Should This Shreveport Native Be in the Baseball Hall of Fame?

When you think of Shreveport sports, most people immediately think football. Which is fair. For one reason or another, Shreveport has produced some amazing football talent. From Terry Bradshaw to Tre White. I know that this isn't accurate, but it feels like every team in the NFL has a guy from Shreveport on their roster. There's just so many talented players from our area, they're just all over the place - and most of them play significant roles on their teams. It's awesome to see.

But, one sport that often gets overlooked when it comes to Shreveport sports is baseball. Which is unfortunate because we've produced some darn good ones over the years. Seth Lugo and Vernon Wells immediately come to mind. We even have a Shreveport native in the Hall of Fame - Willard Brown.

But, perhaps the best player from Shreveport is the one that's most often forgotten - Albert Belle.

Albert Belle Was the Most Feared Hitter of the 90s

If you go to Albert Belle's Baseball Reference page, you get a nice snapshot of his career - 5x All-Star, 5x Silver Slugger, 381 career Home Runs. And as good as those numbers and stats are on their own, they don't tell the full story. So, unless you watched him during his peak, it's easy to overlook the fact that the former Huntington Raider was one of the most feared hitters of his era. You also probably wouldn't realize that Albert should have won AT LEAST one American League MVP award (we'll get to that in a second).

Seriously, it's easy to forget just how good Albert was. Here's a stat for you: he became the 4th player EVER to have eight straight seasons of 30 home runs and 100 RBIs, joining an elite list of players including Babe Ruth, Jimmie Foxx and Lou Gehrig (all Hall of Famers). Since he retired, several other players have accomplished this including Albert Pujols (future Hall of Famer) and Rafael Palmeiro (should be Hall of Famer). Regardless, that's a pretty exclusive club to be a member of.

Albert is also the only player in Major League Baseball history to hit 50 doubles and 50 home runs in a single season. Oh, and he accomplished that during the strike shortened 1995 season where they played only 144 games instead of the traditional 162.

Speaking of the 1995 season, Albert Belle should have been the American League MVP that year. The winner, Mo Vaughn, had a really good season. However, the only category in which he led the league was RBIs - actually he was tied for first in that category with Albert Belle. Albert on the other hand, led the majors in runs, home runs, RBIs and slugging. For position players, he was tied for first in Wins Above Replacement with a 7.0 (this grades your performance against others at your position. The higher your WAR, the better you're playing). Mo Vaughn's WAR was a 4.3 - which is a good season, but nothing compared to what Albert Belle and Edgar Martinez were doing.

So, you may be asking yourself "If Albert was so good, why didn't he win the MVP award or get voted into the Hall of Fame?" Well...

Should Being 'Unlikeable' Keep You From Baseball Awards?

To answer the question above, the short answer: Baseball Writers didn't like Albert Belle. Belle was intimidating both on and off the field. His...let's just call it surly attitude rubbed a lot of folks the wrong way, including the ever important baseball writers association. Now, if you are not up on how baseball works, here's a simple breakdown: The Baseball Writers Association votes on all sorts of important things like MVP Awards and the Hall of Fame. If you don't have at least have some sort of positive relationship with the writers, you're probably not going to get a lot of accolades.

And that's more or less why Albert Belle didn't win any MVPs and why he never got above 7.7% of BBWAA votes for the Hall of Fame. There are several famous incidents where Belle and the writers had VERY public fights, which ultimately led to Albert refusing to talk to media whatsoever. He's not the first player to have this kind of relationship with the media - Steve Carlton and Sandy Koufax immediately come to mind. I think the difference is that as they got closer to the end of their careers or retired, they eventually softened and let the media in. Albert did not.

This statement by New York Daily News sports writer Bill Madden pretty much sums up why Albert never won an MVP or got into the Hall of Fame...and probably never will:

Sorry, there'll be no words of sympathy here for Albert Belle. He was a surly jerk before he got hurt and now he's a hurt surly jerk....He was no credit to the game. Belle's boorish behavior should be remembered by every member of the Baseball Writers' Association when it comes time to consider him for the Hall of Fame.

Will Albert Belle Ever Get Into the Hall of Fame?

If we're being honest the answer is probably not. He didn't get in with the traditional Baseball Writer Association vote. So his only current path to the Hall of Fame would be through a Veterans Committee Vote. However, the committee is generally made up of an even split between former players, executives & writers. All candidate would need 75% of the vote from the 11 person board...which being honest, would be a tough pull for Albert.

However, if you remove his contentious relationship with the media and surly personality that always seemed to get him into some kind of trouble, there's a case to be made that he belongs in the Hall of Fame.

He's apart of some ELITE clubs - one of 8 players with eight consecutive season of 30 home runs and 100 RBIs, one of 11 players in MLB history with nine consecutive seasons with 100 RBIs. He created his own exclusive club in 1995 that nobody else has come close to joining (50 Home Runs, 50 Doubles). He was the first player in MLB history to make over $10 million a season. His historical significance to the game SHOULD be recognized but probably never will.