Halladay, Martinez, Latest to Enter HOF
Following yesterday's announcement and hundreds of votes compiled from the Baseball Writers of America, we now know that four players - Roy Halladay, Edgar Martinez, Mike Mussina, and Mariano Rivera - will be enshrined in the National Baseball Hall of Fame.They will join Lee Smith and Harold Baines, who were
Following yesterday's announcement and hundreds of votes compiled from the Baseball Writers of America, we now know that four players - Roy Halladay, Edgar Martinez, Mike Mussina, and Mariano Rivera - will be enshrined in the National Baseball Hall of Fame.
They will join Lee Smith and Harold Baines, who were voted in by the Veterans Committee this past December.
Including the latest trio of Baines, Halladay, and Martinez, 43 total players and managers will now have appeared in both the Southern League and the National Baseball Hall of Fame.
FULL LIST: SL Alumni in the National Baseball Hall of Fame
A hard-hitting first baseman and outfielder, Baines registered a .275 batting average with 16 doubles, six triples, and 13 home runs for the Knoxville Smokies in 1978. He played a huge role in Knoxville's success that year, as the Tony La Russa led team would post an 88-56 regular season record before secure the Southern League title.
Also a Knoxville Smokies alum, Halladay would make 12 total starts for the then Blue Jays affiliate beginning in 1997. Halladay made his major league debut the following year, but was back in the minor leagues and spent a second stint with Tennessee during their 2001 campaign. It was then that everything clicked for the future Hall-of-Famer, as Halladay would post a dominant 2.12 ERA with 29 strikeouts in 34.0 innings of work. Across his 16 major league seasons, Halladay was named an eight-time All-Star. He threw both a no-hitter and perfect game during the 2010 season, becoming a unanimous choice for the NL Cy Young Award that year.
Before he defined the designated hitter position, Martinez made his way through the Southern League as a member of the Chattanooga Lookouts in 1985 and 1986. The Puerto Rican power hitter also made four appearances for the Jacksonville Suns in 1993 while recovering from injury. Overall, Martinez would finish his Southern League career with a .263 batting average, 10 home runs, and 124 RBIs across 247 total games.
Notable players with Southern League ties who did not meet the 75 percent threshold include Fred McGriff (Knoxville, 1984), Larry Walker (Jacksonville, 1987), and this year's manager of the Birmingham Barons, Omar Vizquel.