Trades, Ballots and Drugs

So long, Felix, we hardly knew ya’.

The Phillies completed a trade for Kenny Lofton, sending reliever Felix Rodriguez to the Yankees. The acquisition of Lofton reunites the centerfielder with his former manager, Charlie Manuel, and temporarily addresses at least one of the Phils’ off-season needs. Lofton, who will be 38 in May, will get most of the playing time in center, sharing it presumably with Jason Michaels, who can be expected to start especially when day games follow night games. The odd man out is Marlon Byrd, whom the Phillies gave up on awfully quickly. I would expect the Phillies to try and move Byrd this off-season, but he won’t bring much in return.

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This year’s Hall of Fame ballot contains the usual mix of greats, near greats and never were greats. There are certain to be many arguments over the final selections especially since a number of near greats are again listed.

Any argument against the election of Wade Boggs would be regrettable. Not only did he have a .328 career average and 3010 hits, fans are likely to forget he also won two Gold Gloves.

The more difficult choices involve Willie McGee, Andre Dawson, Jim Rice, Dave Parker, Don Mattingly, Alan Trammel and Ryne Sandberg among position players and Bert Blyleven, Tommy John, Bruce Sutter, Rich Gossage and Lee Smith among pitchers.

McGee was an excellent hitter and base runner who always managed to upset defenses. Dawson, before injuries took their toll, was a feared hitter and excellent outfielder. Rice was a mediocre outfielder but one of the most feared hitters of his era. Parker had 2712 hits and 339 home runs. He also won two batting titles and three Gold Gloves, but his drug problems haven’t helped his cause. Mattingly was a superb all-around player, hitting for average and fielding superbly. Trammel was a six-time all-star and four-time Gold Glove winner who had the misfortune to play in the era of Cal Ripken. He finished his long career with 2365 hits. Sandberg was a ten-time all-star, the league MVP in 1984, a nine-time Gold Glover winner and a second baseman who had 282 home runs among his 2386 hits.

Among all these players Sandberg would appear to have the best chance to be elected based on his overall offensive and defensive superiority. Second basemen of lesser combined skills have been elected, some recently, including Bill Mazeroski. Mattingly, too, was an extraordinary all-around performer winning nine Gold Gloves to go along with a career .307 batting average. He didn’t have the power numbers often expected of a first baseman though 222 home runs and over a thousand RBI’s are nothing to sneeze at. His candidacy, now in its fifth year, may be suffering from some anti-Yankee backlash.

Blylevn and Johns won 287 and 288 games respectively while losing 250 and 231. Their ERA’s were 3.31 and 3.34. Those numbers were normally generate a lot of support, but this is Blyleven’s eight year on the ballot and Johns’ eleventh. Their winning percentages aren’t that impressive, which may be one reason their prospects don’t look good.

Sutter, Gossage and Smith were all relief specialists who helped to define the roll of closer. Each had over 300 saves (Smith is the all-time leader with 478) and each had an ERA around 3.00. Of the three, Smith would get my vote.

In conclusion, my unofficial ballot consists of Boggs, Sandberg, Mattingly and Smith.

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Back in the era when the East Germans were winning all those Olympic medals rumors of doping were rife but went largely ignored and unchallenged. Finally, the Olympic Committee had enough and implemented what they believed to be stringent drug-testing policies. Critics complain the policies remain woefully inadequate. Nevertheless, athletes are tested periodically throughout each season and, more significantly, immediately following each Olympic event. Those found with illegal substances in their bodies are either banned for a certain period of time or, worse, summarily stripped of their medals and sent home in disgrace.

We may never know the extent of drug abuse in Major League Baseball up to now, especially involving steroids. The lords of baseball and the players’ union have failed to call for the kind of draconian measures found in, say, the NFL or NBA, where suspensions for use of illegal substances are fairly common. Until management and labor come to such an agreement, the court of public opinion will run strongly against them, as it has done in the aftermath of the Giambi and Bonds revelations of last week.

There is no question the home run records of Barry Bonds have been tainted, but calls that he be stripped of them or that they be accompanied by an asterisk are inappropriate and impractical. At what date should the line be drawn? His punishment, if that is the ultimate judgment here, is that his reputation, no matter how many home runs he tallies before retiring, will be tarnished.