MLB Hall of Fame: 10 current players who are locks
7. David Ortiz
Many of you might rank David Ortiz higher than I have, but while I think David could certainly be a lock for the Hall of Fame, there are some problems for me – namely the fact that Ortiz has been a Designated Hitter for the majority of his career. I have a bit of a problem personally with the DH anyway, but I’ll save that rant for another article.
No, being a DH doesn’t mean he won’t be a lock, but in the minds of many voters (including me if I had a vote), it could be an issue. Beyond that little caveat for me though, Ortiz is a player you have to at least consider could be a lock for Cooperstown.
Over eighteen seasons as a professional baseball player, his first six with the Minnesota Twins, and his last 12 with the Boston Red Sox, Ortiz has put up fantastic numbers in that DH role, as the table below illustrates (note I’ve included just his years in Boston):
| Year | Tm | R | H | 2B | 3B | HR | RBI | SB | BB | SO | BA | OBP | SLG | OPS | TB | Pos | Awards |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2003 | BOS | 79 | 129 | 39 | 2 | 31 | 101 | 0 | 58 | 83 | .288 | .369 | .592 | .961 | 265 | D3 | MVP-5 |
| 2004 ★ | BOS | 94 | 175 | 47 | 3 | 41 | 139 | 0 | 75 | 133 | .301 | .380 | .603 | .983 | 351 | *D3 | AS,MVP-4,SS |
| 2005 ★ | BOS | 119 | 180 | 40 | 1 | 47 | 148 | 1 | 102 | 124 | .300 | .397 | .604 | 1.001 | 363 | *D3 | AS,MVP-2,SS |
| 2006 ★ | BOS | 115 | 160 | 29 | 2 | 54 | 137 | 1 | 119 | 117 | .287 | .413 | .636 | 1.049 | 355 | *D3 | AS,MVP-3,SS |
| 2007 ★ | BOS | 116 | 182 | 52 | 1 | 35 | 117 | 3 | 111 | 103 | .332 | .445 | .621 | 1.066 | 341 | *D/3 | AS,MVP-4,SS |
| 2008 ★ | BOS | 74 | 110 | 30 | 1 | 23 | 89 | 1 | 70 | 74 | .264 | .369 | .507 | .877 | 211 | *D | AS |
| 2009 | BOS | 77 | 129 | 35 | 1 | 28 | 99 | 0 | 74 | 134 | .238 | .332 | .462 | .794 | 250 | *D/3 | |
| 2010 ★ | BOS | 86 | 140 | 36 | 1 | 32 | 102 | 0 | 82 | 145 | .270 | .370 | .529 | .899 | 274 | *D/3 | AS |
| 2011 ★ | BOS | 84 | 162 | 40 | 1 | 29 | 96 | 1 | 78 | 83 | .309 | .398 | .554 | .953 | 291 | *D/3 | AS,SS |
| 2012 ★ | BOS | 65 | 103 | 26 | 0 | 23 | 60 | 0 | 56 | 51 | .318 | .415 | .611 | 1.026 | 198 | D/3 | AS |
| 2013 ★ | BOS | 84 | 160 | 38 | 2 | 30 | 103 | 4 | 76 | 88 | .309 | .395 | .564 | .959 | 292 | *D/3 | AS,MVP-10,SS |
| 2014 | BOS | 35 | 85 | 18 | 0 | 19 | 61 | 0 | 50 | 58 | .258 | .356 | .485 | .841 | 160 | *D/3 | |
| 18 Yrs | 1243 | 2108 | 538 | 18 | 450 | 1490 | 15 | 1137 | 1532 | .285 | .380 | .546 | .926 | 4032 | |||
| 162 Game Avg. | 98 | 166 | 42 | 1 | 35 | 117 | 1 | 89 | 121 | .285 | .380 | .546 | .926 | 317 | |||
| R | H | 2B | 3B | HR | RBI | SB | BB | SO | BA | OBP | SLG | OPS | TB | Pos | Awards | ||
| BOS (12 yrs) | 1028 | 1715 | 430 | 15 | 392 | 1252 | 11 | 951 | 1193 | .290 | .388 | .567 | .955 | 3351 | |||
| MIN (6 yrs) | 215 | 393 | 108 | 3 | 58 | 238 | 4 | 186 | 339 | .266 | .348 | .461 | .809 | 681 |
Provided by Baseball-Reference.com: View Original Table
Generated 7/12/2014.
An All-Star nine times, Ortiz has a ton of accolades to his credit, including top 5 votes for MVP five different seasons, and six Silver Slugger awards. Add to that the fact that Ortiz was the 2004 AL ALCS MVP, the 2005 AL Hank Aaron Award winner, the 2011 Roberto Clemente Award winner, the 2013 AL Babe Ruth Award winner, and was the 2013 World Series MVP, and few current players enjoy such a storied resume’.
Is David Ortiz a lock for the hall someday? Despite my personal reservations about the DH and the place in the hall for any DH, I have to say that Ortiz is as likely a lock as anyone. He’s already played 18 years, and with that track record, his numbers and accolades, you’ll hear most give him the nod. I suppose I will as well.