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Is this the last, best Hall of Fame hope for Atlanta Braves great Dale Murphy?

By Alan Carpenter

ATLANTA, GA - JULY 11: Former Atlanta Brave Dale Murphy and Freddie Freeman #5 of the Atlanta Braves after throwing out the ceremonial first pitch prior to the game against the Cincinnati Reds at Turner Field on July 11, 2013 in Atlanta, Georgia. (Photo by Kevin C. Cox/Getty Images)
ATLANTA, GA - JULY 11: Former Atlanta Brave Dale Murphy and Freddie Freeman #5 of the Atlanta Braves after throwing out the ceremonial first pitch prior to the game against the Cincinnati Reds at Turner Field on July 11, 2013 in Atlanta, Georgia. (Photo by Kevin C. Cox/Getty Images) /
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SALT LAKE CITY, UT – JULY 08: Baseball legend Dale Murphy greets fans during a stop of the 2014 Mobil Super “Go The Distance” Baseball Tour on July 8, 2014 in Salt Lake City, Utah. (Photo by Fred Hayes/Getty Images for Mobil Super)
SALT LAKE CITY, UT – JULY 08: Baseball legend Dale Murphy greets fans during a stop of the 2014 Mobil Super “Go The Distance” Baseball Tour on July 8, 2014 in Salt Lake City, Utah. (Photo by Fred Hayes/Getty Images for Mobil Super) /

The ‘Champion in the Room’

These committees are typically formed out of Hall of Fame players (at least half), 4 baseball executives (that’s important… Marvin Miller may never, ever gain entry as a result), and a couple of baseball historians.

That diversity tends to insure that the process does not hand out Hall passes like … the hall passes from your local school.

Will Steve Garvey have a Tommy Lasorda in the room?  Will Thurman Munson or Don Mattingly have Dave Winfield in their corners?

Will Dale Murphy have… John Schuerholz?  Phil Neikro?  Bobby Cox?

If all candidates can profess worthiness, then it will take something (someone) to transcend the statistics… to make the impassioned argument about why this guy deserves it more than that guy.

What Murphy needs  in early December is a charismatic leader… someone with the gravitas of instant credibility who can look his peers in the eye and tell them – not just ask them – that “Dale Murphy is a Hall of Famer… you need to vote for this guy.”

Gotta Have a Voice

It’s going to take that, too, for if you do look at the stats, Murphy is — once again — in a tough group… despite 2 league MVP awards in back-to-back seasons.

To keep it clean, of all hitters with careers between 1970 and 2000 who aren’t in the Hall, here’s the ranking by baseball-reference.com of those on this ballot:

More from Tomahawk Take

2. Whitaker (75.1)

4. Evans (71.1)

23. Simmons (50.4)

33.  Murphy (46.5)

36.  Munson (45.7)

46.  Mattingly (42.4)

60.  Parker (40.1)

  • Harold Baines:  39.9

    • 77.  Garvey (38.1)

    (Of note:  Fred McGriff is 31st – but played 4 years beyond 2000; also:  Tommy John… 61.5 WAR).

    We don’t know the makeup of the committee yet.  We don’t know who will get that instant advantage over the others.

    dark. Next. Bold Strokes Coming?

    One thing for sure:  Murphy has ever been the humble one, and would never ask for a vote on his own.  Somebody will have to do that on his behalf – an attack dog.  We’ll know if that happened during the Winter Meetings.

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