[Sooga]

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Edgar meanwhile, other than his .315/.423/.525 career numbers, really doesn't have any numbers that jump out at you.

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That's funny. That's like saying, "Mark McGwire, other than his 583 home runs and .588 sluging percentage, doesn't have any numbers that jump out at you." Edgar's numbers are outstanding--he's got a better average than Molitor, and his OPS is a whopping 131 points higher. Edgar is 25th all time in OPS, 33rd in OPS+. Despite playing in 770 fewer games than Molitor, he's got more home runs, and should end up very close to Molitor in RBIs, if not surpass him.

Molitor was a great player... but he wasn't nearly as great a hitter as Edgar Martinez. I think Molitor has greatly helped pave the way for Edgar to go into the Hall--that was my real point.


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Uh, no. 583 home runs is 583 home runs. Doesn't matter if you hit that in 5 years or 20 years. If you hit 583 home runs, you're pretty sure to be in the hall of fame. A batting/on base/slugging average means nothing unless it's put into context. Martinez hit .315/.423/.525 in around 8000 PA's. Molitor hit .306/.369/.448 in around 12000 PA's. And, like you said, Molitor's played around 1500 games at a position, 1100 games at DH. Martinez, meanwhile has played 1200 games at DH, and only 600 as a position player.

On top of all this, Martinez produced most of his great seasons during the offensive boom of the mid 90's. Edgar Martinez is a DH, plain and simple. Molitor was a position player who happened to DH later in his career.

And MY point is that Molitor shouldn't have paved the way for Edgar. Molitor's DH numbers are a supplement to his career numbers, Edgar's DH numbers ARE his whole career.