2018 MLB HOF Class

This new class might not seem very sexy or historic, but closer inspection reveals that it's actually a fantastic class.  I'll get Trevor Hoffman out of the way first.  I'm not a fan of the 3-out low-stress closer; I think they were quite overrated as compared to the likes of Goose Gossage, Rollie Fingers, or Bruce Sutter who came in to put out fires and routinely pitched 2+ innings.  But, as a group they were highly valued for a time and Hoffman was one of the best.  Whatever.

But the hitters in this class qualify as great in my estimation.  Vlad Guerrero was a beast; he was big, he could throw and he was aggressive.  In the middle of his career, he was hitting over .330 with power.  You hit .318 lifetime with 450 homers, you could rake.  Vlad got an MVP and was in the top 5 several times.  Yes he hacked away, but his career OPS of .930 tells the story.  He wasn't quite Frank Thomas, but he's one of the all-time great right-handed hitters.

Chipper Jones is interesting.  As a can't-miss #1 pick, did he live up to it?  Some would say no, but in reality his numbers are historic.  His WAR says he was the #6 all-time 3rd baseman.  His career slash line of .303/.401/.529 is fabulous for an infielder.  In his prime from age 24-31 he churned out 8 superb years in a row before injuries mounted up.  In his 30's he continued to hit through the injuries winning a batting title at 36.  Chipper also collected an MVP and was the definition of professional hitter.

Jim Thome falls into the Ralph Kiner, Harmon Killebrew mold of hall of famer, hitting with prodigous power and a good eye at the plate, overcoming slightly lower batting averages.  He has the best OPS of this class at a truly fantastic .956.  He just kept bombing to the tune of 12 30-homer seasons and 612 total, making him a shoe-in.  My only issue with Thome was that he never was really close to an MVP award.  But he was really underrated in his prime, toiling for a lot of bad teams.

S