Rice Immortal, Ringolsby Irrational

Justice has been served. After 15 years of being snubbed, sacked and sneered at by the Baseball Writers Association of America (BBWAA), James Edward Rice, the pre-eminent slugger of his era, has taken his much-deserved place among baseball’s elite in the Hall of Fame.

To his credit, Rice handled his selection with the same class and aplomb with which he handled his rejection. The fact is that Rice should not have had to sweat it out year after year, while borderline Hall of Famers like Tony Perez, Gary Carter, and Rich Gossage were inducted by the BBWAA.

Despite his selection, Rice still stands as the ultimate reason why Baseball Hall of Fame voting should not be solely under the jurisdiction of baseball writers. This often self-centered and biased horde is neither worthy nor able to be the lone arbiters of immortality. Give them a vote for sure, but let there also be input from players, coaches and baseball executives.

There were many who felt that Rice’s delayed selection was a product of his frosty relationship with the media. At best, the Red Sox slugger was cordial to the press. At worst, he was impenetrable. In short, Rice’s only real crime was being silent. In a 1993 interview with Rice, I asked him why he was so seemingly aloof and his response was surprisingly simple. “I was very protective of my work habits,” Rice said. “I didn’t want anyone to know what I did to achieve the success I had.” What a jerk, huh!

Guys like Larry Bird regularly sidestepped silly questions from the press, and when Bird did respond, it was usually sarcastic. Others like Carl Yastrzemski were about as pleasant as Nick Nolte in detox. Even the beloved and worshipped Ted Williams had a relationship with the media that would make Ike and Tina Turner look like Ozzie and Harriet. All these men are deified in Boston, while Rice was ostracized.

Rice arrived in Boston in 1974, at the height of racial unrest in a city not especially known for its tolerance. Don’t you think that a young man from the southern town of Anderson, South Carolina might have some trouble adjusting to life in a northern metropolis like Boston? Don’t you think there might be some tendency to withdraw and be careful and selective as to whom he trusts?

In 1975, Rice put together one of the best rookie seasons in memory (22 HR, 102 RBI, .312 avg.), but it was fellow rookie Fred Lynn that grabbed Boston’s headlines and hearts. Almost from day one, Rice was overlooked and undervalued by the media. His serious nature and focused veneer only added to the distance. He was a misunderstood talent, and few members of the predominantly white media ever cared to ask why.

And that brings us to today, Rice’s day. Last week, Tracy Ringolsby, a member and former president of the BBWAA, penned a hatchet job of Rice clearly designed to sway voters away from Big Jim Ed. In the column, Ringolsby expressed dismay that Rice would probably “slip in” to the Hall of Fame and said he was “confused” that Rice could actually get the 75% of the vote needed for induction. Judging from the lack of intelligence in his column, Ringolsby is confused by a lot of things.

Ringolsby wrote, “The Hall of Fame is for the elite of the elite of the elite.” He is entitled to his opinion, but later on in the column, he says that the dubious likes of Andre Dawson, Tim Raines and Dale Murphy are more qualified for induction than Rice. Dawson? Raines? Murphy? The elite of the elite of the elite? I can only guess that Ringolsby believed “Ishtar” to be Oscar material.

It gets worse. Ringolsby further states that Rice was the best player on the Red Sox only in 1978 when he hit .315 with 46 home runs and 139 RBI. Again, you can look at the stats and fully debate that assertion. In addition to ’78, Rice was arguably the best Red Sox player in 1976, 1977, 1979, 1980, 1983 and 1985.
Ringolsby’s point is pointless. Since when is being the best player on your team every year a prerequisite for induction? Ringolsby essentially contradicts himself by saying that one of Rice’s drawbacks is that he was intentionally walked just 77 times in his career.

So, let me get this straight. First, Ringolsby says that Rice was surrounded by players better than he, and then he trashes Rice for not being intentionally walked more often. This is indicative of why writers should at least share the vote.

Carlton Fisk, Dwight Evans, Yastrzemski, George Scott, Tony Armas, Mike Easler, Bill Buckner and Don Baylor are just a few of the players who shared the lineup card with Rice in his Red Sox career. Are you going to walk Rice to face that group of sluggers? And since when are intentional walks a ticket to the Hall? Much of the media has dismissed Barry Bonds intentional walk rate as a bogus product of steroid use, yet Ringolsby actually uses that worthless stat against Rice. I guess David Ortiz is swamp sludge because Manny Ramirez hit behind him all those years.

Ringolsby goes on to say that Rice’s stats declined in his last three seasons (1987-89). Again, outside of the steroid freaks, most hitter’s stats do not improve in the final years of their careers. The Hall of Fame is littered with inductees whose numbers dip with time. At least Rice left the game with his head held high and didn’t hang on like Hall of Famers Willie Mays, Hank Aaron, Tony Perez and others.

Ringolsby is nitpicking, trying to keep an old media grudge against Rice alive. His weak arguments and contrived logic are reason enough to revamp the Hall of Fame voting methods. Thank goodness that enough of Ringolsby’s colleagues did not share his small-minded views. This summer, James Edward Rice will go to Cooperstown, his rightful place, while Ringolsby remains miserably stuck his own spiteful place.

John Molori writes for Patriots Football Weekly, Boston Baseball Magazine, and BostonSportsMedia.com. He is a contributor to the “Papa Joe Chevalier Show” at KLAV AM 1230 in Las Vegas and papajoetalk.com. He hosts the “J-Team Radio Show” at AM 980 WCAP and www.jteamradio.com. Email John at MoloriMedia@aol.com.