Speaking of baseball, I get the MLB morning lineup email everyday & found this article that some of you might be interested in. I included the write ups on the Tiger entrees.
(Matt Kelly is a reporter for MLB.com based in New York. You can follow him on Twitter at @mattkellyMLB.)
Kelly's all-time non-HOF team (as of 2020)
C: Bill Freehan
1B: Rafael Palmeiro
2B: Lou Whitaker
3B: Dick Allen
SS: Omar Vizquel
LF: Barry Bonds
CF: Kenny Lofton
RF: Shoeless Joe Jackson
DH: Hal McRae
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R-H SP: Roger Clemens
L-H SP: Johan Santana
R-H RP: Dan Quisenberry
L-H RP: Billy Wagner
C: Bill Freehan
Call this a toss-up between Freehan and Thurman Munson, both of whom could use a longer look from the Hall’s veteran committees. Freehan enjoyed a longer career because of Munson’s unfortunate passing at age 32, and thus he finished with more hits, homers, RBIs and Gold Glove Awards. But he was also just as accomplished a two-way catcher as the Yankees captain -- and just as revered a leader for the Tigers, too.
On a technical level, both Freehan and Munson (along with Gene Tenace, who nearly split his career evenly between catcher and first base) own the highest JAWS totals (Jay Jaffe’s system that combines career Wins Above Replacement with a player’s seven best seasons) among eligible backstops on the outside of Cooperstown looking in.
Honorable mentions: Munson, Tenace, Jorge Posada (Joe Mauer not yet eligible)
2B: Lou Whitaker
Jeff Kent famously hit the most homers of any second baseman, thus making his exclusion from the Hall somewhat strange. But most of Kent’s dingers were hit during unprecedented boon times for the long ball, and while defensive metrics get murkier the further back one goes, Whitaker’s more polished all-around game stands out more to this author. As Jaffe noted for FanGraphs in 2019, Whitaker belongs to a select group of players (and is the only second baseman besides Jackie Robinson) who finished their careers at least 200 batting runs, 50 fielding runs and 25 baserunning runs above average. Plus, it just doesn’t feel right that Alan Trammell is in the Hall without his double-play partner.
Honorable mentions: Kent, Bobby Grich (Chase Utley not yet eligible)
**
Also, a writer by the name of Jason Beck said the following regarding Freehan:
“Great catcher,” Angels manager Joe Maddon said. “I was a big Cardinal fan growing up, and Brock did not slide at home plate."
Freehan caught 1,581 games in a Tigers uniform, more than 500 more than anyone else in franchise history. His five Gold Gloves rank fifth among catchers in Major League history and second only to Kaline for Detroit players at any position. His 10,714 chances, 9,941 putouts and .993 fielding percentage topped the all-time list for Major League catchers when he retired.
“The last thing I’m going to do before I check out of here is get him in the Hall of Fame,” McLain said during the Tigers’ 1968 reunion in September 2018. “Nobody played the game better. Nobody was more in the game. Nobody.”
(Matt Kelly is a reporter for MLB.com based in New York. You can follow him on Twitter at @mattkellyMLB.)
Kelly's all-time non-HOF team (as of 2020)
C: Bill Freehan
1B: Rafael Palmeiro
2B: Lou Whitaker
3B: Dick Allen
SS: Omar Vizquel
LF: Barry Bonds
CF: Kenny Lofton
RF: Shoeless Joe Jackson
DH: Hal McRae
---
R-H SP: Roger Clemens
L-H SP: Johan Santana
R-H RP: Dan Quisenberry
L-H RP: Billy Wagner
C: Bill Freehan
Call this a toss-up between Freehan and Thurman Munson, both of whom could use a longer look from the Hall’s veteran committees. Freehan enjoyed a longer career because of Munson’s unfortunate passing at age 32, and thus he finished with more hits, homers, RBIs and Gold Glove Awards. But he was also just as accomplished a two-way catcher as the Yankees captain -- and just as revered a leader for the Tigers, too.
On a technical level, both Freehan and Munson (along with Gene Tenace, who nearly split his career evenly between catcher and first base) own the highest JAWS totals (Jay Jaffe’s system that combines career Wins Above Replacement with a player’s seven best seasons) among eligible backstops on the outside of Cooperstown looking in.
Honorable mentions: Munson, Tenace, Jorge Posada (Joe Mauer not yet eligible)
2B: Lou Whitaker
Jeff Kent famously hit the most homers of any second baseman, thus making his exclusion from the Hall somewhat strange. But most of Kent’s dingers were hit during unprecedented boon times for the long ball, and while defensive metrics get murkier the further back one goes, Whitaker’s more polished all-around game stands out more to this author. As Jaffe noted for FanGraphs in 2019, Whitaker belongs to a select group of players (and is the only second baseman besides Jackie Robinson) who finished their careers at least 200 batting runs, 50 fielding runs and 25 baserunning runs above average. Plus, it just doesn’t feel right that Alan Trammell is in the Hall without his double-play partner.
Honorable mentions: Kent, Bobby Grich (Chase Utley not yet eligible)
**
Also, a writer by the name of Jason Beck said the following regarding Freehan:
“Great catcher,” Angels manager Joe Maddon said. “I was a big Cardinal fan growing up, and Brock did not slide at home plate."
Freehan caught 1,581 games in a Tigers uniform, more than 500 more than anyone else in franchise history. His five Gold Gloves rank fifth among catchers in Major League history and second only to Kaline for Detroit players at any position. His 10,714 chances, 9,941 putouts and .993 fielding percentage topped the all-time list for Major League catchers when he retired.
“The last thing I’m going to do before I check out of here is get him in the Hall of Fame,” McLain said during the Tigers’ 1968 reunion in September 2018. “Nobody played the game better. Nobody was more in the game. Nobody.”
