Says he doesn't believe in numbers. says if you have to think about the player then he's probably not worthy. (I actually think he has a good point right here). This discussion came up on Jeter's issue. he obviously would put jeter in but said that 3,000 hits doesn't make you automatic. i have to admit i didn't know jeter will be only the 28th player in league history with 3K. That's an astounding stat. i also don't think skip knows enough about biggio's defense and all around game. but I must say that biggio never really being a dominant player, he may have a point. something to talk about other than being the worst team in baseball.
**** Skip Bayless. If Biggio played for the Yankees, he'd be an all-time great. If Jeter was an Astro, people would say he was borderline HOF at best. It's as simple as that.
Biggio gets in, the REAL baseball people know what he was about and his true value. Biggio was the best or 2nd best second baseman of his time now throw in the hits and that's a HOF player.
No he doesn't. Thousands of people don't meticulously document every single element of a baseball game so Skip Bayless can be lazy. It takes less than 5 minutes these days to look-up someone’s career numbers to get a sense of their HoF worthiness, and it’s something these writers should do with *every* player under consideration. Had he done that and not relied on something as irrelevant as *media coverage* (which is essentially what he’s saying), he would know Biggio is most certainly a Hall of Famer and will go in first ballot, assuming he’s not up against gargantuan peers who dwarf his numbers. (Jeter is a better player than Biggio by every prominent measurable, btw. No shame in that. Jeter gets beat up a lot because many non-Yankee baseball fans feel like his awesomeness is shoved down our throats (which it is) but… well, he’s pretty awesome, New York or no New York.)
Bayless is an idiot. Biggio is a first ballot HoFer. Biggio is 5th all time in doubles. All of the other top ten in doubles (except for for Pete Rose) are in the HOF; most of the 20 are in (or will be in). This is not even close.
Fourth in '97 (when he really should have won the darn thing; he led all position players in WAR that year). Two other top 10 finishes, including 5th in '98 when McGwire/Sosa had the MVP race to themselves. Still, he went 50/50 that year (doubles/steals).
Only going from memory, but I believe Biggio finished top 5 in MVP balloting twice. FWIW, I believe that is one of the stupidest, most ludicrous measures one could possibly employ for weighing Hall of Fame merit. A popularity contest? Really? If you don't put Biggio in the Hall on the first ballot, you're a clueless dumbass who should surrender your credentials and go flip burgers. Period.
Every prominent measure? Biggio has more HR and more SB than Jeter. Yes, it's 3 seasons difference, but I don't think Jeter is going to make up for the 55 hr's he's behind and 84 SB's. They both have 4 gold gloves...but find me anyone who didn't vote for Jeter that thought he actually deserved any of them. I agree that Biggio is a 1st ballot HOF and that Bayless is a moron that should never be quoted here as having said something newsworthy.
Skip Bayless hides behind the fact that he knows 90% of sports fans rely upon what ESPN tells them. Nobody actually takes the time to research a player's career, so he knows he can just spew whatever garbage he wants to make the everyday guy go "Hmmm....you know, he's the one in the position of authority here since he works for the 4 letter network, so he must be right." In reality though, Bayless is EVERYTHING that is wrong with sports media today. You don't have to have any modicum of knowledge on the topic you are discussing. All you have to do is have an incendiary personality, and make outlandish claims. If you're wrong, everybody will just say "Oh, well, that's just Bayless being Bayless....no harm, no foul." If he's right however (which happens once in a blue moon), people say "Look, see! He tells it like it is....he's the only guy who REALLY knows what he's talking about!" It's a win-win situation for him in that he gets notoriety in the off chance he's correct, and he NEVER has to actually put in any sort of time in his work. Biggio is a freaking first-ballot Hall of Famer. Anybody who doesn't agree either doesn't know the impact he actually had in games, is completely over-analyzing statistics (even though 3000 hits SHOULD be enough for these types of people), or is just an Astro-hater.
The man was an All-Star Catcher AND All-Star 2nd Baseman. I bet Bayless would put a DH into the Hall before Biggio.
Bayless has a decent point about the "smell test" to determine Hall of Fame status, but I don't think it applies with Biggio. I know I'm biased, but I feel like he is widely regarded as a Hall of Famer when his time comes. I've quit watching anything Bayless is on. He purposely says ridiculous things to get reaction, so I quit watching. Getting frustrated or upset over what he says is exactly what he wants, so I just don't watch or listen.
Both very deserving IMHO. I know some people like the idea of a "Super Hall of Fame" with only the creme de la creme like Cobb, Ruth, Aaron, Mays, Young, Hubbell etc...but with the way the Hall of Fame has been actually used these guys are no brainers. Besides 3000 hits which only 28 players have done. Defense at premium position- Multiple gold gloves for both, both lost a lot late in their careers. Biggio career .281/.363/.433/.796 668 doubles 291 bombs Averaged 38 doubles 17 homers and 24 steals (those figures include 3 600 AB years at the end when he struggled to manage a .300 OBP the infamous blocking ALL UNIVERSE Chris Burke era) The Captain .312/.383/.449/.842 479 doubles 236 bombs Averaging 33 doubles 16 bombs 23 steals a year seems to be just starting a (rather steep) decline. Assuming the Yankees don't do a Drayton and let Jeter play forever as Shortstop Emeritus....the guys are pretty comparable. Biggio played 5 seasons in centerfield and 5 seasons at catcher....you wanna build "up the middle" Biggio could play it all and played the first 11 years of his career in the Dome, which depresses homerun numbers.
People here said the same thing when he said the Texans wont going to make the playoffs after the 2-0 start and when Lebron came to the NBA everyone was on his dick about his maturity but Byless knew he was not and he turned out right. Byless might be the smartest person on ESPN.
i don't necessarily agree with him on biggio, and i think he hasn't done his homework on biggio and that's shocking to bring him up. but i do think he is the smartest if not one of, at least one of the more informed.
