Comparing the Halls

2/8/2023: NOTHING ADDED, OTHER THAN CONGRATS TO SCOTT ROLEN! OVERDUE SELECTION TO THE H.O.F. IN COOPERSTOWN. (LITTLE NEED TO EXPAND THE DISCUSSION ON THIS PAGE FOR THE TIME BEING, THOUGH I THINK THE VOTERS OVERLOOKED SOME OTHER WORTHIES…. AGAIN).

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1/19/2023 UPDATE: A LITTLE SURPRISED THAT — WITH ALL OF THE CLOSELY-WATCHING, OPINIONATED BUFFS OF BASEBALL HISTORY THAT MUST BE OUT THERE — I DIDN’T FIND DOZENS OF ALTERNATIVE/ VIRTUAL/SUGGESTED HALLS OF FAME IN CYBERSPACE. I COULD’VE DONE A DEEPER DIVE, CERTAINLY, BUT THOSE THAT TURNED UP IN THE TOP LAYERS OF (NON-GOOGLE) SEARCH RESULTS WERE USUALLY A BIT DATED, INCOMPLETE, OR MINIMAL FORAYS INTO THE TERRITORY. BY CONTRAST, I’VE STUCK MY NECK OUT, SHOWED MY HAND, AND EVEN DETAILED HOW I ARRIVED AT THE FULL ROSTER OF MY “INDUCTEES.” THE DECISION JUST MADE — MOMENTS AGO — IS AS FOLLOWS: AT THIS POINT, I’M EAGER TO GET BACK TO MY O.B.L. SEASON REPLAYS, SO I’LL BE CONTENT TO ALLOW SOME TIME FOR MY ALREADY-POSTED STUFF TO PERCOLATE AND SPREAD (BY WORD OF WEB?). RETROPLAY.NET AND BASEBALL150.COM WEBSITE VISITORS CAN TAKE IN THE NON-MOVING (NON-UPDATED, FOR A WHILE) MATERIAL THAT’S ALREADY UP ON THE PAGES AND ACCEPT IT, REJECT IT, QUESTION IT, OR ABANDON IT ENTIRELY, ALL AT THEIR OWN DISCRETION. NOT PONTIFICATING HERE, JUST PRESENTING; NOT DEMANDING CHANGES, JUST SUGGESTING SOME THINGS TO LOOK INTO.

TODAY’S BOTTOM LINE, THEN: IF THE OFFICIAL NATIONAL BASEBALL HALL OF FAME 2023 BALLOTING — WITH RESULTS DUE ON JANUARY 24 — “INSPIRES” AN UPDATE FROM ME ON (FURTHER) HALL-TO-HALL COMPARISONS, I’LL BE SURE TO ADDRESS THAT PROMPTLY. BUT OTHER THAN THAT, I’LL JUST STAND BY MY SELECTIONS AND THE PROCESS I’VE COME UP WITH, AND LET ALL OF MY ALREADY-POSTED MATERIALS SPEAK FOR THEMSELVES. LAST BUSINESS FOR THE DAY IS TO RECOMMEND A SHORT LIST OF BOOKS THAT HAVE DEALT WITH DISSENTING OR ALTERNATIVE VIEWS ON WHO REALLY BELONGS IN A BASEBALL HALL OF FAME, WHICH I’VE READ AND CONTINUE TO OWN AS PART OF MY TANGIBLE LIBRARY;

  • BILL JAMES: WHATEVER HAPPENED TO THE HALL OF FAME? (1995) and THE NEW BILL JAMES HISTORICAL BASEBALL ABSTRACT (2001)
  • G. SCOTT THOMAS: LEVELING THE FIELD: An Encyclopedia of Baseball’s All-Time Great Performances as Revealed Through Adjusted Statistics (2002)
  • (Read and imbibed a library copy of): JAY JAFFE: THE COOPERSTOWN CASEBOOK (2017, so much more recent than the others; FULL DISCLOSURE: I’ve downloaded much of his JAWS info to pair up with my scanned book excerpts, but buying your own hard copy is the best way to go, as always)

OF COURSE, ONLINE RESOURCES ABOUND, BUT WE’VE ALREADY MENTIONED THAT ENTIRE “HONOR ROLLS” SEEM TO BE FEW AND FAR BETWEEN. ONE MORE BOOK POSSIBILITY THAT I’VE JUST NOW RUN ACROSS (I HAVE NOT READ IT) IS A BOOK BY EDDIE DANIELS, The Baseball Hall of Fame CORRECTED (2015). SO, I GUESS PEOPLE ARE “GOING THERE,” AFTER ALL, BUT PERSONALLY, I THINK I’VE DONE MY WORK IN THAT AREA, AND THOSE REPLAYS OF 1946-2020 ARE CALLING MY NAME: RETROPLAY.NET

**** I’D FEEL GUILTY IF I DIDN’T PROVIDE YOU WITH ONE MORE RESOURCE THAT I’VE ALREADY PUBLISHED AT RETROPLAY.NET — THOUGH IT NEEDS TO BE UPDATED (THE STATUS OF HODGES, KAAT, MINOSO, AND OLIVA CHANGED IN ’22) — ESPECIALLY SINCE IT BELONGS ON THIS VERY PAGE (2 FORMATS: EXCEL-COMPATIBLE AND PDF; COMPARES RetroPlay RE-set Hall of Fame WITH THE AUTHENTIC HALL IN COOPERSTOWN):

cooperstown-comparison-1Download
cooperstown-comparison-1Download

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1/14/2023: What’s Coming Soon: This page will be under (intermittent) construction over the next week or two, but will eventually feature comparisons between baseball halls of fame. We’ll be looking at THE National Baseball Hall of Fame in Cooperstown, New York, of course, but also at several virtual halls/lists suggested or proposed as alternatives, including our own RetroPlay RE-set Hall of Fame or (also our own) Baseball150.com‘s AWARDSTOWN (or, finally, the self-mocking “20/20 Hindsight Hall of Fame” ; 3 names, but the same entity). Some of the perspectives that we’ll be examining on who really deserves to be in The Hall will come from folks like Bill James, Jay Jaffe, and others yet to be encountered ( I know they’re out there!).

Be sure to give this page a glance from time to time and check “our” progress; it’ll be populated and posted soon if things go as planned…