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Tuesday, January 10, 2012

How Good Was Barry Larkin?

I have to admit. I want to get all worked up over his selection. I want to have a strong opinion that either it’s about time he got in, or it’s a stain on the hall that he was elected. But, I really don’t know. Unfortunately, that leads me to think that’s all I need to know.

Larkin was an NL guy, so my exposure to him was limited. The only time I saw him play live was at the 1999 All-Star game. He was one of the guys Pedro made look absolutely foolish. But that’s all I have.

Shouldn’t there be more if he’s a Hall-of-Famer? Shouldn’t I have known about him, even if he was in the NL? Shouldn’t I have known for ten years that we were just waiting for him to be eligible so he could take his rightful place among the legends?

Is it the new math? Are people suddenly realizing that players are better than we thought they were when they were active? Are people trying to convince people that players are better than they were when they were active? Do the voters need to vote for somebody?

So, people who really paid attention. Was Barry good? Was he a game changer? Did you fear him when he came to the plate? Did you mark the schedule when he was coming to town? Did you always know he was destined for Cooperstown?

I don’t think I did.
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4 comments:

  1. AnonymousJanuary 10, 2012 at 5:49 PM

    If you don't know much about him or didn't know he was going to get elected, you're certainly in the minority of baseball fans. He was a 12-time All-Star, the best player on World Series champion, an NL MVP, and was the best SS in baseball for about 6 or 7 years.

    I know he didn't play in Fenway or the Bronx, but there actually have been some pretty good baseball players outside of those cities. Larkin is one of them.

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  2. Nachos GrandeJanuary 10, 2012 at 7:02 PM

    Larkin was so good he beat out Ozzie Smith for All-Star votes. What more does one need to know? Also, he has lots of cool baseball cards and I want them all!

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  3. Section 36January 10, 2012 at 7:17 PM

    Wait a minute. When did they get good players in the Bronx?

    An elite player shouldn't need to play on the east. I know that Ken Griffey Jr was an all-time great, and he was in Seattle. I know Vlad Guerrerro was one of the best in the game, and he played in Montreal. Playing for the Reds shouldn't matter for an all-time great.

    Larkin was a great player. Taking votes away from Ozzie is a nice touch. I just didn't like the fact that I wasn't sure.

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  4. AnonymousJanuary 11, 2012 at 9:13 AM

    Yes - they do have good players in the Bronx - it's just that they rarely start there :)

    Nachos and I are clearly biased fans - but I think he deserves to be in!

    The Ozzie comparison is a great point - they're two completely different players, but it would be hard to argue one guy was a markedly better SS than the other.

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