PDA

View Full Version : What if this player?



suave1477
06-18-2007, 11:44 AM
To all members here is an interesting topic:

WHAT IF????

What if you could change a certain players history on how they played or something they did to creat an alternate out come of there career?
Who would you change an what would you think the outcome would be?

Ill will start by saying 2 players

Darryl Strawberry - If he didn't down the wrong side of the road with all his drug usage and contraversial things off the field - I definitely think he could have made it easily into the 500 Home Run Club with out a blink of an eye and easily been an indutee to the Hall of Fame.

Ken Griffey Jr. - I feel if he wasn't plagued with his Injuries he could have easily had a chance at break Hank Aarons HR record and I think Last season, the season before and this season is definitely proving that. Everyone I know has pretty much given up on Griffey Jr. and yet even though he was plague yet again at the end of his season last year with another Injury. He still managed 27 HR and the year before 35 and this season already at 18.

Who do you think could of had a different future?

3arod13
06-18-2007, 12:04 PM
Juan Gonzalez - If he didn't use steroids, which could have contributed to the injuries he had over his last few years, he also would have been a 500 Home Run hitter. However, I now wonder, without steroids, would he have hit as many home runs as he did (434)

bubbrubb25
06-18-2007, 12:08 PM
Pete Rose...you know the story

staindsox
06-18-2007, 12:08 PM
I think Paul Molitor would probably have been the all-time hit leader. He missed over 500 games from injury (and player injured at great deal more). Even if he .250 in those games (1-4), that puts him over 3800 hits. He was actually healthier in his mid-30s and consequently put up bigger numbers. Had he done that throughout his career (he would have without those nagging injuries), he would be the hit king. But, this is what if. Joe Wood threw his arm out, Tony C took one off the head, even Mickey Mantle with healthy knees or Ted Williams missing 5 of his best years because of war. It's a pretty subjective topic, but I think Paul would have been the hit king...but would Barry be chasing/robbing Mickey or Ted right now? Great thread!

Chris

harpt
06-18-2007, 12:22 PM
Paul Molitor!

He was plagued with injuries his entire career (including missing nearly two full years during his prime) and still assembled 3,319 hits. I believe that if he had not had injury problems, he could have sniffed 4,000 hits.

skipcareyisfat
06-18-2007, 12:23 PM
Dale Murphy. He's two homers short of 400 and I would've loved to see him get there. Not even 26 games as a Colorado Rockie (arghhh) helped. Had it not been for the '81 strike though, which lasted about a month and a half, he'd likely be in the 410-420 range. Subtract the late-career injuries and maybe he gets another 20-30.

staindsox
06-18-2007, 12:24 PM
or how about if Babe Ruth got to hit...

in today's smaller parks.

with lighter, maple bats.

with a strike zone half of what it was when he played.

with 30 team instead of 16...which means there are twice as many pitchers as there were then. Think if you got rid of the bottom half of pitchers in the majors.

with nicer travel (an un-airconditioned train IS rougher than a first class plane trip for one or two hours).

and if he actually hit every day in his Boston years...

I don't think anyone yet would be close to him.

harpt
06-18-2007, 12:24 PM
Oops, i was writing mine while you posted yours. Great monds think alike.

yanks12025
06-18-2007, 12:24 PM
I would pick Lou Gehrig. If he did not die he could have a longer game streak and also add on to his stats. If he could have played acouple of years more he could have reached around 600 to 650 home runs maybe more.

Also Thruman munson i dont know if he was going to be a hall of famer but let him add some more stats on and maybe help the yank's win another world series back then.

both-teams-played-hard
06-18-2007, 01:41 PM
http://img224.imageshack.us/img224/5008/satch99ka8.jpg
How does someone call themselves a "World Champ" when they haven't even faced the best competition in their own damn country?

ham1963
06-18-2007, 02:34 PM
suave1477:
Darryl Strawberry - If he didn't down the wrong side of the road with all his drug usage and contraversial things off the field - I definitely think he could have made it easily into the 500 Home Run Club with out a blink of an eye and easily been an indutee to the Hall of Fame.


How about Doc Gooden I wonder if he would have won 300 games if he did not go down the same path as Strawberry. :D

RobSteinmetz
06-18-2007, 03:08 PM
I'm with Warren on Satchell Paige, and I'd add Josh Gibson to the list.

camarokids
06-18-2007, 04:12 PM
http://img224.imageshack.us/img224/5008/satch99ka8.jpg
How does someone call themselves a "World Champ" when they haven't even faced the best competition in their own damn country?

I agree 100% . I don't see why they are called world champs now . Did I miss the tournament ?

