Marvin Miller and Ted Simmons Elected to Hall of Fame
It was a long time in the making but two former MLB stars will finally have their name enshrined in baseball history. Made official the Modern Baseball Era committee, Marvin Miller and Ted Simmons are officially members of the MLB Hall of Fame.
Each and every year, ten potential candidates get one last shot at making into baseball’s most coveted group. Only two get the chance and this year it was Miller and Simmons. Both found their way into the annals of baseball history via different means but regardless very deserving. They were the only two candidates who appeared on at least 75 percent of the ballots.
The King of Deals: Marvin Miller
Miller became just the 44th non-player in MLB history to be enshrined into the Hall of Fame. Miller’s path came not on the baseball field, but rather off of it. Miller came to be one of MLB’s finest as a champion for the players. He made his name in the sports labor world where he became one of the most influential individuals.
Miller led to securing free agency for players midway through the 1970s fighting the reserve clause. Miller was the top dog for the MLB Players Association and during his tenure (1966-82), average player salary increased tenfold.
This wasn’t the first time Miller was placed on the Modern Era Ballot. He nearly made his way back in 2017 when he earned 43.8 percent of the votes. Unfortunately, Miller isn’t around to see his honor as he passed away in 2012.
A Switch-Hitting Machine
Ted Simmons made his mark on the field and did it from both sides of the plate. Simmons was also a near hit back in 2017, falling just one vote short of the necessary mark for entry. Simmons played 21 years in the game of baseball and made a consistent name for himself with at least 70 RBI in 13 of those seasons. The dual-threat averaged over 66 RBI per season with a total of 1,389 for his career. Racking up 2,472 total hits, 483 doubles, and 248 homers, the results speak for themselves.
Simmons endured his playing days across three different teams as a Milwaukee Brewer, St. Louis Cardinal, and Atlanta Brave. Simmons aided in a World Series appearance in 1982 but did the bulk of his damage as a 13-year member of the Cardinals. Seven of his eight total All-Star appearances came as a member of the St Louis Cardinals. It was also the team Simmons landed his lone silver slugger award honor with after blasting 21 home runs and batted a clean .303.
While all that is nice, it’s the durability of Simmons that ended up granting him into the hall. Simmons came through with a .348 career on-base percentage across over 2,000 games played.
Both Miller and Simmons managed to accomplish what fellow nominees Dwight Evans, Dave Parker, Steve Garvey, Don Mattingly, Dale Murphy, Lou Whitaker, and Thurman Munson were unable to reach. Both managed to reach a state very few have ever reached, baseball immortality.
