What O's HOF (provided they were in their prime) would you add to the current roster?

[ScottP]

O's were a very good team in the mid 60's; Frank drove them to be the best team in baseball for the 6 years he played here.

[waroriole]

Are you saying Frank over Markakis is a big upgrade on defense?

I guess you could put Frank in LF.

[Frobby]

Are you saying Frank over Markakis is a big upgrade on defense?

I guess you could put Frank in LF.

I'm saying Frank over anyone on this team would be a HUGE upgrade on offense. And, I'd either play Frank in LF or move Markakis there.

[Justinlstn]

Pitching and defense.

Having Jimbo on the mound every 5th game for this team would be unbelievable.

if adding Palmer is he pitching every 5th day or every 4th day like he did in his day?? 300 innings pitcher that has an era under 3.00 would be great. But if he pitched every 5th day i wonder how much better he would be with that extra rest.

[TonySoprano]

I'm saying Frank over anyone on this team would be a HUGE upgrade on offense. And, I'd either play Frank in LF or move Markakis there.

I'm saying Cal is a big upgrade over Hardy on offense, and if we're playing the position switch game, put Hardy at 2B.

Now, without shuffling positions....

Palmer would be a true #1 starter for this team, so add him first. Ed-die at 1B is a close second. Cal brings less to the plate than Frank, but also carries a better glove; 3 - Cal, 4 - Frank, 5 - Brooks

[clapdiddy]

I picked Frank because I feel his offense would get us in a position to win more games without having to rely on the bullpen.

That being said, a fantastic case could be made for any of these guys.

[LookinUp]

Man, he's not in as an Oriole, but Roberto Alomar probably deserves to be in this poll IMO. What a difference he'd make on this team.

[waroriole]

Man, he's not in as an Oriole, but Roberto Alomar probably deserves to be in this poll IMO. What a difference he'd make on this team.

Yeah, if there are no position changes allowed, he'd probably be as good a pick as anyone.

[RHall31]

Having seen all these players play as Orioles(didn't see Frank as a Red), it's Frank Robinson and not close, IMO. The big bat, the way he played the game, the leadership he brought were just off the charts.

[Frobby]

I'm saying Cal is a big upgrade over Hardy on offense, and if we're playing the position switch game, put Hardy at 2B.

Now, without shuffling positions....

Palmer would be a true #1 starter for this team, so add him first. Ed-die at 1B is a close second. Cal brings less to the plate than Frank, but also carries a better glove; 3 - Cal, 4 - Frank, 5 - Brooks

It's debatable whether moving Frank to LF is really a position switch. He played over 800 games there in his career.

Regarding the offensive upgrade, it sort of depends what you use as your basis of comparison. Cal's best offensive season was a 162 OPS+, and he was in the 144-46 range a couple of times. I'd expect Hardy to perform around his career average (96 OPS+) this year, so let's call it a 50-65 point upgrade. Frank's best season was 198 OPS+, and he was in the 164-87 range four other times. If Markakis (118 OPS+) is the point of comparison, it's a 45-80 point upgrade. If Reimold (111 OPS+) and McLouth (101 OPS+) are the comparison, it's a 55-90 point upgrade.

As I said in my first post, any of these upgrades would be great. It's fun to think about, but it's not really happening, so I think I will leave it there.

[Odenton O]

Man, he's not in as an Oriole, but Roberto Alomar probably deserves to be in this poll IMO. What a difference he'd make on this team.

Good point. Alomar hitting #2 behind Nick would be pretty awesome.

[Matt]

It's debatable whether moving Frank to LF is really a position switch. He played over 800 games there in his career.

Regarding the offensive upgrade, it sort of depends what you use as your basis of comparison. Cal's best offensive season was a 162 OPS+, and he was in the 144-46 range a couple of times. I'd expect Hardy to perform around his career average (96 OPS+) this year, so let's call it a 50-65 point upgrade. Frank's best season was 198 OPS+, and he was in the 164-87 range four other times. If Markakis (118 OPS+) is the point of comparison, it's a 45-80 point upgrade. If Reimold (111 OPS+) and McLouth (101 OPS+) are the comparison, it's a 55-90 point upgrade.

As I said in my first post, any of these upgrades would be great. It's fun to think about, but it's not really happening, so I think I will leave it there.

This is nitpicking, obviously -- but one thing to consider with Frank is that even in his MVP year with the O's, he was rated -2 defensive WAR, which does mitigate his overall contribution. According to bbref, that puts his overall WAR somewhere around 7.3 for the year. For a comparison, Markakis's 2008 was around a 7.1 WAR.

Obviously, those WAR numbers don't hold up to the eye test -- I don't think anyone would put Nick's season close in value to Frank's -- but still... Take Frank and put him on this team, it will make the offense better (by quite a lot), but hurt the defense some (probably), which is probably not something any of us would be thrilled with. Overall, he'd be a huge boon, but wouldn't you want to choose someone who helps offensively and defensively, and to a probably larger overall degree? Maybe we underrate Cal because he is still a recent memory...

[Orioles4Life21]

Well I would take a young Walter Johnson in his prime. And Babe Ruth in his prime. I didn't vote nor do

any of the former O's really excite me for the team. Sorry

letters

[Matt]

Good point. Alomar hitting #2 behind Nick would be pretty awesome.

That would be awesome, but let's not go crazy here -- Alomar's best years are not on the level of the guys we're talking about.

[radar303]

Voodoo numbers are correct. Eye test is everything. If we had Palmer in the playoffs last year against CC, we win. But as far as an everyday player it is Frank with out a doubt. He played in the era of high mounds and was dominant. Ask Brooks... he would agree that Frank was super special... and it had nothing to do w/ War, OPS and other such stuff. A legitimate NO. 3 hitter(which Cal was not for a lot of his career). He did the dirty business of leading and

getting big hits. Of the many thrills I had as a kid 2 jump out. One game in Boston, Frank made a crazy catch in right and fell over the fence. He wretched his back and couldn't swing with any

authority. He dropped down a bunt and beat it out and as I recall scored a run. The other was in the 70 World Series when Cloninger was dealing and holding the O's down. Chuck Thompson's call

was Hilarious "Cloninger's been pitching strong... deeo to Centerfield" Frank hit about a 440 homer to center. Best player EVER to play here.