Cooperstown Choices: Bill Mueller

With the Hall Of Fame election announcement coming on January 9, 2012, it is time to review the ballot, go over the names, and decide who belongs in the Hall Of Fame.

There are twenty seven men on the ballot this year and we will take a look at each one individually prior to official announcements. You can find all of the profiles in the I-70 Baseball Exclusives: Cooperstown Choices 2012 menu at the top of the page.

Tune in Saturday, January 7, 2012 as I-70 Baseball Radio will host a panel of writers discussing the Hall Of Fame Ballot in a 2-hour special.

In this article, we take a look at Bill Mueller

Bill Mueller
The St. Louis native spent his 11 year career playing for four different franchises. His debut would come wearing the Giants uniform in 1996 and he would put the finishing touches on his career in 2006 as a member of their division rival Los Angeles Dodgers. This is his first year on the ballot.

Why He Should Get In
Mueller was a defensive player that managed to show an offensive side to his game. In his short career, he would win a batting title in 2003 with the Red Sox and finish 12th in the Most Valuable Player voting that year as well. That season would also bring Mueller’s only Silver Slugger Award.

Why He Should Not Get In
Mueller’s career was shortened by injuries and therefore remained a bit lack luster. Though his career batting average was .291, that only equated to 1,229 hits and 493 runs batted in. A career that had a lot of promise, as often is the case, simply never materialized.

Bill Ivie is the editor here at I-70 Baseball as well as the Assignment Editor for BaseballDigest.com.
He is the host of I-70 Radio, hosted every week on BlogTalkRadio.com.
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