Would you put Albert Belle in the Hall?

Obviously he doesn't have much of a shot in the near future because he loathed the media and the media loathed him. He was nuts and by all accounts still is. Nobody really likes the guy. He only recently participated in an activity relating to the Indians for the first time since he left them for the White Sox.

The other reason he wouldn't be considered (aside from the fact that he played in the steroid era) is that he lacked career longevity relative to most members of the Hall. But he had an elite decade-long career, a large portion of which he was one of the two or three most feared hitters in baseball. Found this interesting tidbit from ESPN:

quote:

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Belle had more home runs (389), RBIs (1,239) and a higher OPS (933) than Kirby Puckett, who was a no-brainer first-ballot.

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Puckett was more valuable in the field, more likeable on the field, and he won two World Series, three major differences between the two. He may have been just as big of a POS as Belle off the field, though.


Here are Belle's career accomplishments:

- Had a better OPS+ than Harmon Kilebrew, Reggie Jackson, Ken Griffey, Jr., and Jim Rice.

- Averaged 37 HR, 120 RBI and a roughly .360 OBP during the '90s.

- First player to hit 50 doubles and 50 home runs in a season.

- Led the league in RBIs three times and once finished second with 152 RBIs.

- Missed just 23 games in eight seasons. When Ripken ended his streak, Belle became the new consecutive games played leader.

- Made five All-Star teams, won five Silver Slugger awards, and was the real 1995 MVP.