re: Should Will Clark be in the HOF

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Gotcha. Then I assume they in the same gated community. I'll tell you, I live on Perkins Rd.

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Nope...they don't live in a gated community. It's a subdivision off Bluff Rd.

No, but Keith Hernandez does.

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Nope...they don't live in a gated community. It's a subdivision off Bluff Rd.

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Not many on Bluff Rd with that type of money. I was told off Old Perkins but just down from Bluff.. closer to Airline Hwy. I know between Airline and Blue Bayou they got some NICE places. But this one has a straight 1/4mile road w/house and big lots... that ends into a gated community. All that without saying the place. But if you're familiar then you know where I'm talking about.and you've likely passed my place.

Based on his stats, probably not. If you look at 1st basemen in the hall of fame, most either hit for average, power, or both. There are a few exceptions, two since world war II, but to get into the hall of fame a first basemen needs a life time average of at least .310 or at least 350 career home runs. Several have both. Clark has neither. He has a .303 average with 284 homeruns. If he had played second base and had those stats he would be a lock. But he didn’t, he played first. And there are a LOT of first basemen that mash the baseball.

Here are some of the other first basemen that played during Clark’s career. Don Mattingly, Fred Mcgriff, George Brett (mainly played 3rd, but later in career moved to 1st), Andres Galarraga, Mark Mcgwire and Frank Thomas all played at some point in Will Clark’s career. You can’t make a good argument that Clark is top three among that list. If a guy isn’t top three at his position for a majority of his career is he really a hall of famer? I also think that whole era is tainted by steroids and voters are very hesitant to vote for anyone that played then.

Will Clark was only an all star 6 times out of 14 seasons (less than 50%). He never won an MVP award. He never led the league in homeruns or average. He was a good fielder but only won one gold glove. Most seasons he wasn’t one of the top 2 first basemen in MLB. Most seasons he was the third or fourth best. Again, first base has stiff competition. There are lots of guys with career stats similar to his or even better who haven’t and won’t make the HOF. Plus some people say he is an a-hole, and was to the media when he played (I have no idea), which will also hurt him. Mark McGwire, Barry Bonds, Rafael Palmeiro all have 500+ home runs and they likely won’t ever make the hall of fame. Whether Clark used steroids or not that whole era of players is tainted.

He was a great player, but his career stats fall just a little shy of hall of fame worthy. And some say he was an a-hole to many of the people that vote on it. And he was a steroid era player. The deck is stacked against him.

For comparison, here are the stat lines of the last five 1st basemen inducted and then Will Clark’s.

2025 Dick Allen .292, 351 hr, 1119 rbi
2024 Todd Helton .316, 369 hr, 1406 rbi
2023 Fred McGriff .284, 493 hr, 1550 rbi
2022 Gil Hodges .273, 370 hr, 1274 rbi
2018 Jim Thome .274, 612 hr, 1699 rbi

Year? Will Clark .303, 284 hr, 1205 rbi

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Polk not winning a national title when he had Clark and Palmero is insane

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My Mississippi state fan hot take is if Polk coached in the modern era he would be seen as the biggest choke artist in the sport and his legacy wouldn’t be near the same.

Don’t forget Bobby Thigpen was also on that team. He pitched and hit, with a 3.43 era and seven saves and .307 batting average. He later held the single season MLB save record for a few years with 57. He gets over shadowed by Palmeiro and Clark, which shows how talented that 85 MSU team was.

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When you pull in the neighborhood her house literally has Olympic rings out front

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Hard time figuring out where that would be on Bluff Rd. Oh well no worries.

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Haha wut? Average career length is around 5.6 years.

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How many of those make the HOF? Now go back and check to see the average length a player plays that is in the HOF. Do you know nothing about baseball?

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This is very true. I threw him out of a bar I was managing in the early 90's. It was closing time and I walked up and told he and his friends you have to leave. He said, do you know who I am? I said yeah, Will Clark, the baseball player from Jesuit. You need to leave.
He promptly left.

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So he was arrogant and got thrown out of your bar in his late 20's...

got it

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For comparison, here are the stat lines of the last five 1st basemen inducted and then Will Clark’s.

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And McGriff was only inducted two years ago by the veterans committee. That's Clark's only hope, and it isn't much of one.