Post by Saint on Sept 22, 2022 8:17:33 GMT -6
So I was talking with a friend about note-worthy WS in our lifetime, and I always look back at the 2001 WS as my favorite non-Astro participating series. I was in college at the time, and my roommates and I watched every game (one was a big Yankee fan and the rest absolutely hated the Yankees). Great series in my eyes at the time. The D-Backs had multiple ex-Astros and the Yankees were at the height of their dominance. A come from behind win with a walk-off hit off of the greatest closer of all-time. Hard to beat!
That got me thinking about Luis Gonzalez (who got the game-winning hit). I know at the time that some people talked about how he had to have been using PEDs or some sort when he saw the power uptick in 2001, but I don't recall his name ever coming up any reports or tests or anything. In any case, it surprises me that he didn't even manage to get 1% of HoF votes. I know offense was all over the place in that era, but even in an era of high offense, he put up some very good numbers. And he had a very good shot at MVP in 2001 if that hadn't been the same year that Bonds set the HR record (tainted or not).
2591 Hits
354 HR
1439 RBI
1412 Runs
.283/.367/.479 (119 OPS+)
He had a respectable postseason career (including that series-winning walk-off hit). He was also an excellent defender for the first half of his career. He was universally well-liked and it didn't come up any tabloid drama or anything that I'm aware of.
I'm not saying that I think he's a Hall of Famer, necessarily, but to have reached so many secondary milestones with percentages as good or better than many HoFers, you would think he would have at least hung around on the ballot for a few years.
That got me thinking about Luis Gonzalez (who got the game-winning hit). I know at the time that some people talked about how he had to have been using PEDs or some sort when he saw the power uptick in 2001, but I don't recall his name ever coming up any reports or tests or anything. In any case, it surprises me that he didn't even manage to get 1% of HoF votes. I know offense was all over the place in that era, but even in an era of high offense, he put up some very good numbers. And he had a very good shot at MVP in 2001 if that hadn't been the same year that Bonds set the HR record (tainted or not).
2591 Hits
354 HR
1439 RBI
1412 Runs
.283/.367/.479 (119 OPS+)
He had a respectable postseason career (including that series-winning walk-off hit). He was also an excellent defender for the first half of his career. He was universally well-liked and it didn't come up any tabloid drama or anything that I'm aware of.
I'm not saying that I think he's a Hall of Famer, necessarily, but to have reached so many secondary milestones with percentages as good or better than many HoFers, you would think he would have at least hung around on the ballot for a few years.