If the USA and baseball was de-segregated , say 50 or 75 years sooner than Jackie R. (no dis-respect to JR) . Just think how different the History books of Baseball (even just life as well, our country & it's heroes, etc) would be . The Hall of Fame in Cooperstown would have quite a few different members and quite possibly have some taken away ???

otismalibu
06-18-2007, 04:28 PM
Some hoopsters off the top of my head...

What would their career numbers look like if they would have had full careers?

Connie Hawkins (banned - point shaving scandal)
Bill Walton (injuries)
David Thompson (injuries)
Sugar Ray Richardson (banned - drugs)
Andrew Toney (injuries)

staindsox
06-18-2007, 04:42 PM
David, I love your point!!! I actually think there would be some very large surprises if baseball had never been segregated.

I have read in so many places that Josh Gibson couldn't hit a curveball to save his life and I think we would be greatly disappointed with him. Not compare these two at all, but Wily Mo Pena has tremendous power, but having power and hitting homeruns are two different things, as the Red Sox have found out. Bo Jackson may have been able to hit them as far as Babe Ruth or Reggie Jackson, just not nearly as often.

Hilton Smith is an excellent example of the other scenario. I read that Satch who throw the first inning or two and Hilton would come in and pitch the last 7 innings, but Satchel would get the win. His plaque was long overdo.

I put as much faith in the Negro League stats as Paul Bunyan and the Tooth Fairy. There are obviously some that shouldn't and wouldn't be in the Hall. On the otherhand, I am absolutely sure there are others that have been left out that can't go in based on their numbers...if you only looked at numbers, would Ozzie Smith gone in??? It's a shame we will never know who those players are.

Chris

TNTtoys
06-18-2007, 04:54 PM
Let's not forget Teddy ballgame...

Had he not missed 5 years of playing time throughout his career in order to fight for our country, he would have far surpassed his lifetime stats of 521 home runs, 1,839 runs batted in, 2,021 bbs, 1,798 runs scored, 2,654 hits, etc, etc...

geoff
06-18-2007, 10:25 PM
What about Shoeless Joe Jackson.
What could he have done in baseball if not Banned.Could he have been one of the best ever to play.

JasonM33
06-19-2007, 04:56 AM
Jose Canseco is THE what-if player. Here's what I would change if I could........

I wish he never hurt his back in 1990. First of all he was hitting .330 to .350 early in the year. He was hitting plenty of homeruns and the A's were winning. I believe he would have been the AL mvp again that year. No doubt in my mind. Also, his back severly hampered his swing late in the season and in the post-season. Without that injury he would have likely been able to perform better in the Series. A's might even have been able to win the darn thing. 1990 was the key year in Canseco's career in my mind. That's the year people started turning on him. He signed the biggest contract in baseball history but then missed a bunch of games and didn't perform in the World Series. His teamates started to slag him off in the press. The Oakland fans started booing him at home. Everything fell apart for him in 1990. That back injury never healed properly. Later he had several surgeries because of it and he missed several years off of his career. He was never the same player again. It robbed him of much of his speed and it contributed to his decline as an outfielder. His whole thing was that he was such a complete player. Injuries robbed him of that and turned him into a DH. He still put together some good seasons but he was never the same player. He could have been one of the best of all time. 600 or 700 homeruns.

But.....it wasn't to be. Injuries ruined his career but he also didn't help himself out much with his off the field behavior. He may have lost a little of his focus on baseball. I think people underestimate the effect that the divorce with Esther had on him. Oh well, Whadda ya gonna do? I still love the guy. Steroids or no steroids.

-Jason M

3arod13
06-19-2007, 06:01 AM
Jose Canseco is THE what-if player. Here's what I would change if I could........

I wish he never hurt his back in 1990. First of all he was hitting .330 to .350 early in the year. He was hitting plenty of homeruns and the A's were winning. I believe he would have been the AL mvp again that year. No doubt in my mind. Also, his back severly hampered his swing late in the season and in the post-season. Without that injury he would have likely been able to perform better in the Series. A's might even have been able to win the darn thing. 1990 was the key year in Canseco's career in my mind. That's the year people started turning on him. He signed the biggest contract in baseball history but then missed a bunch of games and didn't perform in the World Series. His teamates started to slag him off in the press. The Oakland fans started booing him at home. Everything fell apart for him in 1990. That back injury never healed properly. Later he had several surgeries because of it and he missed several years off of his career. He was never the same player again. It robbed him of much of his speed and it contributed to his decline as an outfielder. His whole thing was that he was such a complete player. Injuries robbed him of that and turned him into a DH. He still put together some good seasons but he was never the same player. He could have been one of the best of all time. 600 or 700 homeruns.

But.....it wasn't to be. Injuries ruined his career but he also didn't help himself out much with his off the field behavior. He may have lost a little of his focus on baseball. I think people underestimate the effect that the divorce with Esther had on him. Oh well, Whadda ya gonna do? I still love the guy. Steroids or no steroids.

