Next up is Rick Porcello.
Porcello was a first-round draft pick in 2007 (the Jays got JP Arencibia in that round). He had a good 12-year career, going 150-125 with a 4.40 ERA in 355 games, 351 starts, with an 18.8 bWAR. He won one Cy Young and finished third in Rookie of the Year voting in 2009. In 2016, he led the league with 22 wins (his next best was 17) and a career-high 4.7 bWAR. The following season he went 11–17 with a bWAR of -0.4.
Advertising
A good career, although probably without a Hall of Honor, let alone a Hall of Fame.
Manny Ramirez was a good hitter…a bit of an understatement. Nineteen seasons, .312/.411/.585 line with 555 home runs, 1,831 RBIs and a bWAR of 69.2.
This is his tenth time on the ballot. Last year he took 34.3% of the ballots, his highest percentage.
Manny was named to 12 All-Star teams, received 11 MVP votes (finishing third twice and finishing in the top 10 nine times), won 9 Silver Slugger Awards, the Hank Aaron Award and was the 2004 World Series MVP. He finished second in Rookie of the Year voting in 1994, playing in 91 games.
Advertising
And I know I shouldn't be impressed, but he was running 165 for Cleveland in 1999.
He played eight seasons with Cleveland, eight with the Red Sox, three with the Dodgers, and one each with the Rays and White Sox.
Manny played left field (1,037 games), right field (904 games) and DH (332 games). He was terrible on defense.
He also played in 111 playoff games, hitting .285/.394/.554 with 29 home runs (an MLB record). He has two World Series rings.
On the other hand, he was disqualified twice for using PEDs. The players are losing votes over rumors of PED use, but they have proof with Manny. The question that often arises for me is whether a player would have made the Hall of Fame without outside help. Manny is not an easy task, but his numbers are amazing. I don't know how much they can be devalued because of PEDs. I think both he and Barry Bonds deserve to be in the room, but they don't give me a say.
Advertising
He and Andy Pettitte are an interesting couple. Both were used. Manny had a better WAR (69.4 compared to 60.3). Both were playoff heroes. Manny hit .285/.394/.544 in 111 playoff games. He was on two World Series-winning teams.
David Ortiz was associated with PED and was elected to the House of Representatives. I wonder why these two will be judged differently. They were similar, bad defenders, and most of the Red Sox overcame the World Series curse (Manny was the Series MVP). Ramirez had a bWAR of 69.3, Ortiz had a bWAR of 55.3. Manny had 555 home runs, Ortiz had 541.
But Ortiz was “Big Pappy.” He was happy, friendly and great with reporters.
Ramirez wasn't happy (though he had his moments), wasn't friendly, and didn't get along very well with reporters. Of course, the Hall of Fame ballot belongs to the writers.
Ramirez Statistics Here.
