Why isn't Gil Hodges in the Hall Of Fame?

Answer 1

That is the biggest mystery in baseball, Gil Hodges and the lack of love by baseball's Hall of Fame. There is a reason behind it: Hodges just doesn't have the body of work to be considered for the HOF. If Hodges gets in, then so should Don Mattingly, Keith Hernandez, Wes Parker, and George Scott.

A counterpoint: The fact that Gil Hodges has not been elected to membership in the Baseball Hall of Fame is somewhat controversial. He was considered to be one of the finest players of the 1950s, and graduated to managerial success with the Mets. But critics of his candidacy point out that despite his offensive prowess, he never led the NL in any offensive category such as home runs, RBI or slugging average, and never came close to winning an MVP award (in fact, he was never named first on any MVP ballot). The latter fact may have been partially due to his having many of his best seasons (1950-51, 1954, 1957) in years when the Dodgers did not win the pennant. In addition, his career batting average of .273 was likely frowned on by many Hall of Fame voters in his early years of eligibility; at the time of his death, only five players had ever been elected by the Baseball Writers Association of America with batting averages below .300 – all of them catchers or shortstops, and only one (Rabbit Maranville) who had an average lower than Hodges' or who had not won an MVP award. By the time his initial eligibility expired in 1983, the BBWAA had elected only two more players with averages below .274 – third basemen Eddie Mathews (.271), who hit over 500 HRs, leading the NL twice, and Brooks Robinson (.267), who won an MVP award and set numerous defensive records.

Nonetheless, Hodges was the prototype of the modern slugging first baseman, and while the post-1961 expansion era has resulted in numerous players matching his home run and RBI totals, he remains the only one of the 21 players who had 300 or more home runs by the time of his retirement who has not yet been elected (all but Chuck Klein and Johnny Mize were elected by the BBWAA). Some observers have also suggested that his premature passing in 1972 simply removed him from public consciousness, whereas other ballplayers – including numerous Dodger greats – were in the public eye for years afterward, receiving the exposure which may assist their election. He did, however, collect 3010 votes cast by the BBWAA during his initial eligibility period from 1969 to 1983 – a record for an unselected player until Jim Rice surpassed that total in 2007 – and has been regularly considered for selection by the Hall of Fame's Veterans Committee since 1987, falling one vote short of election in 1993 when no candidates were selected.

While someone like Bill Mazeroski is in the Hall, he's there because of his sterling fielding and his outstanding post-season marks. Despite the somewhat disappointing batting average, Maz set the standard for the likes of Ryne Sandberg and Joe Morgan to follow. Gil Hodges was a damn good player, but that is all.

Answer 2

Someone has to be The Best Player Not In The Hall. As soon as Santo gets in, Hodges will be a worthy heir to the title.

Answer 3

In my opinion he is one of those guys who had a very good career, but unfortunately maybe not great enough. At the time 370 Hr's and 1200 Rbi's was great, but over time they begin to look weak. Look at Jim Rice, Dawson, Murphy, etc. FOr me I cannot figure out why Dawson is not in.

Thing with Hodges..he never led the league in avg, hr, rbi, runs, total bases, never finished in top 5 in mvp voting.

Just one of those good players who never made a great enough impact on the game I guess. I would have no problem with him in there.

Answer 4

Becasue neither the sportswriters nor the old timers committee voted him in.