-Jason M

Jason,

You are a dedicated Jose Canseco fan! Myself, I was a big Juan Gonzalez fan. But once I found out he used steroids (and he did), my whole attitude changed about him. Although he may have had natural power hitting ability, he still cheated by using steriods. Difficult for me to forget that and still have respect for him as I did in the past.

JasonM33
06-19-2007, 07:20 AM
I understand that. Everyone has a right to their opinion. I just think if we got rid of all the professional athletes that are using stuff there wouldn't be enough of them left to play the games. Most of the top guys are doing something, and they have been for a looooooooooooong time. But, that discussion is for another thread.

-Jason M

G1X
06-19-2007, 10:32 AM
What if the 3-point line existed in NCAA basketball when "Pistol Pete" Maravich played at LSU? His career average was 44.2 points per game, and since he usually hit a number of long-range baskets each game, his career average would have EASILY been over 50 points per game!

Mark Hayne
Gridiron Exchange

ChrisCavalier
06-19-2007, 11:47 AM
Game Used Universe's booth at the SportsFest was actually right next to the Negro Leagues' booth and Rob Steinmetz and I had the great privilege of listening to some of the their stories. I agree that the Hall-of-Fame might look very different if our country had only matured earlier regarding its views on race.

On a separate note, in addition to the fact that he played with numerous injuries throughout his career (including the well-known drain incident injury), what would Mickey Mantle have been able to do if he committed himself totally to baseball? It has been speculated that Mantle was convinced he was going to die of Hodgkin's disease (like some many others in his family) so he decided he would "live it up" while he could. Imagine if he really committed himself to baseball and being the best he could have been.

-Chris Cavalier

Yankwood
06-19-2007, 12:20 PM
How about Reggie Harding, the 7 foot pistol toting, drug abusing, alcohol drinking thug from Detroit, Michigan. Reggie, I believe, was the first player drafted into the NBA who did not attend college. He was shot and killed in 1972 crossing an intersection in downtown Detroit.
One of the funniest lines ever spoken by a human took place during a liquor store robbery attempt. The store manager, who knew Harding, said to the the 7 foot tall, stocking mask wearing Harding, "Reggie, what are you doing?" To which Reggie replied, "It ain't me man".
With all of his antics, it's amazing he actually lived to be 30 years old. If you never heard of him, look him up. It's worth a read. These such antics, which seem all too common among pro atheletes today, were not so common 30, 40 and 50 years ago.

TNTtoys
06-19-2007, 12:52 PM
Football running backs... hmmm...

For all time rushing yardage, we have Emmitt Smith at #1 and Walter Payton at #2.

Had their careers not been cut short (1 by injury and 1 by whatever you want to call it), Terrell Davis and Barry Sanders could have very easily taken or shared these top honors.

Jags Fan Dan
06-19-2007, 12:58 PM
How about Bo Jackson? I would love to see how his career would have ended up if he had not had the injury/condition.

3arod13
06-19-2007, 03:45 PM
What if this player continued to use steroids after his 50 HR season. Just imagine what his numbers could have been (lol):

Brady Anderson Career Statistics

Career Stats
Batting YearTmGABHAVG2B3BHRRBIRSBCSBBSOSLGOBPOPS1988BAL531 7735.19881191764840.271.232.5041988BOS4114834.2305 301214421535.304.315.6201989BAL9426655.20712241644 1644345.312.336.6491990BAL8923454.2315232424152314 6.308.332.6401991BAL11325659.230123227401253844.32 4.338.6621992BAL159623169.2712810218010053169898.4 49.385.8351993BAL142560147.26336813668724128299.42 5.367.7921994BAL111453119.2632551248783115775.419. 360.7791995BAL143554145.2623310166410826787111.444 .374.8181996BAL149579172.2973755011011721876106.63 7.3971.0351997BAL151590170.288397187397181284105.4 69.399.8681998BAL133479113.2362831851842177578.420 .357.7771999BAL150564159.282285248110936796105.477 .410.8872000BAL141506130.25726019508916992103.421. 380.8012001BAL11337073.197103839461035261.305.316. 6212002CLE348013.16340154401823.250.327.577Career 181664391647.256336672107551058313999521174.427.36 7.794

3arod13
06-19-2007, 03:54 PM
[quote=3arod13;43569]What if this player continued to use steroids after his 50 HR season. Just imagine what his numbers could have been (lol):

Brady Anderson 1996 Statistics

HR
1992 BAL 21 (Most HR prior to 1996)
1996 BAL 50
1999 BAL 24 (Most HR after 1996)

quote]

metsbats
06-19-2007, 08:48 PM
Bob Feller enlisted in the Navy and sacrificed 3 of his prime years in baseball to serve our Country. Rapid Robert surely would have won 300+ games but instead settled for 266 during his HOF career.

David