MLB Showdown Obsession

 There are Hall of Fame ballots that add no good names to the group that helps the established candidates get more votes...then there are years like 1989 when the ballot debut of massive names meant that all the established names returning were in trouble. Johnny Bench, Carl Yastrzemski, Jim Kaat, Gaylord Perry and Ferguson Jenkins were all making their debut, and all were destined for future enshrinement. Bench and Yaz would get the votes right away, while just about all the remaining names on the ballot took hits to their voting progress. Bobby Bonds did see an increase, but going from 6.3% to 6.5% wasn't impressing anyone. Perry and Jenkins were due for getting voted in very soon, but they'd find out themselves next year how daunting it is when big names debut against you...

 The Tigers have existed since before the World Series and the modern era, and are one of only two original AL teams to never change their identity. I feel they should go the "Golden State Warriors" or "New England Patriots" route of team naming and embrace their one nickname of "Motor City Kitties". You could say that the Tigers name is timeless, but I'd counter that Tiger Stadium was too timeless to replace but that's just what they did in 2000, so... Also, the Tigers are so old that many of their all time greats played before numbers on jerseys were a thing, but that didn't stop the franchise from honoring them. #1 - Lou Whitaker If you asked who played more than anyone for the Tigers, obviously you'd start with Ty Cobb, but modern fans might be surprised to see Lou Whitaker as #3 overall. Debuting in 1977, he'd win Rookie of the Year the next season. He'd establish himself right away with his double play partner Alan Trammell an...

 The Hall of Fame began with a fixation on a good size of their class. Voting began in 1936, but the opening of the actual Hall of Fame wasn't until 1939, giving the voters time to elect a nice amount of men to be honored, including at least 10 from the 20th century. Fast forward to 1964 and the Hall eclipsed the 100 member milestone. Just a little bit faster did they hit 200 as we entered the 1988 vote, where Willie Stargell got the call. A similar amount of time would pass to get to 300 in 2013, but we'll get there in time, and as opposed to an all time great, the #300 honor came on with a whimper from the BBWAA...

The Red Sox may operate in 100 year cycles. -They won the 1st World Series in 1903 as the Boston Americans. -In 1904 were denied a chance at another title when a New York team shockingly prevented the opportunity. -They won several more titles leading up to 1918. -They proceed to not win again for a very long time. ... -In 2003 they were denied a chance at another title when a New York team shockingly prevented the opportunity (slightly different circumstances). -They won their first World Series in over 80 years in 2004. -They win several more titles leading up to 2018. -Uh oh... And while the Red Sox had a large gap without any titles, they were certainly not short of elite talent to honor with number retirements. But where some teams will honor just anyone, the Red Sox tended to have a set of rules that need to be met if your number is to be retired. Those rules are as follows: 1-You must be a Hall of Famer 2-You need at least 10 years as a member of the Red Sox 3-You must retire a...