As the baseball writers vote for their Hall of Fame picks, Jim Rice waits to see if he will finally get in. This week there has been no shortage of stories for and against Jim Rice gaining admittance into the Hall. Here are a few of the highlights:
Jerry Crasnick from ESPN: History is clearly in his favor. Last year Rice was named on 72.2 percent of the ballots, to fall 16 votes short of induction. Of the 20 players who previously received between 70 and 75 percent of the vote, all 20 eventually made it into the Hall through the writers vote or the Veterans Committee.
Dan McGrath of the Chicago Tribune: …makes him a first-ballot Hall of Famer on this ballot. Of course, I felt that way about Jim Rice 15 years ago, and he’s still trying to get in. It might happen for him in his final year on the writers’ ballot; Rice got 72.2 percent last year, with 75 percent required. Now 55, Rice hasn’t done anything recently to enhance his stature as the best right-handed hitter of his era, but that was enough for me in 1994, and it still is.
Tracy Ringolsby of the Rocky Mountain News: Rice was a very good player, but very good isn’t Hall of Fame worthy. The Hall of Fame is for the elite of the elite of the elite….but the idea he was among the most intimidating hitters of his era is misguided. He was issued only 77 intentional walks in his career, never more than 10 in a season. He struck out more than twice as many times as he walked (1,423to 670) and is sixth all time with 315 grounded into double plays.
If you are a Red Sox fan you most likely believe that Rice should be in the Hall and you may get your wish in the near future. To see the results of the voting you can tune in to live coverage of the Hall of Fame’s announcement on Jan. 12 on baseballhall.org.
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