The Bizarro Hall of Fame: Introducing the Class of 2009

Every January, One More Dying Quail pays homage to those players who enjoyed successful major league careers, were rewarded with a spot on the Hall of Fame ballot five years after retirement, and faded away into history without earning a single vote. To date, more than 180 players have been enshrined.

Ron Gant – You can always count on Wikipedia to provide links to excellent information about everything you could ever want to know. In this case, we learn that Gant holds a very special spot in Rich Gossage’s life as one of only three batters he ever hit intentionally. The reason? “Because,” the Goose told MLB.com in May 2008, “[he] had it coming.”

I took the liberty of looking it up and can find no immediate evidence to indicate what Gant did to draw Gossage’s ire. The HBP came in the first ever meeting against the two, in the eighth inning of a game in which Gant was 0-3 with a walk and a run scored. Given the focus of the article in which the information appeared (Gossage’s dislike of demonstrative players in baseball), Gant probably pumped his fist after a good play or smiled at Goose or something wild like that.

Gant go the last laugh that day, immediately stealing second on Gossage and catcher Damon Berryhill. I guess Goose got the last laugh overall, though, since he was elected to the Hall of Fame and Gant didn’t even get a vote.

Dan Plesac – Todd Worrell, Mitch Williams, Mike Henneman…this is the group in which Plesac can now call himself a member, the modern relievers in the Bizarro Hall of Fame. He probably matches most closely with Henneman – both enjoyed just a handful of good seasons as closers, although Plesac lasted eight more seasons than the Tigers’ finisher.

Almost immediately after Plesac’s run as a decent closer ended, he morphed into a journeyman LOOGY, recording an out or two a game for Chicago, Pittsburgh, Toronto, Arizona, Toronto again, and Philadelphia.

Greg Vaughn – Two players in baseball history have hit fifty homeruns in a season and later failed to draw a single vote for the Hall of Fame: Brady Anderson (2008) and Vaughn. A confusing player, Vaughn put up strong numbers for three out of the four years between 1996 and 1999, then went to Tampa Bay. He hit for a little power there (28 and 24 homeruns) in his first two seasons before fading entirely in 2002 and 2003.

Vaughn was drafted five times between 1984 and 1986, including four times in the secondary phase. He made his major league debut as a pinch runner for Joey Meyer in 1989. The next day, he got the start in left field and doubled in his first major league at-bat. Following his second at-bat, a bases-loaded RBI single in the third inning, he was lifted for a pinch runner. On the day of his second start, Milwaukee’s lineup read: Paul Molitor, Jim Gantner, Greg Vaughn, Robin Yount.

This year’s vote was not kind to the Vaughn family. In addition to Greg’s Bizarro status, his cousin Mo picked up just six votes and will not be invited back onto the ballot in 2010.