Why do you think Alan Trammell is not yet in the Hall of Fame when he was clearly the shortsop of the 80's?

Question

Alan Trammell's lifetime stats...
.285 BA, .767 OPS
185 HR, 1003 RBI, 236 SB
.977 FA
Ozzie Smith's lifetime stats...
.262 BA, .664 OPS
28 HR, 793 RBI, 580 SB
.978 FA
Trammell was far, far, FAR away the better offensive player. It's not even REMOTELY close, by any measurement.
But there's more to the game than numbers, right? Right.
Ozzie Smith was a tremendous defensive player, perhaps the best fielding shortstop of all-time, winner of 13 gold gloves.
Alan Trammell was a very, very good defensive shortstop, winner of 4 gold gloves.
Smith was definitely the better fielder, but what's more valuable.
You have Alan Trammell, an A- hitter and an A- fielder.
You have Ozzie Smith, a C+ hitter and an A+ fielder.
I'll take Trammell, please. It's not even close.
Oh wait, I forgot...Ozzie Smith can do backflips. Better take him.

Answer 1

Obviously it is because Alan Trammell just played the game. He didn't say he was the greatest, he didn't flaunt his talent. He just did his job and apparently that just isn't enough. The other problem is that he is a Tiger. Tigers have problems getting in. But Go Tigers anyway.

Answer 2

If you look historically at the membership of the Baseball Hall of Fame, you will see that there is not a vast majority at any on position:

First Base 19
Second Base 16
Shortstop 22
Third Base 11
Left Field 19
Center Field 20
Right Field 22
Catcher 14
Designated Hitter 1
Pitcher 66
Pioneers/Executives 23
Managers 17
Umpires 8

You also have to note that after the election of Ozzie Smith (who did have a better career than Tramell, even though I own Tramell's rookie card), it takes a while for things to get out properly. Note how long it took for Bill Mazeroski, a comparable player with better defensive numbers, to get in.

As I tell all of my guitarist friends, don't fret...he'll make it someday.

Answer 3

When you think of shortstops in the '80s, who is the first one that comes to your mind? Ozzie Smith, hands down. He was elected to the Hall based on his defensive abilities because he simply redefined the position and took it to a new level defensively. Remember, in the '80s, the SS was not expected to provide much offensive punch, that is something that came out of the late '90s with Nomar, A-Rod, Tejada, etc.

Here are some other things to consider in the comparison:
Trammel was a 6 time All Star ('80,'84,'85,'87,'88,'90)
Ozzie was a 15 time All Star ('81-'92, '94-'96)

Trammel won 4 Gold Gloves ('80,'81,'83,'84)
Smith won 13....in a row ('80-'92)

Trammel compares to 2 HOF'ers (Sandberg, Reese)
Smith compares to 4 (Aparicio, Maranville, Fox, Wallace)

And for a weak as he was offensively, he did win a Silver Slugger in 1987.

Finally, there are plenty of Tigers in the HOF:
Cobb, Crawford, Gehringer, Greenburg, Heilmann, Kaline, Kell and Newhouser all spent the majority of their careers playing for the Tigers. Anderson, Harris and Jennings all got elected to the Hall as managers who spent the majority of their career in Detroit

Answer 4

If Trammell receives in, it opens the doorways for thousands of others who had in undemanding words a handful of All-enormous call appearances and Gold Gloves, with out MVP's. The hall has been a touch too lenient. It must be for the elite, larger than existence gamers. would more effective than 1/2 the followers of baseball even comprehend Trammell walking down the line?

Answer 5

The next thing you are going to say is that Garry Templeton should be in the Hall of Fame. Trammell was good, but he's not Hall calibre. Ozzie Smith was the SS of the 80s, if not all time. How can you not see that?

Answer 6

The shortstop fo the 80's was Ozzie Smith. Trammell was a good shortstop, but not a great SS. mainly known for longevity w/ Lou Whitaker

Answer 7

The Shortstop?!? Are you kidding me. The Wizard Ozzie Smith was The Shortstop of the 80's.

Alan Tramwell...please.

Nobody is doubting the fact that he was better offensively than Ozzie, but the fact that the asker makes the statement that Tramwell was the shortstop of the 80's is just ludicrous.

Answer 8

Tram was the heart of the Tigers for what?22 years?Never made the big bucks got screwed out of an MVP award and never said a word.He played hard and with more class than anyone of his time.He is just a nice guy and you know nice guys finnish last in baseball.Larkin couldnt carry Trams jock,no wait he could cuz he was on the DL most of the time.Ozzie is in the hall because he probably is the best feilder at any position of all time.His highlight film would run for hours,and yes he could do backflips,but it is his feilding without a doubt that got him in.Tram might not have been as flashy but he was good.There was also a guy named Ripkin that stole alot of the spotlight in the 80s.

Answer 9

Ozzie Smith was the shortstop of the 80's. There has never been anyone better. Hell, Barry Larkin was better than Trammel.

Answer 10

Simply by offensive numbers, tramell and smith are well outdone by Ripken, the issue with trammell, since his numbers arent outstanding and his defensive skill doesnt match ozzie smith. he is outdone by many ss's in offensive categories and was not as defensively sound as other is the reason why he is not yet in the hall of fame