Hall of Fame Poll: Jim Edmonds

Next on the list would be David Eckstein. He had a nice 10 year MLB career, one of those years was with the Blue Jays, but I don't think that anyone, outside his immediate family, would think he deserves to be in the Hall of Fame.

In 1311 games, he hit .280/.345/.355 with 35 home runs and 123 stolen bases. And he was 'gritty', whatever that might mean.

Jim Edmonds has more of a case. He played for 17 seasons. Hit .284/.376/.527, with 393 home runs (59th on the all-time list) and 1199 RBI in 2011 games. He was a 4 time All-Star, 1 Silver Slugger and won 8 Gold Gloves. He was on MVP ballots 6 times, finishing as high as 4th.

He played with 6 different teams, but most of his career was spent with the Angels and Cardinals. He played in the playoffs 7 times and was pretty good most years, hitting .274/.361/.513 with 13 home runs and 42 RBI in 64 playoff games. He owns one World Series ring.

He retired with a bWAR of 60.3, which puts him 116th among position players in baseball history.

He was an excellent defensive center fielder and had a way of making highlight catches. Great defense and an very good bat.