Yankees: 4 NYY Legends Who Deserve More Hall of Fame Consideration

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These New York Yankees need to be evaluated further for the Baseball Hall of Fame.

The New York Yankees can call an overload of enshrined Hall of Famers their own, laying claim to studs from Wade Boggs to Ricky Henderson. Babe Ruth was the first Yankee legend to cross the border into those hallowed halls, entering with the museum’s inaugural class.

But that doesn’t mean there isn’t ample room to reevaluate some other Bombers who’ve seen their Hall cases go by the wayside.

When Derek Jeter enters next summer, he’ll be the 52nd Yankee to take his place in Cooperstown. So let’s advocate for four more, why don’t we? It’s safe to disagree with all four selections, but I doubt you’ll argue that the conversation has been fully consummated surrounding any of them.

4. Thurman Munson

Thurman Munson of the New York Yankees stands strong (Photo by Focus on Sport/Getty Images) /

Thurman Munson of the New York Yankees is probably a Hall of Famer.

Perhaps we’re just especially frosty during this Hall of Fame cycle because Ted Simmons was elected in 2020, who mattered about 1,000 times less during his much longer career than Munson did during his amazing decade in the game, but we digress.

Both Simmons and Munson rank just below the “average Hall of Fame catcher” JAWS standard (essentially set by former Yankee Bill Dickey), and are the 10th- and 12th-most deserving catchers of enshrinement in the history of the game. Of course, this is logically flawed — even beset by injuries, Munson would’ve had a few more years after 1979 to compile Hall of Fame counting stats, had he not tragically perished in a midseason plane crash.

In just 11 years, Munson made seven All-Star teams, won the Rookie of the Year in 1970, the MVP in 1976, and two World Series in ’77 and ’78 as the captain of the team in the spotlight more often than any other. He ranks well ahead of Hall of Famers like Roy Campanella, Ernie Lombardi, and Ray Schalk in JAWS, and laps Hall of Fame shoo-in Yadier Molina, who’s 24th. How is that not enough?

3. Graig Nettles

Graig Nettles #9 of the New York Yankees fielding during Game 2 (Photo by Ronald C. Modra/Getty Images) /

Graig Nettles’ Hall of Fame case deserves a second look.

Graig Nettles, as time drags on, has somehow become the forgotten Yankee standout from the 1977 and 1978 World Series teams to the generation that never watched them play.

Nettles is known beyond his counting stats, of course — his reputation as a defensive wizard precedes him, and was amplified on the biggest stage during World Series play. But a check at his ranking, relative to other Hall of Famers, makes it a clearly strange decision that he was shoved swiftly off the ballot, and hasn’t recovered via the Veterans Committee.

The second coming of the Human Vacuum Cleaner is behind only 11 third basemen all-time in terms of JAWS value, and falls inches below the line of an “average” Hall of Famer. Of the 11 who outrank Nettles, 10 have been enshrined, and the 11th, Scott Rolen, seems likely to have a case of his own. Behind Nettles’ 68.0 JAWS (average is 68.4), you’ll find luminaries like Home Run Baker, Jimmy Collins, and Hall of Fame favorite Dick Allen.

Nettles was a six-time All-Star, making the team for the final time at the age of 40 in San Diego. He piled up 2,225 hits and 390 homers, and we’re likely moving past the era where his .248 average will be forever held against him (that’s firmly Harmon Killebrew territory, anyway, right?). Nettles’ counting stats and defense befit a longer examination — he only appeared on the ballot four times, never topping 8.3%.

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2. Bernie Williams

New York Yankees possible Hall of Famer Bernie Williams(Photo by DAN LEVINE / AFP via Getty Images) /

Bernie Williams’ Hall of Fame case at least needs some amplification.

No, I’m not positive Bernie Williams is a Hall of Famer. But I’d like to shout a little louder about the possibility before we move too far past New York’s ’90s dynasty.

Williams ranks ahead of several Hall of Famers on the JAWS standard, though that’s never a very helpful or fruitful argument when so many of them were Veterans Committee gifts from a bygone era like Max Carey, Earle Combs and Hugh Duffy.

From 1994-2002, Williams was untouchable at his peak, finishing in the top 20 for MVP twice and making five consecutive All-Star teams from 1997-2001. He was also helped by being a smooth-as-silk defender under the bright postseason lights in the Bronx for his entire career.

While it’s not helpful to compare him to greats of the teens and roaring twenties, it’s worth examining his case in comparison to a Vets Committee favorite: Dale Murphy. The two-time Braves MVP ranks behind Williams in WAR, 49.6 to 46.5, but ahead of him in JAWS, 43.9 to 43.6. Taking Williams’ championship pedigree into account, Yankee fans will have every right to holler if Murphy sneaks in while Williams remains discarded. I mean, for goodness sake, he peaked at 9.6% over just a two-year stint on the ballot. That doesn’t track.

1. Roger Clemens

Roger Clemens #22 of the New York Yankees (Mandatory Credit: Tom Hauck /Allsport) /

Roger Clemens is a Hall of Famer and you know it.

This is a different conversation entirely, but to me, it has the same conclusion: Roger Clemens does not deserve to languish at 50% on the ballot, and he deserves a more nuanced examination.

Though I may be in the minority (the tide is turning, however…), I see no discernible reason not to honor and examine an entire era of Major League Baseball simply because some find it unsavory. This isn’t the Confederacy. The vast majority of the league enjoyed the same advantage Clemens did, and many who abused the same chemicals as the Rocket are already inside Cooperstown’s walls (uh oh!). In the 1960s, there were greenies. In the 1920s, there were no African American players competing. Is that a more “even playing field” than the steroid-addled ’90s?

Clemens is the third-greatest starting pitcher of all time, according to JAWS. He competed against athletes who were doing ungodly things to tweak their bodies, and he came out on top repeatedly.

354 wins. Seven Cy Youngs. 4,672 strikeouts. I’d let him in. I’d let Bonds in. I’d let anyone in who was never suspended by Major League Baseball (sorry, Alex Rodriguez and Manny Ramirez).

Projecting NYY's 30-Man Roster. dark. Next

If David Ortiz (found guilty via MLB’s survey testing in 2003, the same test that popped A-Rod!) skates into the Hall and Clemens never gets his just due, you will be hearing from my lawyer.

And if Curt Schilling doesn’t get held out by the character clause, then you can no longer justify Clemens’ de facto ban in any way.

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