Cooperstown Choices: Jack Morris
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 Jack Morris
Jack Morris
Morris enjoyed an 18 year career with four American League teams spanning from 1977 to 1994. His debut with the Detroit Tigers would place him with the franchise he would know for 14 years before he would move around and finish up as a member of the Cleveland Indians. Morris is on the ballot for the 17th year.
Year | Tm | W | L | G | GS | CG | SHO | IP | H | R | ER | BB | SO | |||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
1977 | DET | 1 | 1 | 3.74 | 7 | 6 | 1 | 0 | 45.2 | 38 | 20 | 19 | 23 | 28 | 115 | 5.5 |
1978 | DET | 3 | 5 | 4.33 | 28 | 7 | 0 | 0 | 106.0 | 107 | 57 | 51 | 49 | 48 | 90 | 4.1 |
1979 | DET | 17 | 7 | 3.28 | 27 | 27 | 9 | 1 | 197.2 | 179 | 76 | 72 | 59 | 113 | 133 | 5.1 |
1980 | DET | 16 | 15 | 4.18 | 36 | 36 | 11 | 2 | 250.0 | 252 | 125 | 116 | 87 | 112 | 99 | 4.0 |
1981 | DET | 14 | 7 | 3.05 | 25 | 25 | 15 | 1 | 198.0 | 153 | 69 | 67 | 78 | 97 | 124 | 4.4 |
1982 | DET | 17 | 16 | 4.06 | 37 | 37 | 17 | 3 | 266.1 | 247 | 131 | 120 | 96 | 135 | 100 | 4.6 |
1983 | DET | 20 | 13 | 3.34 | 37 | 37 | 20 | 1 | 293.2 | 257 | 117 | 109 | 83 | 232 | 117 | 7.1 |
1984 | DET | 19 | 11 | 3.60 | 35 | 35 | 9 | 1 | 240.1 | 221 | 108 | 96 | 87 | 148 | 109 | 5.5 |
1985 | DET | 16 | 11 | 3.33 | 35 | 35 | 13 | 4 | 257.0 | 212 | 102 | 95 | 110 | 191 | 122 | 6.7 |
1986 | DET | 21 | 8 | 3.27 | 35 | 35 | 15 | 6 | 267.0 | 229 | 105 | 97 | 82 | 223 | 127 | 7.5 |
1987 | DET | 18 | 11 | 3.38 | 34 | 34 | 13 | 0 | 266.0 | 227 | 111 | 100 | 93 | 208 | 126 | 7.0 |
1988 | DET | 15 | 13 | 3.94 | 34 | 34 | 10 | 2 | 235.0 | 225 | 115 | 103 | 83 | 168 | 98 | 6.4 |
1989 | DET | 6 | 14 | 4.86 | 24 | 24 | 10 | 0 | 170.1 | 189 | 102 | 92 | 59 | 115 | 79 | 6.1 |
1990 | DET | 15 | 18 | 4.51 | 36 | 36 | 11 | 3 | 249.2 | 231 | 144 | 125 | 97 | 162 | 89 | 5.8 |
1991 | MIN | 18 | 12 | 3.43 | 35 | 35 | 10 | 2 | 246.2 | 226 | 107 | 94 | 92 | 163 | 125 | 5.9 |
1992 | TOR | 21 | 6 | 4.04 | 34 | 34 | 6 | 1 | 240.2 | 222 | 114 | 108 | 80 | 132 | 102 | 4.9 |
1993 | TOR | 7 | 12 | 6.19 | 27 | 27 | 4 | 1 | 152.2 | 189 | 116 | 105 | 65 | 103 | 70 | 6.1 |
1994 | CLE | 10 | 6 | 5.60 | 23 | 23 | 1 | 0 | 141.1 | 163 | 96 | 88 | 67 | 100 | 83 | 6.4 |
18 Seasons | 254 | 186 | 3.90 | 549 | 527 | 175 | 28 | 3824.0 | 3567 | 1815 | 1657 | 1390 | 2478 | 105 | 5.8 | |
162 Game Avg. | 16 | 12 | 3.90 | 35 | 33 | 11 | 2 | 242 | 225 | 115 | 105 | 88 | 157 | 105 | 5.8 | |
W | L | G | GS | CG | SHO | IP | H | R | ER | BB | SO | |||||
DET (14 yrs) | 198 | 150 | 3.73 | 430 | 408 | 154 | 24 | 3042.2 | 2767 | 1382 | 1262 | 1086 | 1980 | 108 | 5.9 | |
TOR (2 yrs) | 28 | 18 | 4.87 | 61 | 61 | 10 | 2 | 393.1 | 411 | 230 | 213 | 145 | 235 | 86 | 5.4 | |
MIN (1 yr) | 18 | 12 | 3.43 | 35 | 35 | 10 | 2 | 246.2 | 226 | 107 | 94 | 92 | 163 | 125 | 5.9 | |
CLE (1 yr) | 10 | 6 | 5.60 | 23 | 23 | 1 | 0 | 141.1 | 163 | 96 | 88 | 67 | 100 | 83 | 6.4 |
Why He Should Get In
Morris was an ace for the Detroit Tigers for many seasons, winning the all important 20 games three times during his career in 1983, 1986, and 1992. He also led the league in wins with 14 during the strike shortened 1981 season. He would never win a Cy Young Award, but would finish in the top ten seven times during his career. He made five All Star game rosters and received Most Valuable Player votes on five different occasions, ranking in the top 20 four times. With 254 wins and 2,478 strike outs, he should be in the Hall already.
Why He Should Not Get In
The only thing holding Morris back is the fact that he falls below 300 wins and played for a team that was not consistently competitive, keeping his numbers and recognition down.
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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