Lee Smith in Cooperstown???

[josecardenal01]

What do Cub fans think about Lee Smith being in the Hall of Fame? Does he deserve to be inducted?

I say YES,

check out his career stats and awards...his domination in the closer role for years....second in saves all-time...he should be inducted

What do you think?

[Scartissue]

He's borderline for me. A lot of good seasons, which is important, but not a lot of top notch seasons, which is also important.

[Scartissue]

While we're talking about former Cubs players and HOF, one of my sentimental favorite players is up this year--Shawon Dunston. The question isn't if he deserves it (even I have to say he clearly does not), but whether he'll get any votes. Voting is anonymous, so I'm guessing he'll get a couple of votes.

[nathanKent]

While we're talking about former Cubs players and HOF, one of my sentimental favorite players is up this year--Shawon Dunston. The question isn't if he deserves it (even I have to say he clearly does not), but whether he'll get any votes. Voting is anonymous, so I'm guessing he'll get a couple of votes.

Good ol' Shawon.... the original Riot.

[Shawon-o-Meter]

Shawon Dunston is a first ballot top notch hall-of-famer

:bowdown::bowdown::bowdown:
:bowdown::bowdown::bowdown:












.....Good thing I can't vote.........

[hellborn]

I remember when a chopper would make it over the pitcher and Shawon would swoop over to scoop it and fire a bullet to 1B from about 40 feet away...I always expected Durham or Grace or whomever was over there to scream in terror and jump out of the way rather than face a missile screaming at his midsection, usually at just the right height to really handcuff him good (to flip or not to flip...that is the question).
MAN, could that guy throw!!

[Scartissue]

I remember when a chopper would make it over the pitcher and Shawon would swoop over to scoop it and fire a bullet to 1B from about 40 feet away...I always expected Durham or Grace or whomever was over there to scream in terror and jump out of the way rather than face a missile screaming at his midsection, usually at just the right height to really handcuff him good (to flip or not to flip...that is the question).
MAN, could that guy throw!!

I think it was Zimmer that said the Cubs drafted Dunston ahead of Doc Gooden because Dunston had a better arm.

[Bob Sacamento]

I think it was Zimmer that said the Cubs drafted Dunston ahead of Doc Gooden because Dunston had a better arm.That had a part in it but the biggest part was that Dunston had the athletic ability to continue to play SS on the MLB level. That mixed in with his power potential and ability to make contact made Shawon our pick. A small part had to deal with a HS positional player is more likely to reach the MLB than a HS starting pitcher; yet the MLB impact is inverse. When HS pitchers reach the MLB they usually are elite top notchers.

[Scartissue]

That had a part in it but the biggest part was that Dunston had the athletic ability to continue to play SS on the MLB level. That mixed in with his power potential and ability to make contact made Shawon our pick. A small part had to deal with a HS positional player is more likely to reach the MLB than a HS starting pitcher; yet the MLB impact is inverse. When HS pitchers reach the MLB they usually are elite top notchers.

I'm sure the real reason for drafting him is what you listed. I mention the quote because I've always found it amusing and assumed it was tongue-in-cheek and purposely over-the-top.

[mjkm90]

Absolutely NOT. His numbers are a function of time on the job. If you polled 1000 fans from across the country probably 20% or less would know who he is or what he did. To be a HOFer you need some stopping power imo.

[KCGHOST]

Hey, why not. He had a better career than Bruce Sutter and just as good of one as Trevor Hoffman. And when you get done inducting Smith don't forget John Franco who was just as good as Smith.

[Scartissue]

Kind of amusing excerpt on Dunston from an article written by Jay Jaffe of Baseball Prospectus, analyzing the new crop of 2008 HOF candidates (the reference to Shawon's hacking almost got me misty-eyed):

Which brings us to... Shawon Dunston? Really? While we're at it, why don't they ever bring back or remake good shows, like BJ and the Bear? As I wrote last year in relation to Bobby Witt, one central tenet of the JAWS project is due process. Even when the numbers are enough to dismiss a candidate outright, every dog has his day, a few sentences to sum up his career and a moment to reckon with his legacy. According to Hall rules, any player who met the requirement of playing 10 major league seasons also had to be nominated by two members of a six-member Screening Committee of BBWAA writers, a courtesy Dunston was apparently afforded while Andy Benes, Delino DeShields, Mike Morgan, Greg Swindell, John Valentin, Randy Velarde, and Mark Wohlers were not. All of those players except Wohlers outrank Dunston on the JAWS scale; without checking, I'm almost positive he's the worst hitter ever to come up for discussion here.

Nonetheless... Dunston, the overall number one pick of the 1982 draft by the Cubs, managed to compile 18 years of major league service while providing very little value at the plate. Among the top overall picks, he ranked 14th by last year's reckoning, well below not only ballot-mate Harold Baines, but also the aforementioned Benes and immortals like Darin Erstad and Mike Moore. He topped 5.0 WARP only twice, in 1988 and 1989, with a high of 6.1 in the latter year. The problem was Dunston's total lack of plate discipline; he finished his hacktastic career with a .296 OBP. You may remember him from such such eye-poppingly awful strikeout-to-walk ratios as 114/21, 108/16, 75/8 and 39/2. That eight-walk season, his 1997 campaign, ranks as the lowest walk total of any batting title qualifier since the expansion era began in 1961. His 1995 campaign, which comes in sixth, would actually outrank that if we discounted his three intentional passes. 'Nuf said.

[Shawon-o-Meter]

lol my vote didn't go too far

[Scartissue]

Dunston received exactly 1 vote for induction. Too bad voting for the hall is anonymous--I would have liked to know who gave him that vote. Then again, if it weren't anonymous, he might not have received that vote.