Some interesting numbers I ran across while surfing the web...

The demands on starting pitchers continue to diminish. Last season, 45 pitchers worked a combined 73 starts that resulted in 120-plus-pitch efforts, a 60.8 percent drop from 2004. CC Sabathia led all pitchers with five, including four with Milwaukee. Ben Sheets of Milwaukee and Tim Lincecum of San Francisco made four apiece. The 120-pitch games during the past five seasons:

Year    Games
2008    73
2007    84
2006    120
2005    137
2004    186


NUMBERS GAME
--2 left fielders voted into the Hall of Fame this week - Jim Rice and Rickey Henderson. It's the first time a left fielder was elected in 20 years.

MLB stats, cc sabathia, ben sheets, tim lincecum, jim rice, rickey henderson

I have to say, I was a little surprised by the results of the Hall of Fame voting results today.  Obviously Rickey Henderson was a cinch to get in, but I didn't expect Rice to make it as well; I'd figured that his case had become so polarizing that there weren't going to be any defectors from the anti-Rice camp.  But, he slid in on his 15th and final ballot.  As I said a couple weeks back, I don't think he's worth induction, but he's hardly the worst player in the Hall, and he won't devalue induction any.

Andre Dawson's support (67.0%) seemed a bit higher than it should have been, especially in comparison to his former teammate, Tim Raines (22.6%).  Bert Blyleven continues to pick up votes (62.7%), and he'll probably get the call in the next few years.  Jack Morris' support continues to baffle me (44.0%), again considering the low vote totals for his former teammate (and in my mind more deserving candidate) Alan Trammell (17.4%).

David Cone should have gotten more than the 3.9% that he garnered, and will fall off the ballot, along with Tommy John (final year of eligibility), Mark Grace, Matt Williams, Mo Vaughn, Jay Bell, Jesse Orosco, and Dan Plesac.  And the whole Mark McGwire issue (21.9%) isn't going away anytime soon.

Looking ahead to Cooperstown...well I'm excited, as he once told Padres GM Kevin Towers, to hear "Rickey speaking on behalf of Rickey".

MLB hall of fame, ricky henderson, jim rice, bert blyleven, andre dawson, david cone, tommy john, mark grace, matt williams, mo vaughn, jay bell, jesse orosco, dan pleasac, mark mcgwire

In the Christmas spirit, let's start a fight!  Today we get into one of the most polarizing debates in Hall of Fame history: the case of Jim Rice.

"Q: Jim Rice comes to bat with the bases empty.  What does he do?

A: He grounds into a double play." - The Good Doctor, Inside Sports

THE NUMBERS
2089 G, 2452 H, .298 AVG, 382 HR, 1451 RBI

I'll be honest here; I'm completely agnostic about the induction or non-induction of Jim Rice into the Hall of Fame.  I do not believe that the Hall would be sullied by his gaining acceptance, nor do I believe it would be an injustice to exclude him.  But Rice's case is one of a fantastically talented athlete and a great left fielder, who was also curiously flawed at the plate and one of the least liked players in baseball history.  There are arguments to be made on both sides, but one in particular could be extremely convincing.

No one can deny the greatness of Rice.  He, Fred Lynn, and Dwight Evans formed perhaps baseball's best outfield from 1975-1980.  Opposing pitchers feared him more than just about any other left fielder in his day.  While Rice was hardly as skilled as his predecessor, Carl Yastrzemski, at playing the Green Monster, he fielded adequately enough.

Rice broke in with the Red Sox towards the end of 1974, and made an immediate impact the next season, leading the Red Sox to the World Series along with fellow rookie (and Rookie of the Year and MVP) Fred Lynn.  He went on a three year tear from 1977-79, hitting 124 home runs and compiling a batting average of .320.  He continued for another seven seasons as one of the premier power hitters in the league, while never hitting below .284.

The career numbers are extremely impressive.  Eight All-Star games, six finishes in the top 5 of the AL MVP voting (including his 1978 MVP award), three AL home run titles, two RBI crowns, and he was consistently among the top 10 in batting average.  His 382 career home runs would place him sixth among the 13 Hall of Fame left fielders, and the .502 slugging percentage he accumulated puts him eighth, neither one of those shabby numbers.

Now, there's also a case against him that's equally as impressive.  His career hit total is not too impressive among the Hall members, only better than three, including Willie Stargell, who was far better of a power hitter.  He had a pretty poor batting eye (just 670 walks, well below most Hall members), and his 1423 strikeouts were almost off-the-charts awful except when compared to Stargell.  Consequently, his contributions on the basepaths beyond home runs was somewhat diminished.  And then there's the double plays.  315 for his career, sixth most all time, and he led the league four consecutive years.

The curious argument that could convince on the fence voters would be his comparison to one of his contemporaries, Tony Perez.  The logic goes, if Perez is in, then Rice should be in.  This is a fair argument, as most of their day would testify that Rice was the superior player.  I would agree, and would argue (much as it would pain diehard Reds fans) that Perez was one of the least deserving Hall selections over the past 25 years.  While I'm not fond of comparing players across positions, nor do I believe that the method of using an undeserving induction to justify another one, but let's take a look at the comparison between the two:

Name	G	AB	H	HR	RBI	BB	K	BA	OBP	SLG	GIDP
Rice	2089	8225	2452	382	1451	670	1423	.298	.352	.502	315
Perez	2777	9778	2732	379	1652	925	1867	.279	.341	.463	268

With the exception of Perez's "superior" walk rate, there's not much reason to say that Rice is less deserving than Perez.  But, again, two wrongs don't make a right, so while that would persuade others, I would decide to pass on accepting it.  My vote would be against Rice.

MLB jim rice, hall of fame