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FuzzyRussianHat · 02-21-2023, 06:04 AM

Two players earned induction into the 1940 MLB Hall of Fame, both on the first ballot. Pitcher Derek Edwards was a no-doubter at 98.6% with closer Armen Eberhardt getting 81.7%. Ray Biedermann on his eighth try got to 60.2% but was still short of the 2/3 threshold. Closer Paul Leo, Starter Juan Haro, 3B Franz Bolt, and Starter Dee Walters were the other players over 50%.

For Juan Haro, it was his final chance, dropped after his 10^th ballot. He had peaked the prior season at 63.9%. Over 18 years with the New York Yankees, Houston, Denver, and Phoenix, the Cuban righty had a 236-187 record, 3.51 ERA, 2308 strikeouts, and 87.7 WAR. He also was part of the early 1910s Houston dynasty, but was never dominant, keeping him just out of the HOF. Another starter dropped on the 10^th ballot was Jeremiah Jaiboon, who peaked the prior season at 52.4%. Jaiboon twice won Pitcher of the Year with Washington and had a 189-135 record, 2.90 ERA, 1948 strikeouts, and 69.4 WAR. He won two rings between the Admirals and Denver, but retiring at age 34 kept him from accumulating more impressive totals.

Three others made it to the 10^th ballot but were dropped at single-digit percentages. Phillies pitcher Eric Roman was the 1917 Pitcher of the Year with a career 169-119 record, 3.17 ERA, 2161 strikeouts, and 56.2 WAR; but he never got above 30%. Pitcher Dave Potochnik peaked at 30.8% on his second try and had a 17-year career with Washington and others. He had a 235-187 record, 3.52 ERA, 2478 strikeouts, and 63.3 WAR. And RF Christian Poirier peaked on his debut just below 20%. Between Montreal and Houston in 17 years, he had 2969 hits, 1424 runs, 260 homers, 1293 RBI, .304 average, and 58.8 WAR.

Derek Edwards – Starting Pitcher – Buffalo Blue Sox – 98.6% First Ballot

Derek Edwards was a 5’10’’, 180 pound left-handed pitcher from New York City. Edwards was renowned as one of the best control pitchers of all-time, while also boasting solid movement and 96-98 mph velocity. He mixed up a fastball, slider, curveball, and changeup. Not a dominant strikeout guy, but ultimately one of the best pitchers of the era, as well as a pretty good fielder. He became a fan favorite as a hard-working reliable ace.

Edwards played college baseball at Texas Tech and was the second overall pick in the 1918 MLB Draft by Buffalo. He spent a decade with the Blue Sox and won two of his four Pitcher of the Year awards while there. In his sophomore season, he won the award and led the National Association with a 2.15 ERA and 28 quality starts. He led in ERA again and won the PotY in 1926 with a 2.10 ERA and a career-best 10.3 WAR. He led the NA in WAR four times with Buffalo.

The Blue Sox made the playoffs but had first round exits in 1921 and 1922, the only postseason berths during Edwards’ run. They weren’t bottom-tier when he was their like the prior decade, but typically were a middling squad. With Edwards’ free agency lingering , Buffalo traded him to Montreal for the 1929 season. He spent one season with the Maples, then at age 32, signed with St. Louis in free agency for the 1930 season. He hoped that the Cardinals, who won 105 games the prior year,

Edwards won his third and fourth Pitcher of the Year awards in his first two seasons with the Cardinals, posting 8.3 WAR and 7.1 WAR. In 1931, he was the NA leader with a career best 1.87 ERA and 0.89 WHIP. However, the Cardinals run was a disappointment as they were a wild card his first year, then fell into mediocrity soon after. His third season with them had a 9-16 record despite posting 8.5 WAR. Edwards started to struggle with the team in year four, getting traded that offseason to Houston. He bounced back with a decent 1934 in his one year with the Hornets; picking up his 250^th career win. Edwards opted for retirement at age 36 that offseason.

Although he wasn’t the flashiest pitcher, few were as consistent or reliable and it showed in his final stats. Edwards had a 255-186 record, 2.81 ERA, 4189.1 innings, 2988 strikeouts to only 638 walks for 4.7 K/BB ratio, 394/543 quality starts, and a 113.8 WAR. At retirement, he was one of six pitchers with 100+ career WAR and was third all-time behind only Bailey Johnson and Newton Persaud. Even as other pitchers joined the HOF ranks, his ERA and walk tally would remain impressive on the leaderboards.

His #1 was retired by Buffalo in 1934 and would be their only retired number of the 20^th Century. The lack of playing for prominent teams hurts him in some of the inner-circle discussions, but Derek Edwards certainly was an elite pitcher of the 1920s and more than deserving of an induction at 98.6%.

