Mike Mussina

[82lsju]

On July 21, Mike Mussina, ’91, will become the first former Cardinal player to be inducted into the National Baseball Hall of Fame. 

A member of Stanford’s 1988 team, which won the College World Series, Mussina pitched 18 seasons in the major leagues for the Baltimore Orioles and the New York Yankees.

https://stanfordmag.org/contents/mike-mo...m-the-hall

[Leftcoast]

The FIRST Cardinal in the Hall?  Can that be right?

[BobK]

Yes. Can you think of another who could be?

[Leftcoast]

Yes.   Can you think of another who could be?

I was mostly surprised given the LOOONG history of Stanford baseball.   I wonder if some of the old timers were close?  Heck, Ernie Nevers was in MLB at one time!  Bob Boone played for 17 years, was occasionally mentioned as an MVP also ran and had 8 or so (going off memory) Gold Gloves as a catcher.   "Black Jack" McDowell was a Cy Young winner with the Chicago White Sox, posted several 20 win seasons and had a 12 years major league career.  I've never heard either mentioned as a HOF candidate but I'm still sort of surprised that in a 100+ years no one made it through.

[BobK]

I was thinking Bobby Brown. Yankee 3B, fought in two wars, AL President and a doctor

[terry]

I think Leftcoast identified Stanford's best major league position player (Bob Boone) and Stanford's next-best major league pitcher after Mussina (Jack McDowell).

Boone made 4 All Star teams and won 7 Gold Gloves. He accumulated 1,838 career hits, by far the most of any Stanford alum. His career batting average was .254. He ranks 3rd all-time in total number of games at catcher, behind Ivan Rodriguez and Carlton Fisk. 

McDowell made 3 All-Star teams, won a Cy Young Award, and also had a 2nd place finish in the Cy Young voting. He had a record of 127-87 and an ERA of 3.85. 

Good careers, but not Hall of Fame level, in my opinion.

Bobby Brown hit .279 for his career. He played 8 seasons, with more than 200 at-bats just four times and never appearing in more than 113 games. If he were to be considered for the Hall, it would have to be as an executive.

[BobK]

Agree Terry. I included Brown because it’s easier for an executive to get elected.

[Leftcoast]

AJ Hinch may make a modern case if he continues on his run at Houston. 

I'm still amazed there aren't more HOF Stanford candidates but I need to remember that until the mid-1980s a college player making a Major League team was a relative rarity and most major leaguers had joined the minor league system straight out of high school.

I remember writers in that time period talking about how much more articulate and broader in interests the average football or basketball players of the day were due to their college education than their more insular baseball counterparts.   /JeffT