Dave Parker Talks Hall of Fame

This time of year, you hear plenty of talk about who should be in the Hall of Fame and who shouldn’t.

So when I heard from a buddy of mine that he was going to see Dave Parker make an appearance in Fort Wayne, Indiana, I knew immediately that if “The Cobra” talked to the media…he’d make his opinion on his Hall of Fame credentials known to whoever would listen.

Thankfully, Reggie Hayes from The News-Sentinel was there and, thankfully, Parker did not disappoint.

Here are some highlights from what baseball’s first million dollar player had to say.

“I figure I was the most dominant player through my era.  I’m not in the Hall of Fame, but all the Hall of Famers know what I brought to the table. My numbers are as good as most Hall of Famers who went in over the last five or six years. I just hope I get in while I’m vertical.”

“It couldn’t be because I was unquotable. It couldn’t be because of the numbers, because my numbers are there. It’s political, for whatever reason.”

“I was one of the most quotable guys in baseball.  ‘When the leaves turn brown, I’ll be wearing the batting crown.'”

Nicely done, Cobra.

I said it before and I’ll say it again…if baseball had a “Badass Hall of Fame”, Dave Parker would have made it in long ago.

First ballot.

His toothy grin would surely be up on that stage praising Willie Stargell and condemning Marge Schott. Sitting behind him in whatever the “Badass Hall of Fame” requires inductees to wear (I imagine a blazer and a fedora…perhaps accented with a cane) would be such luminaries as Dick Allen and Albert Belle.

A seven-time All-Star, the 1978 National League MVP collected 2712 hits, hit 339 home runs and knocked in 1493 runs during his career. But, unfortunately, this past Hall of Fame voting cycle was the last for Parker.

So, until that “Badass Hall of Fame” gets built…we’ll have to just wonder what the career .290 hitter would have had in store for us when he gave his speech. But does he lose points for pitching 7-Up?