Armen “Skip” Eberhardt – Closer – Hartford Huskies – 81.7% First Ballot

Armen Eberhardt was a 6’2’’, 195 pound right-handed relief pitcher from Eugene, Oregon. He had one of the best fastballs you’ll ever see, consistently hovering around triple digits. He could spot it well, which made him a strong relief pitcher for 20 years. His other pitch was a solid splitter, but having only two pitches sent him to the bullpen despite Eberhardt earning the NCAA Pitcher of the Year as a sophomore in 1912 for Mississippi State.

His college success made him attractive, but he was immediately slotted into a bullpen role. His home-state team Portland picked him 34^th overall in the 1913 MLB Draft and he spent seven seasons with the Pacifics. In his fourth season, he won his lone Reliever of the Year award with a 0.70 ERA over 77.1 innings, 31 saves, 114 strikeouts, and 5.2 WAR. He would lead the American Association in saves three times with the Pacifics,

This was during Portland’s successful late 1910s run, which saw an AA title in 1916 and two other AACS appearances in 1918 and 1919. With the Pacifics, he had 178 saves, a 1.86 ERA, 530 strikeouts over 397.1 innings, 181 shutdowns, and 18.7 WAR. Statistically, you could argue that was his best team, although he was officially inducted with Hartford, who Eberhardt signed with for the 1921 season.

He also spent seven seasons with the Huskies and was the starting closer for all but the first year there. He came in just after their playoff run ended though, as Hartford was consistently just outside of the playoffs in the 1920s. Still, Eberhardt was reliable as he pitched into his 30s, posting 172 saves and a 1.95 ERA with the Huskies, adding 466.1 innings, 564 strikeouts, and 18.3 WAR. He earned saves #300 and #350 with Hartford, becoming only the fifth player to have crossed 350 at the time.

Eberhardt signed with Jacksonville for 1928 and that was his last season as a closer. But he would bounce around the league until age 41, playing for Montreal, San Francisco, Brooklyn, St. Louis, Milwaukee, Charlotte, Toronto, and Columbus. He finished with 373 saves, a 2.29 ERA, 1313 strikeouts over 1151 innings, a 1.05 WHIP, 433 shutdowns, and 39.5 WAR. Getting above 350 saves is the mark that the voters had generally set as the magic number for relief pitchers and Eberhardt secured a first ballot induction as a result.

