Consider Albert Belle
Watching the slow trickle of stories come out about Barry Bonds and A-Rod taking steroids I wanted to write about Albert Belle.
Between 1994-96 Albert Belle was probably the best hitter in baseball finishing in the top 3 for the AL MVP each of those years. He was the first player to hit 50 home runs and 50 doubles in a single season. Belle was productive throughout his career until retiring at the young age of 34 with a degenerative hip condition. The early retirement handicapped his career numbers leaving him with only 381 career home runs.
Any potential to make it into the Hall of Fame is further hindered by the fact that his accomplishments were blown out of the water by a wave of steroid using players and that the undeniable fact that Albert Belle was a huge ass hole with one of the worst relationships with the media ever.
I’m not saying Albert Belle should be in the Hall of Fame, but I think we need reconsider his place in the game. Compare Albert Belle to Barry Bonds. Belle is actually younger then Bonds. Bonds had his most productive years after Belle retired. Bonds home run total since 2000 was 317. Imagine what a healthly and juiced up Belle could have done in that period.
Of course who knows if Belle was juiced before that. He’s never been implicated in steroids, but he certainly seems like the type of player that would juice up.
I think that’s basically what steroids have done to the whole sport. Left us awash in uncertainty. The whole fun of baseball is comparing players from different times and crunching numbers. What’s a great player? How much do you reward a longer career? How much do you account for the differences in time periods?
Now the very best hitters ever are known cheaters and the whole crop of players before them aren’t even near the top of statical records. So when I say we should reconsider Albert Belle’s career, I guess I’d to be able to reconsider his career.
Filed under: Sports | 1 Comment
Tags: Albert Belle, Baseball, Hall of Fame, MLB
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ALbert Belle was probably one of the greatest hitters of all time and as far as him being an “asshole” it was blown way out of proportion. belle didn’t like hte media. Neither do I. He was and is a commited husband and father, a brilliant man who writes and speaks wonderfully (he graduated 4th in his high school class). ALbert Belle not being in the hall of fame shows what an UTTER DISgRACE the hall is. Kirby Puckett beats his wife, holds a gun to her head, imprisons her in a basement, seriealy cheats on her and cuts down a down with a power saw so he can continue beating on her and he is saint kirby. belle wanted to be left alone and he is satan.
PS If I had just come back from a brutal and dark fight with alcoholism and you heckled me for three hours, called me by a name that isn’t my name and repeatedly taunted me about drinking Id do worse than throw a baseball at you.