Spare me Gil Hodges and Ron Santo

How about ‘none of the above’?

MLB’s Veterans Committee has trotted out the same old names as putatively worthy of the Hall of Fame.

Well, they ain’t. — with one possible exception.

Luis Tiant? You know, I’d never even thought of him before, but…

Decent ERA for spending much of his career in Fenway. Solid WHIP. Four 20-win seasons. Nearly 2,500 strikeouts back in the day when Gibby was the only 3K-Ker besides The Big Train.

Two ERA titles. Five times in the top 10 in K/9 ratio. His 49 shutouts are 21st-best ever.

You could call him “the poor man’s Catfish Hunter” and not be wrong.

He’s got the best case here.

Now, on to the two biggest myths.

Gil Hodges? Gimme a break. A first baseman with a career slugging average of under .500 AND less than 2,000 hits. Why the hell is his name even on the list? And…

Ron Santo? Not. Sorry, Cubbies, but other than a brief flare-up in his BA in 1972, his career was over by the time he was 30.

Or, to put it another way?

You want Ken Boyer in fhe HOF? Because they’re the same player, down to Gold Gloves (five each) BA, slugging, etc. If you don’t believe me, go to Baseball-Reference.com and see for yourself.

Joe Torre? Arguably more than halfway deserving as a manager. But, as a player? Solid All-Star, but this is the Hall of Fame, not the Hall of Very Good.

Maury Wills? Did revolutionize the game, or turn it back, especially in the NL. Strictly as a player, though? No.

Dick Allen? Less than 2,000 hits. Too short a career.

Jim Kaat? Sorry. Very sorry. Lots of wins, yes, from pitching nearly 25 years. Great fielder. But … Weak ERA, bad WHIP. Borderline, but if you were to go, Tommy John should go first.

Tony Oliva? WTF is he doing even on this list? Less than 2,000 hits, even with playing four years as a DH.

Al Oliver? A toughie. About as much on the borderline as Kaat.

Vada Pinson? A notch below Al Oliver. Sorry.