Relief Coming to the Hall (Part 2)

Today, we'll consider the HOF qualifications of five more nominees.

Andre Dawson -- Out of everyone on this year's ballot, Andre Dawson most deserves to be in the Hall of Fame. He was one of the toughest, gutsiest and most talented guys to ever play the game. This his Andre's fifth year on the HOF ballot and I'm at a loss to explain why he isn't in the Hall already. The one stat that will always describe Dawson for me is the fact that he was the NL MVP in 1987 on a Cubs team that finished in last place. Cubs HOF second baseman Ryne Sandberg probably said it best in his HOF induction speech when he said,

"No player in baseball history worked harder, suffered more or did better than
Andre Dawson. He's the best I've ever seen. I watched him win an MVP for a
last-place team, and it was the most unbelievable thing I've ever seen in
baseball. He did it the right way, the natural way, and he did it in the field
and on the bases and in every way..."

Gary DiSarcina -- Nice career. Twelve years in the Bigs, all with the Angels, but no HOF.

Alex Fernandez -- Another nice career, but he doesn't belong in the Hall.

Gary Gaetti -- I like Gary Gaetti. I watched him play with the Twins, Cubs and Cardinals, and I was always impressed with his gutsy, hard-nosed play. Gaetti is more than your run-of-the-mill big leaguer, but he's not HOF worthy.

Steve Garvey -- Garvey was a good ball player. He won the NL MVP in 1974 and was in the top ten in MVP voting in 1976, 1977, 1978 and 1980. He also has the highest fielding percentage among first basemen in MLB history. Garvey's stats and records are nothing to sneeze at. Even so, to me, Steve Garvey is not a Hall of Famer.

Next time, Dwight Gooden, Rich "Goose" Gossage, Ozzie Guillen, Orel Hershiser, and Gregg Jefferies.