Maybe This Time: Gil Hodges on Another HOF Ballot

[roger_that]

About friggen time!



This is almost as good a feeling as 1986, and as astonishing as 1969.



I've waited a long time for this day.

[stevejrogers]

Frayed Knot wrote: And those folks who relieve themselves of the burden of proof also get to sidestep the inconvenient question of how such an obviously deserving member was voted down so consistently by contemporaries who actually saw your guy play. This. The only thing I'm pretty confident in saying is that Gil Hodges's playing career, alone, doesn't merit enshrinement in Cooperstown. And his managerial record, alone, doesn't merit inclusion either. So is Gil's managerial record enough, when combined with his playing record, enough to get him in? I dunno. The 1969 Mets were spectacular, one of the greatest stories in baseball history, and still, one of baseball's most beloved teams ever, even though its fans are dying off. Everybody rooted for the '69 Mets. But still, Gil's managerial record is brief. HOFer's that needed their managerial record to bolster their playing stats to get in, tended to have a larger managerial record than what Hodges accomplished as a manager. It was simply too brief. Gil himself was as beloved as those '69 Mets and his case will no doubt rely on the almost universal respect he received to get in. Gil has a unique resume, for which there is virtually no comp.

I have seen “Joe Torre as player” arguments get made that his managerial days should put him over the top as an overall “performer”



While he's in as a skipper, I doubt his “borderline” performance as a player was any factor when he came up as a manager. Nor did his MFY and after managing career factor into whomever was deciding his cases on ballots as a player.

[batmagadanleadoff]

=G-Fafif post_id=82572 time=1638747366 user_id=55]Tears of joy.

[G-Fafif]

=batmagadanleadoff post_id=82578 time=1638752797 user_id=68]
=G-Fafif post_id=82572 time=1638747366 user_id=55]Tears of joy.

[Edgy MD]

Fantastique.

[Willets Point]

Hooray!

[stevejrogers]

Interestingly is that O'Neil, with the award that bears his name, is the first Hall Award Winner to be in the inductee rolls, though odds are a HOFer like Dizzy Dean or Ralph Kiner might join him via the Frick award in the opposite direction at some point.



Oddly enough, the O'Neil ambassador role award caused the first double dip in the Hall's history as 1991 Frick winner Joe Garagiola was named the O'Neil recipient in 2014.

Edited December 5, 2021 by Guest

[stevejrogers]

The Mets made a HOF plaque for Gary Carter, with an

NY on his cap, instead of the Expos one on his Cooperstown plaque, and hung it in Shea's Diamond Club lobby with the Met HOF busts, wall photos and other artifacts. No clue of its whereabouts today.



Anyway, since I don't see why Cooperstown wouldn't put Brooklyn's B on Gil's visage (I really hope they aren't pressured into going the Yogi/Maddux/Halladay/LaRussa route with no logo) I wonder if that faux plaque will show up again, along with a version of Gil's plaque with an NY, instead of a B.

[Fman99]

Great news and long overdue.

[batmagadanleadoff]

=stevejrogers post_id=82585 time=1638762443 user_id=57]
The Mets made a HOF plaque for Gary Carter, with an

NY on his cap, instead of the Expos one on his Cooperstown plaque, and hung it in Shea's Diamond Club lobby with the Met HOF busts, wall photos and other artifacts. No clue of its whereabouts today.

[stevejrogers]

http://media.nj.com/times-sports/photo/10612417-large.jpg>

[Bob Alpacadaca]

Dick Allen was one vote shy. Gil, Oliva and Kaat each got exactly 75 percent with 12 votes and Minoso got 14 votes.



Thrilled to see Hodges take his rightful place in Cooperstown.

[G-Fafif]

[nymr83]

I understand taking another look at guys like O'Neill who played in the negro leagues but it is so dumb to spend 15 years on a ballot deciding that Kaat and Oliva are NOT hall of famers just so a a handful of their buddies can show them in now.

[Lefty Specialist]

However he got in, I'm glad that Gil made it finally.

[Edgy MD]

=nymr83 post_id=82591 time=1638792819 user_id=54]
I understand taking another look at guys like O'Neill who played in the negro leagues but it is so dumb to spend 15 years on a ballot deciding that Kaat and Oliva are NOT hall of famers just so a a handful of their buddies can show them in now.

[Edgy MD]

[Frayed Knot]

Good for Hodges's kids and family. (Is the widow still alive?)

There's always the 'wish it could have happened while he was alive' saying, but in Gil's case that wasn't going to happen unless he was an overwhelming choice which he obviously wasn't.

He lived only long enough to see four HoF ballots but never topped 50% in any of them. Aside from his first ballot (1969 coincidentally) when he got 24% in an era where voting 'Yes' on

a first-timer was considered a capital crime by many in the BBWAA, he hovered between 40 and 60 pct over 14 ballots before topping out at 63% in his final year of eligibility.




=nymr83 post_id=82591 time=1638792819 user_id=54]
I understand taking another look at guys like O'Neill who played in the negro leagues but it is so dumb to spend 15 years on a ballot deciding that Kaat and Oliva are NOT hall of famers just

so a a handful of their buddies can show them in now.

[ashie62]

Locally Gil was unduly overshadowed by Duke Snider, who was elected long ago



Gil's numbers alone should have gotten him in 30 years ago.



He also enjoyed 1969 Mets gravitas.

