Baseball Finest

    3 reasons why Bobby Abreu should be inducted: Elite overall value (WAR and rate stats) • Abreu produced roughly 60 WAR in his career, right in the historical Hall-of-Fame range for corner outfielders and ahead of many enshrined hitters with similar or lower totals. • His career slash line of .291/.395/.475 with a 128 OPS+ shows a true middle‑of‑the‑order bat who was 25–30 percent better than league average over a long period, not a compiler hanging around on empty averages. On‑base machine with a rare skill mix • Abreu drew 1,476 walks and posted a .395 OBP, functioning as one of the best table‑setters/run producers of his era even without gaudy home run totals. • He combined that OBP with power and speed: 288 homers, 574 doubles, 59 triples, and 400 steals, a blend that very few outfielders in history can match at that volume. Sustained prime and “everyday” reliability • He logged seven seasons of at least 5.0 bWAR, more such seasons than some already‑enshrined stars like...

Happy Birthday, Doug Jones! Douglas Reid Jones was born on June 24, 1957 in Covina, California. 5x All-Star. 69-79 W-L, 3.30 ERA, 909 SO, 303 SV. Doug Jones and his teams:         Milwaukee Brewers, Cleveland Indians, Houston Astros, Philadelphia Phillies, Baltimore Orioles, Chicago Cubs and Oakland Athletics.

Happy Birthday, Charlie! Charles Dewayne Hayes was born on May 29, 1965 in Hattiesburg, Mississippi. Doubles Leader, Putouts as 3B Leader, Assists as 3B Leader, Double Plays Turned as 3B Leader. .262 AVG, 144 HR, 740 RBI, 47 SB, 1379 Hits. Charlie Hayes and his teams:          San Francisco Giants, Philadelphia Phillies,  New  York Yankees,  Colorado Rockies, Pittsburgh Pirates, Milwaukee Brewers, Houston Astros (no card found)

  Happy Birthday, Mike! Miguel Ángel Cuéllar was born on May 8, 1937 in Las Villas, Cuba. 4x All-Star, Cy Young, Wins Leader, GS Leader, CG Leader, 2x W-L% Leader. 185-130 W-L, 3.14 ERA, 1632 SO, 11 SV. Mike Cuellar and his teams:         Cincinnati Reds, St. Louis Cardinals, Houston Astros, Baltimore Orioles, California Angels.

Happy Birthday, Hunter! Hunter Andrew Pence was born on April 13, 1983 in Fort Worth, Texas. 4x All-Star, 2x Games Leader, AB Leader, several defensive leaderships. .279 AVG, 244 HR, 942 RBI, 120 SB, 1791 Hits. Hunter Pence and his teams:         Houston Astros, Philadelphia Phillies, San Francisco Giants and Texas Rangers.

Happy Birthday, Steve! Steven Allen Finley was born on March 12, 1965 in Union City, Tennessee. 2x All-Star, 5x GG, 2x Triples Leader, 2x Games Leader, some defensive leaderships. .271 AVG, 304 HR, 1167 RBI, 320 SB, 2548 Hits. Steve Finley and his teams:               Baltimore Orioles, Houston Astros, San Diego Padres, Arizona Diamondbacks, Los Angeles Dodgers, Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim, San Francisco Giants and Colorado Rockies.

Happy Birthday, JV! Justin Brooks Verlander was born on February 20, 1983 in Manakin Sabot, Virginia. 8x All-Star, MVP, 2x Cy Young, ALCS MVP, Triple Crown, ROY, 3x Wins Leader, ERA Title, 5x SO Leader, 2x W-L% Leader, CG Leader, SHO Leader, 4x Innings Leader, 5x GS Leader, 3x No-Hit. 236-129 W-L, 3.33 ERA, 3013 SO, 0 SV Justin Verlander and his teams:   Detroit Tigers and Houston Astros.

  Happy Birthday, Ryan Express! Lynn Nolan Ryan was born on January 31, 1947 in Refugio, Texas. HOF, 8x All-Star, 2x ERA Title, 11x SO Leader, CG Leader, 3x SHO Leader, Innings Leader, 7x No-Hit (MLB Record) 324-292 W-L, 3.19 ERA, 5714 SO (MLB record), 3 SV Nolan Ryan and his teams:   New York Mets, California Angels, Houston Astros and Texas Rangers.