Why is Lee Smith not in the baseball hall of fame?

Answer 1

The question can be legitimately asked of many players, such as Smith, Tony Oliva, Ron Santo and so on. The reason? It is very hard to get in the Hall at all, and the rules have become even more restrictive of late. I disagree with this, in part because of the capriciousness of those with the votes. Why exclude Pete Rose and include Juan Marichal, whose most famous accomplishment was hitting Johnny Roseboro over the head with a bat? (Roseboro forgave him later, and no one disputes that Marichal was a great pitcher.) Some of the tales of voting by the sports writers are equally uninspiring. But alas you and I have no say in these matters.

Answer 2

Well, it certainly isn't because he played for the Cubs. It is because he is a relief pitcher, which has taken a lot of criticism from baseball analysts because of the singular function of coming into a game for only an inning or so. I remember someone saying, "They come in for 1 darn inning. Heck, I could pitch 1 inning. But starters, well they have to go 6-7 innings strong just to get recognition. They are the real specialists." Others make the comment that a lot of relievers used to be starters but couldn't hack it, so they would just come in for the inning. Lee Smith is tied at 15th for most saves in a season, with more people likely to pass him each year. On the other hand, the man does have the most saves ever with 478! And because Rollie Fingers (341 saves) and Dennis Eckersley (390 saves), Smith should easily make the HOF very soon. It is all just a matter of time.

Also, for the previous response: Andre Dawson was more of a Montreal Expo (played there 11 years) than a Cub (6 years). But he will eventually make the HOF after more deserving players are selected. Ron Santo won't make the HOF because he only batted .277, which wasn't justified by power--only had 342 homers along with about 1300 rbi. There are currently 14 active players out there with more hrs (at least 8 more within 2-3 years) and 9 active with more rbi (10+ more within 2-3 years). He simply doesn't warrant HOF status.

Answer 3

for some reason, relievers are not really smiled upon when it comes to hall of fame voting. not to mention, he played for the cubs, which kinda makes him cursed. trust me, i know, i am an Andre Dawson fanatic and if anyone deserves to be in, its Andre Dawson, Ron Santo, and Lee Smith.