[G-Fafif]

Bill Madden:

According to sources familiar with the presentations during the Golden Era meeting Sunday, the subject of the integrity/sportsmanship clause, which has been such a raging topic in the Baseball Writers elections ever since the steroid cheats began appearing on their ballot, was widely discussed when it came to Hodges. “You could make the case—and apparently somebody did—that no one in the game epitomized that clause more than Hodges, a quiet leader, an ex-Marine World War II hero who was universally respected by teammates and foes alike,” said one source. “I think that made the difference for him, especially in this day and age.” It didn't hurt either that the venerable Hall-of-Fame Dodgers announcer Vin Scully lobbied hard behind the scenes for Hodges with a lot of the committee members. And who could say no to Vinny?

https://www.nydailynews.com/sports/baseball/ny-gil-hodges-hall-of-fame-brooklyn-dodgers-mets-20211206-wb347rrn5bchzc6satukgutrye-story.htmlhttps://www.nydailynews.com/sports/baseball/ny-gil-hodges-hall-of-fame-brooklyn-dodgers-mets-20211206-wb347rrn5bchzc6satukgutrye-story.html



Joan Hodges is 95 and rewarded at last for her patience.

[MFS62]

He was one of my favorite Brooklyn Dodgers.

I'm fahklempt.



Later

[batmagadanleadoff]

=nymr83 post_id=82591 time=1638792819 user_id=54]
I understand taking another look at guys like O'Neill who played in the negro leagues but it is so dumb to spend 15 years on a ballot deciding that Kaat and Oliva are NOT hall of famers just so a a handful of their buddies can show them in now.

[batmagadanleadoff]

Bill Madden: According to sources familiar with the presentations during the Golden Era meeting Sunday, the subject of the integrity/sportsmanship clause, which has been such a raging topic in the Baseball Writers elections ever since the steroid cheats began appearing on their ballot, was widely discussed when it came to Hodges. “You could make the case—and apparently somebody did—that no one in the game epitomized that clause more than Hodges, a quiet leader, an ex-Marine World War II hero who was universally respected by teammates and foes alike,” said one source. “I think that made the difference for him, especially in this day and age.” It didn't hurt either that the venerable Hall-of-Fame Dodgers announcer Vin Scully lobbied hard behind the scenes for Hodges with a lot of the committee members. And who could say no to Vinny? https://www.nydailynews.com/sports/baseball/ny-gil-hodges-hall-of-fame-brooklyn-dodgers-mets-20211206-wb347rrn5bchzc6satukgutrye-story.htmlhttps://www.nydailynews.com/sports/baseball/ny-gil-hodges-hall-of-fame-brooklyn-dodgers-mets-20211206-wb347rrn5bchzc6satukgutrye-story.html Joan Hodges is 95 and rewarded at last for her patience.

The way I anticipated the vote, I was certain that intangibles like character and integrity were what would finally get Hidges in, if it was gonna happen I can recall Joe Posnaski's piece on Hodges almost a year ago in his series about the best baseball players not in the HOF: the entire piece focused on Gil's character with barely any words devoted to Gil's playing or managerial record.



And that now being the case, one could now easily see why it took this long for Gil to get the necessary number of votes for enshrinement.

[Benjamin Grimm]

Gil has already been dead for longer than he was alive.

[batmagadanleadoff]

[FIMG=444]https://live.staticflickr.com/65535/51729016048_0f2ba33509_c.jpg[/FIMG]

[Edgy MD]

Hopefully, this also leads the Dodgers to finally retire 14.

[Marshmallowmilkshake]

https://thumbs.worthpoint.com/zoom/images1/1/0920/25/gil-hodges-dodgers-vintage-1990s_1_ad40f1c2043adbd27654c517d3bad12c.jpg>



Dodger players in 1999 were able to wear a patch highlighting a hero. Here's Gil's patch.



Here are the others. I'm not sure if a player wore Gil.



https://live.staticflickr.com/7204/7136971743_2bca90fe9a_c.jpg>

[roger_that]

https://thumbs.worthpoint.com/zoom/images1/1/0920/25/gil-hodges-dodgers-vintage-1990s_1_ad40f1c2043adbd27654c517d3bad12c.jpg> https://live.staticflickr.com/7204/7136971743_2bca90fe9a_c.jpg>

Gil is the only repeater, which raises the question: does this mean that Scioscia's number 14 will also be retired when Gil's is? I still hold 1988 against Scioscia.

[stevejrogers]

https://thumbs.worthpoint.com/zoom/images1/1/0920/25/gil-hodges-dodgers-vintage-1990s_1_ad40f1c2043adbd27654c517d3bad12c.jpg> https://live.staticflickr.com/7204/7136971743_2bca90fe9a_c.jpg> Gil is the only repeater, which raises the question: does this mean that Scioscia's number 14 will also be retired when Gil's is? I still hold 1988 against Scioscia.

Kiki Hernandez in 2020 was the last time #14 was issued.



Considering the best catcher the Dodgers ever had was employed here at the time, probably just needed an LA representative to go along with Campy.



I think Valenzuela's 34 is the only unofficially mothballed number for the Dodgers as it hasn't been issued since 1990.

[MFS62]

And the fact that he was a mensch came as no surprise to me.

https://forward.com/culture/479194/a-baseball-star-and-all-around-mensch-finally-makes-it-to-the-hall-of-fame/https://forward.com/culture/479194/a-baseball-star-and-all-around-mensch-finally-makes-it-to-the-hall-of-fame/



Later