Two former Atlanta Braves All-Stars missed out on heading to Cooperstown yet again. Dale Murphy and Gary Sheffield both fell far short of the necessary votes to get the nod. Twelve of the 16 voters must give a thumbs-up. Murphy got six, while Sheffield got fewer than five.
Jeff Kent was the only player who received enough votes for induction into the Hall of Fame. He received 14 of 16 potential votes.
A campaign had been launched in an effort to get Murphy into the Hall of Fame. A valiant effort, endorsed by some notable figures, fell short.
Murphy played in the Majors for 18 seasons from 1976 to 1993, with 14-plus seasons coming with the Braves. He finished his career with a .265 average and an .815 OPS. He hit 398 career home runs and had 1,266 career RBIs.
The argument for him didn’t come from the overall career stats, however. The argument was that he had a Hall of Fame-level peak. From 1980 to 1987, he averaged 34 home runs and 101 RBIs. He took home back-to-back MVPs in 1982 and 1983, along with five consecutive Gold Gloves and four consecutive Silver Slugger awards. His 218 home runs during that time led MLB.
Murphy was on the ballot for all 15 years he was permitted. Since then, the rule has changed to only 10 years. He failed to make it in his final year with just 18.9% of the vote, well before the 75% needed to get in.
Sheffield didn’t arrive to Atlanta until he was 33 years old. However, he had some of his best seasons while with the Braves. In 290 games played, he batted .319 with a .974 OPS, 64 home runs and 216 RBIs.
For his career, Sheffield finished with 509 home runs, 1,676 RBIs, 2,689 hits and 253 stolen bases. He slashed .292/.393/.514 across 22 seasons in the Major Leagues. He made nine total All-Star teams, received MVP votes seven times and was a finalist for the award three times. For good measure, he played a key role in the Florida Marlins’ 1997 World Series win, took home five Silver Slugger Awards, and won the 1992 National League Batting title (.330).
He was named an All-Star during his second and final season with the team in 2003. He was in the starting lineup for the All-Star Game that year, along with Braves catcher Javy Lopez. Along with the appearance in the Midsummer Classic, he won the Silver Slugger Award and finished third in MVP voting behind Barry Bonds and Albert Pujols.
He stayed on the writers’ ballot for the full 10 years. However, he only netted 63.9% of the vote in his final chance during last year’s voting cycle.
It’s not over yet in the push to see a former Braves star get inducted. Andruw Jones is on the ballot for the ninth time. Last year, he finished with 66.2% of the vote, near but short of the 75% needed. With five All-Star nods, 434 home runs and 1,289 RBIs to go with his Gold Gloves, many feel it’s time.
