LestersLegends.com

Photo courtesy of TSN Archives/Icon SMI 

Should 16 Gold Gloves be enough to get you in the Hall of Fame?  Maybe not by itself, but it should get you pretty close.  When you throw in 283 career wins, it becomes a no-brainer.

Photo courtesy of John McDonough/Icon SMI

The Numbers
283 Wins (31st All-time)
625 Starts (16th All-time)
4530.3 Innings (26th All-time)
2461 Strikeouts (33rd All-time)
180 Complete Games
31 Shutouts (103rd All-time)
3.45 ERA

The Awards
3 All-Stars Appearances
1966 TSN Pitcher of the Year
16 Gold Gloves
Received MVP votes in 3 seasons
Received Cy Young votes in 1 season

Top Ten Finishes
ERA – 3 Times
Wins – 7 Times (Led league in 1966)
Win-Loss % – Twice
Starts – 8 Times (Led league in ’65 & ’66)
Innings Pitched – Six Times (Led league in ’66)
Strikeouts – Four Times
Complete Games – Four times (Led league in ’66)
Shutouts – Three times (Led league in ’62)

This one is bewildering.  He has a ton of wins, and was one of the very best fielding pitchers of all time.  He won a World Series.  To me, he’s worthy of the Hall of Fame.

References
Baseball-reference.com

Past Chronicles
Bert Byleven
Andre Dawson
Dale Murphy
Mark McGwire
Bobby Matthews
Tommy John
Buck O’Neill & Minnie Minoso
Jim Rice
Ted Simmons
Lee Smith
Jack Morris
Al Oliver
Steve Garvey

8 Responses so far | Have Your Say!

1. 

   Mo Morrissey
   January 22nd, 2008 at 10:07 pm #

   Nice work here Ryan. I agree.

2. 

   Ryan Lester
   January 23rd, 2008 at 6:10 am #

   Thanks Mo.

3. Lester’s Legends » Blog Archive » Cooperstown Chronicles - Graig Nettles
   March 27th, 2008 at 12:40 pm #

   [...] O’Neill & Minnie Minoso Jim Rice Ted Simmons Lee Smith Jack Morris Al Oliver Steve Garvey Jim Kaat Pete Ro$e Shoeless Joe Jackson Dave Concepcion Lou Whitaker Alan Trammell Ron Santo Ron Guidry Gil [...]

4. 

   BraystreetLad
   September 19th, 2008 at 11:52 am #

   Maybe he is,maybe he isn’t,but when I was at the University Of Windsor
   in ’82,I joked:”What’s the difference between love and Jim Kaat?Jim Kaat
   is forever!

5. 

   LestersLegends
   September 19th, 2008 at 12:13 pm #

   Funny.

6. 2009 MLB Hall of Fame Ballot | 1800blogger
   December 8th, 2008 at 9:14 am #

   [...] Ralph Houk (Manager) Shoeless Joe Jackson Travis Jackson* Tommy John Bob Johnson Addie Joss* Jim Kaat George Kell* Joe Kelley* George Kelly* Tom Kelly (Manager) Chuck Klein* Jerry Koosman Bill James [...]

7. 2009 MLB Hall of Fame Ballot | Fantasy Sports Blog
   December 8th, 2008 at 9:15 am #

   [...] Hodges Ralph Houk (Manager) Shoeless Joe Jackson Travis Jackson* Tommy John Bob Johnson Addie Joss* Jim Kaat George Kell* Joe Kelley* George Kelly* Tom Kelly (Manager) Chuck Klein* Jerry Koosman Bill James [...]

8. Cooperstown Chronicles - Stan Coveleski :: Elites TV
   May 13th, 2009 at 12:59 pm #

   [...] Ralph Houk (Manager) Shoeless Joe Jackson Travis Jackson* Tommy John Bob Johnson Addie Joss* Jim Kaat George Kell* Joe Kelley* George Kelly* Tom Kelly (Manager) Chuck Klein* Jerry Koosman Bill James [...]