the only outfielder to which Dawson is offensively superior is Lou Brock who was voted into the Hall in 1985.  But Lou Brock was the greatest base stealer of all time before Ricky Henderson so it’s an important distinction.  As such, I’m willing to overlook Brock’s career OPS+ of 109.

Dawson’s a little behind Kirby Puckett offensively but you could argue that he passes him when we factor in Dawson’s defense (which was outstanding).  It’s a difficult comparison however, because Puckett suffered a non-baseball related injury which can’t be held against him with regard to longevity.  On the other hand, Dawson’s knees began to wear down toward the end of his career so who knows.

For further comparison, Dawson’s not as good as Dave Winfield offensively (career OPS+ of 130) but Winfield was a butcher in the outfield in the second half of his career.  If we’re going by traditional numbers, Winfield has 27 more HRs (465) and he also passed the 3000 hit plateau (3110).

In fact, Dawson could be best compared to Dave Kingman who had a career OPS+ of 115 (4 points lower than Dawson) but he hit 4 more home runs (442 vs 438) in five fewer seasons.  Yes, Kingman struck out a ton (which alienates a lot of voters) but he was good at what was valued during his era: hitting home runs.  Dave Kingman is not in the Hall and never will be so why do we feel bad leaving Dawson out?

And if you’re looking for another reason to keep him out, look at Jim Rice.  Rice suffers from the (accurate) label that he was a product of his home field.  At Fenway, Jim Rice OPS’d at .920.  Away he was a mere .789.  Overall, Rice had an OPS+ of 129 which puts Dawson’s numbers to shame.

I still can’t get over the fact that Dawson’s career OBP was .323.  That’s awful in any era.  He didn’t strike out a ridiculous amount of times which means he swung at a lot of pitches that he couldn’t handle.  Who cares if he made contact, he still made an out.  Also, his career BA of .279 (for traditionalists) is not good.

I guess it gets back to the idea that the Hall is a very special place that should be reserved for the best of the best.  Dawson was a very good outfielder.  But he wasn’t a Hall of Fame outfielder.