When you read this headline, I’m sure the first thing that comes to your head is that here’s just another journalist complaining about the way members of the Baseball Hall of Fame are voted in and that he should get a vote and, God forbid, this Hawk character in the headline he is referring to is Ken “Hawk” Harrelson, a career .239 hitter who has become somewhat revered but mostly hated as the White Sox color commentator.But in the words of Lee Corso–”NOT SO FAST MY FRIEND!”

This will not be like Keith Olbermann’s list of 100 players he thinks should be in the Hall or something like Rick Telander’s column in today’s Sun-Times where he explains why he kept his ballot blank (if only I actually had a vote) or a diatribe about how Pete Rose should be in the Hall (he should) or how the Hall should be converted to a pyramid scheme.

I’m talking about a different Hawk, the one that busted his rear end for the game in a 21-year career that included 12 knee surgeries and, as he told Dan Le Batard, around 63 fluid drainings, “maybe more.”  But even with the chronic knees, this Hall snub has only one disabled list stint to his name, how’s that for toughness?

I’m talking about Andre Dawson, my favorite baseball player of all time. And this is coming from an Atlanta Braves fan, but any fan of the American Pastime should be able to appreciate the nine-time all-star who shares a July 10 birthday with me. Dawson failed to get in the Hall of Fame for the seventh time this year, and if you never saw him throw himself around the Wrigley outfield and terrorize National League pitching, his statistics should be enough for any baseball fan to appreciate: 2,774 hits (more than Gehrig or Ted Williams), 438 homers (more than Dimaggio or Bench), 1,591 RBI (topping Killebrew and McCovey), not to mention being part of the 300 homer-300 steal club. The other members? Try Willie Mays, both Barry and Bobby Bonds, Steve Finley and Reggie Sanders. Spectacular company at the least.

The 1977 NL Rookie of the Year award speaks for itself, along with second place finishes in NL MVP voting in both 1981 and 1983, but the one that takes the cake is his 1987 season, a 49-homer, 137 RBI barrage where he brought national attention to the North Side to take home that MVP trophy even when the Lovable Losers were in last place.

And Dawson’s accomplishments don’t just stand out at the plate, the Miami native won eight gold gloves in the outfield, mainly patrolling the corners, and had eight seasons with assists in double digits, including a whopping 17 in 1978. That’s versatility if I’ve ever seen it.

The biggest thing that should sway Hall voters, well, aside from my whole spiel on this here blog, is the support he receives from current Hall members. Ryne Sandberg, respected throughout the whole baseball community, said this about Dawson at his own Hall induction: “No player in baseball history worked harder, suffered more or did it better than Andre Dawson. He’s the best I’ve ever seen. I watched him win an MVP for a last-place team in 1987, and it was the most unbelievable thing I’ve ever seen in baseball. He did it the right way, the natural way, and he did it in the field and on the bases and in every way, and I hope he will stand up here someday.”

If my words don’t have much clout for you regarding The Hawk, Sandberg’s should. Along with that fact, it’s dissapointing that with all Dawson gave to the game that it won’t love him back. And Dawson refuses to toot his own horn about the matter.

Well Hawk, I appreciate the great plays and surprises you gave a Braves fan on WGN throughout the nineties, not to mention our shared birthday. But somebody needs to toot that horn to get you in the Hall, and I’m willing to be that guy.

This entry was posted on Wednesday, January 9th, 2008 at 9:17 pm and is filed under Cubs, MLB, hall of fame, ultimate screwjobs, andre dawson. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.