MLB

Is David Ortiz a Future Hall of Famer?

John Stolnis  —  @johnstolnis Sep 14th, 2015
Boston's long-time designated hitter is now a member of the 500 home run club. Does that make him a shoo-in for Cooperstown?

Since the designated hitter rule was instituted by the American League before the 1973 season, it has been extremely difficult for these men with no gloves, these men who come to the ballpark with nothing more than shin guards, Louisville Sluggers and a smile, to warrant serious consideration for the Hall of Fame.

You see, there are three facets to this game. You pitch the ball, you catch the ball and you hit the ball. Designated hitters only do one of those things, and Hall of Fame voters have long had a difficult time enshrining them in Cooperstown because of their one-dimentionality. And yes, I just made up a word. 

But over the weekend, Boston Red Sox designated hitter  David Ortiz joined some elite company.


Ortiz became the 27th player in Major League history to reach the 500 homer plateau, exclusive company to be sure. It's company that usually means a ticket to the Hall of Fame. But because he is a designated hitter, that admission is not automatic. It was just last year that Chicago White Sox legend Frank Thomas became the first designated hitter to be elected to the Hall. Prior to that, no player who was primarily a designated hitter during their playing days had ever been admitted.

Big Papi is looking to be the second, and his career numbers indicate his case appears strong.

Rk Player HR G R H 2B 3B RBI BA OBP SLG OPS
1 Frank Thomas 521 2322 1494 2468 495 12 1704 .301 .419 .555 .974
2 David Ortiz 500 2241 1334 2289 578 18 1628 .284 .378 .547 .925
3 Harold Baines 384 2830 1299 2866 488 49 1628 .289 .356 .465 .820
4 Don Baylor 338 2292 1236 2135 366 28 1276 .260 .342 .436 .777
5 Edgar Martinez 309 2055 1219 2247 514 15 1261 .312 .418 .515 .933
6 Travis Hafner 213 1183 619 1107 250 13 731 .273 .376 .498 .874
7 Cliff Johnson 196 1369 539 1016 188 10 699 .258 .355 .459 .815
8 Hal McRae 191 2084 940 2091 484 66 1097 .290 .351 .454 .805
9 Billy Butler 138 1298 556 1391 301 5 682 .291 .356 .442 .798
10 Ken Phelps 123 761 308 443 64 7 313 .239 .374 .480 .854


Only Thomas has more career homers as a designated hitter than Ortiz, and the next closest, Harold Baines, is 116 dingers behind. Ortiz has more doubles than any other designated hitter and the second-most RBI as well. Perhaps the only other player on this list you could argue should be in the Hall of Fame is Edgar Martinez, who finished with a .312 career batting average and an OPS of .933, second only to Thomas. 

But not only is Ortiz putting up some crazy numbers among the designated hitter ranks -- he's also having one of the best "old guy" seasons in baseball history. 

Rk Player HR Year Age G 2B RBI BA OBP SLG OPS
1 Barry Bonds 45 2004 39 147 27 101 .362 .609 .812 1.422
2 Hank Aaron 40 1973 39 120 12 96 .301 .402 .643 1.045
3 Steve Finley 36 2004 39 162 28 94 .271 .333 .490 .823
4 David Ortiz 34 2015 39 130 31 95 .275 .361 .556 .917
5 Darrell Evans 34 1987 40 150 20 99 .257 .379 .501 .880
6 Willie Stargell 32 1979 39 126 19 82 .281 .352 .552 .904
7 Alex Rodriguez 31 2015 39 131 19 81 .256 .358 .500 .858
8 Cy Williams 30 1927 39 131 18 98 .274 .365 .502 .867
9 Ted Williams 29 1960 41 113 15 72 .316 .451 .645 1.096
10 Darrell Evans 29 1986 39 151 15 85 .241 .356 .442 .798


The table above shows the best power seasons by any player in an age-39 season or later. Ortiz' 34 homers are tied for fourth-most in an age 39 season or older, trailing Steve Finley's 36, Hank Aaron's 40 and Barry Bonds' 45, all in their age 39 seasons as well.

This year, Ortiz is batting .275/.361/.556 with a weighted on-base average (wOBA) of .380 and a weighted runs created (wRC+) of 139. His 34 long balls are eighth in the American League, his 95 RBI are sixth, as is his OPS of .917, with an fWAR of 2.6 that is fourth among designated hitters.

I understand the bar must be set higher for designated hitters to be included in the Hall of Fame. Defense is a vital component to playing baseball, and players who are unable to field a position well enough to do it at least half the time should be penalized for that. 

But given his ridiculous career numbers and his effectiveness so deep into his career, one would think Ortiz should join Thomas as the only true designated hitters to enter Cooperstown.