Jim Rice Proves Patience Is a Virtue, Finally Elected To Baseball Hall Of Fame.

Whoever said that "good things come to those who wait", had it right on the money.

Jim Rice certainly believes that today.

For the past 15 years, Rice patiently waited to hear whether or not his numbers during a good, but not great 15-year career with the Boston Red Sox, would be enough to gain an invitation to the hallowed shrine of baseball greatness.

In most cases, he was completely ignored or dismissed by the writers.

Writers that were fortunate enough to have a vote that dictates a player's election to the hall seemed to forget a lot of things about Rice's playing career such as:

-He led the American League in homers 3 times.

-He was a lifetime .298 hitter

-He was American League MVP in 1978, and finished in the top five for the award five other times.

-He is the only player in MLB History to hit more than 39 home runs and collect 200 hits for three consecutive years

-From 1975-1986, Rice led the American League in most offensive categories such as hits, runs, and total bases.

If the aforementioned reasons do not denote the accomplishments of a first-ballot Hall of Famer, I don't know what does.

In truth, all the writers seemed to care about Jim Rice were two major flaws.

Some slighted him because his numbers declined towards the end of his career, and because he did not play long enough to warrant a Hall of Fame career.

But most writers snubbed him because of his prickly relations with the media.

Rice was a very private person who believed that his thoughts were nobody's business but his own. Towards the end of his career, the Boston Globe's Dan Shaughgnessy liken Rice to a bloated Brando/Elvis, who did nothing but stand in the back corner of the clubhouse and snarl.

In essence, most writer's seemed to think that they shoudn't give the guy a break when he had been so mean to them throughout his career.

But ironically Rice later became an analyst on Red Sox broadcasts in a surprising turn of events.

A man who had spent his career avoiding those who criticized him and demanding answers, had now become apart of the machine that handed out the criticism.

Perhaps because of this, Jim Rice earned the respect of the writers who neglected to vote for him because he was now being open and honest with his opinions.

That respect manifested itself today.

Finally, after 15 long and frustrating years of waiting, Jim Rice has earned his place in the Baseball Hall of Fame.