Heinie Zimmerman

[Cowtipper]

If Heinie Zimmerman had not been banned from baseball, how would his Hall of Fame prospects be? Over 13 years in the majors, he hit .295 with 1566 hits. In 1912, he led the league in batting average, slugging percentage, OPS, hits, total bases, doubles, home runs, extra base hits...so one could venture to guess that 1912 was his best season. He led the league in RBI in 1916 and 1917 as well.

He appeared in the top ten RBI list eight times in his 13 year career.

His black ink of 24 is 79th all time, and just a couple points below that of the average Hall of Famer. In fact, he is just behind Frank Baker, Jim O'Rourke and Harvey Kuenn on the all-time list. He is just ahead Larry Walker, Albert Pujols and Paul Molitor.

Similarly, he also has good grey ink of 123. Ranked 152nd all-time, he is just behind Jimmy Sheckard, Tip O'Niell and Larry Doby on the all-time list. He is just ahead of Kirby Puckett, Joe Kelley and Andres Galarraga.

One big knock against Zimmerman was his bad (perhaps 'atrocious' is a better word) fielding.

So, had Zimmerman not been banned from baseball, do you think he would be deserving of the Hall of Fame?

[BlueBlood]

Middle-of-the-road stats, those of a pretty good player. Probably could've been a bit better if he was more intent on winning than throwing games.

[jalbright]

Given that Joe Jackson is banned for his role in the fix, isn't this like asking Mary Todd Lincoln on April 15, 1865, "Other than that, Mrs. Lincoln, how did you enjoy the play?"

Note: Abe was shot on the 13th at Ford's Theater, and died early the next morning IIRC.

[steve rogers]

I voted no. But maybe if he had played with Frankie Frisch.

Scott

[Chickazoola]

If he still had full credit for the triple crown in 1912, and perhaps played 3-4 more years of good baseball rather than being banned, he would have a good shot. But as it stands he was a good ballplayer, with more scandal than skill on his record.

[dgarza]

perhaps played 3-4 more years of good baseball rather than being banned, he would have a good shot.

That's pretty much were I stand.

[KCGHOST]

It might have been possible, but unlikely. He was a mediocre defender and his final two seasons indicate a decline in his level of play.

[Fuzzy Bear]

Zimmerman's performance fell off greatly in 1919, so his career may well have been winding down.

As for his defense: Zimmerman's range factors were above league average, but his fielding percentage was below league average. Was he a guy who "had errors other guys can't reach"? Probably not, although one wonders how many errors were part and parcel of throwing games.

Zimmerman was not on a HOF path. If he were, Heine Groh would already be there, IMO.

[Brian McKenna]

Who was Zimmerman banned by?

[BlueBlood]

Judge Landis, of course.

[Brian McKenna]

Landis wasn't in office at the end of 1919.

[Freakshow]

Landis wasn't in office at the end of 1919.

From BBLibrary:

"October 6, 1920: Hal Chase and Heinie Zimmerman are indicted on bribery charges as an aftermath of the investigation into the 1919 World Series. John McGraw testified that he dropped the two after the 1919 season for throwing games and trying to entice Fred Toney‚ Rube Benton and Benny Kauff to join them. Zimmerman denies the charges‚ Chase ignores them‚ but the duo will be banned for life from baseball by Judge Landis."

Apparently, Zimmerman was given a suspension by McGraw after the 1919 season. According to Wikipedia:

"Zimmerman was suspended from the New York Giants in 1919, along with his friend Hal Chase for allegedly attempting to convince other players to fix games. Based on testimony by Giants manager John McGraw during the Black Sox Scandal hearings, Zimmerman and Chase were both indicted for bribery. Zimmerman denied McGraw's accusations, and neither he nor Chase was ever proven to be directly connected to the Black Sox, but based on a long-term pattern of corruption both were permanently banned from baseball by Judge Kenesaw Mountain Landis, Commissioner of Baseball. According to some historians, he had been informally banned after the Giants released him. Baseball statistician Bill James has suggested that the Giants' loss to the Chicago White Sox in the 1917 World Series may have been partial motivation for Zimmerman's suspension. Zimmerman batted .120 in the Series."