02-21-2023, 06:04 AM	#140
FuzzyRussianHat Hall Of Famer Join Date: Dec 2020 Posts: 2,933	1940 MLB Hall of Fame Two players earned induction into the 1940 MLB Hall of Fame, both on the first ballot. Pitcher Derek Edwards was a no-doubter at 98.6% with closer Armen Eberhardt getting 81.7%. Ray Biedermann on his eighth try got to 60.2% but was still short of the 2/3 threshold. Closer Paul Leo, Starter Juan Haro, 3B Franz Bolt, and Starter Dee Walters were the other players over 50%. For Juan Haro, it was his final chance, dropped after his 10^th ballot. He had peaked the prior season at 63.9%. Over 18 years with the New York Yankees, Houston, Denver, and Phoenix, the Cuban righty had a 236-187 record, 3.51 ERA, 2308 strikeouts, and 87.7 WAR. He also was part of the early 1910s Houston dynasty, but was never dominant, keeping him just out of the HOF. Another starter dropped on the 10^th ballot was Jeremiah Jaiboon, who peaked the prior season at 52.4%. Jaiboon twice won Pitcher of the Year with Washington and had a 189-135 record, 2.90 ERA, 1948 strikeouts, and 69.4 WAR. He won two rings between the Admirals and Denver, but retiring at age 34 kept him from accumulating more impressive totals. Three others made it to the 10^th ballot but were dropped at single-digit percentages. Phillies pitcher Eric Roman was the 1917 Pitcher of the Year with a career 169-119 record, 3.17 ERA, 2161 strikeouts, and 56.2 WAR; but he never got above 30%. Pitcher Dave Potochnik peaked at 30.8% on his second try and had a 17-year career with Washington and others. He had a 235-187 record, 3.52 ERA, 2478 strikeouts, and 63.3 WAR. And RF Christian Poirier peaked on his debut just below 20%. Between Montreal and Houston in 17 years, he had 2969 hits, 1424 runs, 260 homers, 1293 RBI, .304 average, and 58.8 WAR. Derek Edwards – Starting Pitcher – Buffalo Blue Sox – 98.6% First Ballot Derek Edwards was a 5’10’’, 180 pound left-handed pitcher from New York City. Edwards was renowned as one of the best control pitchers of all-time, while also boasting solid movement and 96-98 mph velocity. He mixed up a fastball, slider, curveball, and changeup. Not a dominant strikeout guy, but ultimately one of the best pitchers of the era, as well as a pretty good fielder. He became a fan favorite as a hard-working reliable ace. Edwards played college baseball at Texas Tech and was the second overall pick in the 1918 MLB Draft by Buffalo. He spent a decade with the Blue Sox and won two of his four Pitcher of the Year awards while there. In his sophomore season, he won the award and led the National Association with a 2.15 ERA and 28 quality starts. He led in ERA again and won the PotY in 1926 with a 2.10 ERA and a career-best 10.3 WAR. He led the NA in WAR four times with Buffalo. The Blue Sox made the playoffs but had first round exits in 1921 and 1922, the only postseason berths during Edwards’ run. They weren’t bottom-tier when he was their like the prior decade, but typically were a middling squad. With Edwards’ free agency lingering , Buffalo traded him to Montreal for the 1929 season. He spent one season with the Maples, then at age 32, signed with St. Louis in free agency for the 1930 season. He hoped that the Cardinals, who won 105 games the prior year, Edwards won his third and fourth Pitcher of the Year awards in his first two seasons with the Cardinals, posting 8.3 WAR and 7.1 WAR. In 1931, he was the NA leader with a career best 1.87 ERA and 0.89 WHIP. However, the Cardinals run was a disappointment as they were a wild card his first year, then fell into mediocrity soon after. His third season with them had a 9-16 record despite posting 8.5 WAR. Edwards started to struggle with the team in year four, getting traded that offseason to Houston. He bounced back with a decent 1934 in his one year with the Hornets; picking up his 250^th career win. Edwards opted for retirement at age 36 that offseason. Although he wasn’t the flashiest pitcher, few were as consistent or reliable and it showed in his final stats. Edwards had a 255-186 record, 2.81 ERA, 4189.1 innings, 2988 strikeouts to only 638 walks for 4.7 K/BB ratio, 394/543 quality starts, and a 113.8 WAR. At retirement, he was one of six pitchers with 100+ career WAR and was third all-time behind only Bailey Johnson and Newton Persaud. Even as other pitchers joined the HOF ranks, his ERA and walk tally would remain impressive on the leaderboards. His #1 was retired by Buffalo in 1934 and would be their only retired number of the 20^th Century. The lack of playing for prominent teams hurts him in some of the inner-circle discussions, but Derek Edwards certainly was an elite pitcher of the 1920s and more than deserving of an induction at 98.6%. Armen “Skip” Eberhardt – Closer – Hartford Huskies – 81.7% First Ballot Armen Eberhardt was a 6’2’’, 195 pound right-handed relief pitcher from Eugene, Oregon. He had one of the best fastballs you’ll ever see, consistently hovering around triple digits. He could spot it well, which made him a strong relief pitcher for 20 years. His other pitch was a solid splitter, but having only two pitches sent him to the bullpen despite Eberhardt earning the NCAA Pitcher of the Year as a sophomore in 1912 for Mississippi State. His college success made him attractive, but he was immediately slotted into a bullpen role. His home-state team Portland picked him 34^th overall in the 1913 MLB Draft and he spent seven seasons with the Pacifics. In his fourth season, he won his lone Reliever of the Year award with a 0.70 ERA over 77.1 innings, 31 saves, 114 strikeouts, and 5.2 WAR. He would lead the American Association in saves three times with the Pacifics, This was during Portland’s successful late 1910s run, which saw an AA title in 1916 and two other AACS appearances in 1918 and 1919. With the Pacifics, he had 178 saves, a 1.86 ERA, 530 strikeouts over 397.1 innings, 181 shutdowns, and 18.7 WAR. Statistically, you could argue that was his best team, although he was officially inducted with Hartford, who Eberhardt signed with for the 1921 season. He also spent seven seasons with the Huskies and was the starting closer for all but the first year there. He came in just after their playoff run ended though, as Hartford was consistently just outside of the playoffs in the 1920s. Still, Eberhardt was reliable as he pitched into his 30s, posting 172 saves and a 1.95 ERA with the Huskies, adding 466.1 innings, 564 strikeouts, and 18.3 WAR. He earned saves #300 and #350 with Hartford, becoming only the fifth player to have crossed 350 at the time. Eberhardt signed with Jacksonville for 1928 and that was his last season as a closer. But he would bounce around the league until age 41, playing for Montreal, San Francisco, Brooklyn, St. Louis, Milwaukee, Charlotte, Toronto, and Columbus. He finished with 373 saves, a 2.29 ERA, 1313 strikeouts over 1151 innings, a 1.05 WHIP, 433 shutdowns, and 39.5 WAR. Getting above 350 saves is the mark that the voters had generally set as the magic number for relief pitchers and Eberhardt secured a first ballot induction as a result. __________________ Baseball: The World's Game fictional world reports Continental Baseball Federation world reports (8-tier promotion/relegation sim and college feeder)