Baseball HoF - Longevity vs Brilliance

[Clarkmeister]

I don't want to hijack the thread below, but it brings up an interesting issue. How long must a player be brilliant to compensate for a shortish career, or a career that tailed off dramatically? Some persons to ponder:

Kirby Puckett (already in)
Albert Belle
Dennis Eckersley
Frank Thomas
Pudge Rodriguez
Pedro Martinez (if he retired tomorrow - only 9 or 10 seasons)


There are others, but you get the idea. How brilliant do you need to be in the short or medium term to compensate for not hitting the acceped milestones in the long term?

Also, should less emphasis be placed on the long term (Rafael Palmiero) and more on short term brilliance (Albert Belle)?