Thoughts on Character, Spitballers, Steroid Users, and the Baseball Hall of Fame

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They are instructed that "voting shall be based upon the player's record, playing ability, integrity, sportsmanship, character, and contributions to the team(s) on which the player played."

This has been the charge of the baseball writers who determine which players are worthy for inclusion in the National Baseball Hall of Fame in Cooperstown.

There are several players now in the Hall of Fame who make for an uneasy fit if we take the Hall of Fame prescription seriously.

Ty Cobb

In November 1926, former Red Sox pitcher Dutch Leonard sent two letters to American League President Ban Johnson.

The letters were in regards to a betting incident that occurred on September 25, 1919 between the Cleveland Indians and Detroit Tigers. The incident would involve Ty Cobb, Tris Speaker, Joe Wood, and Dutch Leonard. The letters were forwarded to Commissioner Landis for investigation.

Cobb and Speaker were questioned at great length by Landis, but because Dutch Leonard refused to attend the hearing, Landis placed the entire matter on hold indefinitely. Both Ty Cobb and Tris Speaker were cleared of any wrongdoing.

However, many baseball people believed Leonard and thought that Landis ruled as he did because he didn't want another gambling scandal to taint baseball.

Sportsmanship?

Legend has it that Cobb sharpened his spikes in the dugout for hard slides into infielders. Philadelphia Athletics' third baseman Frank "Home Run" Baker, who was spiked by Cobb in 1909, called Cobb's slashing spikes "Cobb's kiss." 

And, finally, we get around to the question of character?

Grantland Rice's description of Cobb should suffice: "An extremely peculiar soul, brooding and bubbling with violence, devious, suspicious and combative all the way."

Cobb was a racist SOB who bended the means to suit his ends. Hall of Fame voter concluded that Cobb's manic behavior was forgiveable compared to an inestimable career that produced a lifetime .366 batting average; 4,189 hits; 11 batting titles; an American League MVP award, and a Triple Crown in 1909.

Rogers Hornsby

Commissioner Keensaw Landis viewed Rogers Hornsby as a reprobate gambler and sullying influence on his teammates. His teammates regarded him as unapproachable and a man who played for personal glory, not the betterment of the team. As a manager, Hornsby won fewer than 50 percent of his games, likely due, in large part, to his inability to get along with his players.

Nevertheless, Hornsby was voted into the Hall of Fame in 1942 on the merits of his .358 lifetime batting average.

John McGraw

According to authors Nicholas Acocella and Donald Dewey ("The Black Prince of Baseball: Hal Chase and the Mythology of Baseball")  player and manager John McGraw, who was inducted into the Hall of Fame in 1937, masterminded several gambling scandals and fixes over the course of his long career.

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