Paul O'Neill - Hall of Famer? yes or no, he has 5 WS rings, 1 with the Reds, 4 with the Yankees, in 17 seasons

Question

from 1985-2001 Paul had, 2,105 hits, 1,041 runs, 451 DB's, 281 HR's, 1,269 RBI's, and .288 BA. He might eventually get in, you think?

http://www.baseball-reference.com/o/o'neipa01.shtml

Celestine, the Albert P. comparison is stupid, because we all know Albert juices

Answer 1

OK I;m a Red Sox fan.... But one of my favorite baseball memories was during Paul O'Neills last game at Yankee Stadium... All of the 55,000 fans there started chanting "PAUL O- NEE-UHL clap, clap, clapclapclap."

It brought chills to my spine and a tear to my eye. Great moment...even for a Sox fan.

Answer 2

If he does, it will be a long time. O'Neill was first eligible for induction in 2007. He received only 2.2 % of the vote. A player must receive at least 5 % of the vote to remain on the ballot. He will next be eligible for election by the Veterans' Committee in 2022.
I always thought O'Neill was good, but never one of the best of his time. His numbers, I think, are more just a matter of a long career then they are being a Hall of Fame Caliber player. As for having 5 rings, that's certainly an achievement that very few players can brag about, but that does not indicate his personal ability at all. There are 47 players who won 5 or more World Series championships, but only 15 of them are in the Hall.
Do I think O'Neill will someday be in the Hall? No. Do I think he deserves to be? Sorry, also a no.

Answer 3

Biff, as a Yankee fan I love Paul. George Steinbrenner's "warrior". He was a very good player who attained all-star level at times. A perfect fit for those late 90's Yankee teams. But Hall of Fame is out of the question and you knew it before you asked the question.

Here's a quick comparison that will set you straight. Paul had 281 HR's in 17 seasons. Albert Pujols has 282 HR's in only 7 seasons. If Pujols stopped playing today he would have a far better chance of making the HOF then Paul would. You see Pujols is a dominant player and Paul never was that. It would be hard to find one season from Paul's career to compare to Pujols weakest. I think that settles it.

Answer 4

I was a big Paul O'Neill fan. He always gave 100% all of the time. I'd love to see it but I'm afraid O'Neill falls into that group of "very good" ball players with very good numbers. Unfortunately as good as they are, they are not hall of fame numbers.

His world series rings could help. If, by chance, he gets in it will probably be through the Veterans Committee down the road.

One thing is for sure, O'Neill as well as Bernie Williams should have their numbers retired at Yankee Stadium.

Answer 5

No, they might get into the Yankees hall of fame, or maybe they have a ceremony before a game for them or something, but certainly not hall of famers. They were very good players, and they hustled and played for a long time, but they are not hall of famers.

Answer 6

No. Only one great season (and that was a short one), couple of very good ones, and a bunch of nothing-that-specials. An O'Neill Hall candidacy would have to rest far too much on "intangibles" or "leadership" or other such mediotic rot. And, given that he lasted only one ballot (2007, 2.2%, relegated), the writers appear to have rejected that approach.

Good player, a real asset. But not Hall-class. The writers got this one exactly correct.

Answer 7

He will be on that great squad of Buckner, Hodges, Santo, Kaat, Dale Murphy, Roger Maris, etc etc. A great player but not great enough. I was a big Felipe Alou fan when I was a kid but knew he wasnt HOF material. Joe Torre put together a grreat career as a player and he wasnt even a thought until he had the successful run as a manager. simple as this...very few great ones get in, and a lot of good ones dont

Answer 8

He was a great team guy; the type of guy that glues a team together and the type of player that every team would want but those stats for 17 years are not that great, they are really good but not that great. He is not someone that every team in the league said "Whoa, you gotta get around O'Neil in that line-up!" He was the type of guy that pitchers were careful with but they would still challenge him. his hits average out to be 123.8 per season, that is not a HOF type number. I loved him as a player but I would not put him in the HOF.

Answer 9

No. Good player, long career, nice stats, but not a Hall of Famer. The five World Series rings are good, but the Hall looks more at individual stats than collective achievements. He has good numbers in all categories, but good does not equal HOF.

Answer 10

Love Paul O'Neill, Tino, Bernie, and all the great Yanks from the title years, but so far, only Jeter, Clemens, and Rivera are definite HOF'ERS. Maybe Pettitte and Posada with a few more seasons.