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Derek Jeter vs. Barry Larkin HOF Case


By Mike Silva ~ January 4th, 2011. Filed under: Hall of Fame, Mike Silva.

One of the players that I left off my Hall of Fame ballot was Barry Larkin. Those that support Larkin have pointed out that if you don’t vote for him, then how could you vote for Derek Jeter when he is eligible? Before we discuss the obvious reason (3,000 hits that he will achieve sometime this season), let’s pretend that Derek Jeter retired after the 2010 season. Taking away the “automatic” 3,000 hit benchmark, would the Jeter/Larkin connection hold weight?

There are many similarities between Jeter and Larkin statistically. Their OPS+ (119 to 116), OPS (.837 to .815), and Baseball Reference Wins Above Replacement (70.1 to 68.9). Larkin has 9 Silver Sluggers, 12 All Star appearances, 2 Gold Gloves, an MVP Award, 1 World Series ring, and a 30/30 season. Jeter has 4 Silver Sluggers, 11 All Star Appearances, 5 Gold Gloves, a Rookie of the Year award, World Series MVP, and 5 rings. In short, you can argue that both have similarly impressive resumes, especially when you consider they played a position historically known for defense instead of offense.

Where they start to diverge is when you look at consistency. From 1998 to 2007 Jeter has ten consecutive seasons that I would call “Hall of Fame Worthy.” When you add in 2009 it brings the total to eleven Hall of Fame seasons in his 16 year career. On the other hand, Larkin has, in my estimation, five seasons that are Hall of Fame worthy (’91,’92, ’95, ’96, and ‘98). Injuries robbed Larkin in numerous seasons. Only six times in his career did he play more than 145 games. Jeter has played less than that just once (2003) since his rookie season of 1996. Let’s not forget that Larkin was a standout at his position before the shortstop explosion of the late nineties that yielded, along with Jeter, Garciaparra, A-Rod, and Tejada. Sure, there was Ozzie Smith and Cal Ripken, but the former was a defensive standout, while the latter never rested and put up Hall of Fame numbers throughout most of the eighties.

I am not totally against Barry Larkin, or Alan Trammel for that matter, getting into the Hall of Fame. I think he eventually he will be looked upon better in the Veterans Committee, or perhaps sooner, if some of the nineties sluggers are elected. Maybe he played in the wrong era, but sometimes that’s how this process works. Right now there are far more deserving members to be elected to the Hall, and Barry Larkin isn’t one of them. He also doesn’t have the resume of a Derek Jeter.

Mike Silva is a freelance writer and radio host since March of 2007. This website is his own personal "digest" of New York Baseball He's also hosts NYBD Radio on Blog Talk Radio and 1240 AM WGBB. Check out his sports media commentary at www.sportsmediawatchdog.com. Check out his official website, www.mikesilvamedia.com
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7 Responses to Derek Jeter vs. Barry Larkin HOF Case

  1. TOM
    January 4th, 2011 at 7:45 pm

    best national league shortstop for a decade…there are other categories besides HRs

  2. Jared
    January 6th, 2011 at 2:38 am

    Look at his numbers vs the other shortstops in the hall of fame, not just one player (who has never been the best player on his team), if u make ur hall of fame vote with this logic than u should not have a vote

  3. Mike Silva
    January 6th, 2011 at 5:23 am

    Jared

    I don’t see a dominant period. Where is his ten year stretch? I count only five HOF seasons total in his career.

    As for dominant – I never thought of him that way when he played. Jeff Bagwell on the other hand…

  4. Jared
    January 6th, 2011 at 12:58 pm

    12 all star games
    9 silver sluggers
    2 gold gloves
    MVP
    30/30 season
    a ring

    you made my point for me if that’s not a hall of fame resume then I don’t know what is

    what is your criteria for a “hall of fame season”, because I would guess no two people would have the same criteria

    and r u gonna not vote Griffey in because he was injured for a few years, don’t punish the guy for being injured when he still has a hall of fame vote

  5. Mike Silva
    January 6th, 2011 at 3:58 pm

    Jared

    The one area is constant stretch of HOF performance. With Larkin, I only count 5 HOF seasons

  6. Joel
    January 10th, 2011 at 11:25 am

    For 12 consecutive years 1988-1999 Larkin averaged a WAR rating over 5.

  7. Keaton iMack
    July 5th, 2011 at 8:22 pm

    Sniff, sniff.

    I’m catching a whiff of Homer-ism.

    No denying DJ’s going to the Hall — being surrounded by steroid users can do that for a table-setter.

    In all seriousness, Jeter’s a great captain. He’s a worthy Yankee, and by that, I refer to how the rest of America outside of Manhattan sees him — the one worthy of hate because he’s good, not because he’s pompous and spoiled (see A-Rod, Clemens, etc.). He’s the worthy foe for the rest of us who don’t worship the YankMees. I’ll be happy to see him in the Hall.

    But touting Larkin as being Hall-unworthy is completely ludicrous. He’s one of the 10 best shortstops of ALL TIME. Complete package, and every bit as great a clubhouse leader as Jeter, just in different ways.

    If Phil “I played with greater players than me” Rizzuto is in the Hall, keeping Barry out is a felony. No comparison whatsoever, and I don’t want to hear about the eras played in. Rizzo has no business being in Cooperstown from a numbers point of view.

    Keaton

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