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Conspiracy Victim

  • Jeremiah Edwards
  • Jul 14, 2017
  • 6 min read

Credit to: tradingcarddb.com

Name: Albert Belle

Card Company: Fleer

Year: 1990

Team: Cleveland Indians

Bats/Throws: R

Ht': 6'1

Even though the card might say Joey Belle, everyone knew this man as Albert Belle. In a career that saw him become the first player ever to be paid over $10 million, Belle did more than enough to earn that money. Due to issues with degenerative hip osteoarthritis he was forced into retirement at an early age, but that didn’t stop him from putting up a possible hall of fame career. However, as we all know the BBWAA always has an agenda and they did everything in their power to keep him out. More on that later, so let’s begin the examination of Albert Belle.

Albert Belle was a star athlete coming out of high school and drew a lot of scholarship offers from big name universities. He would eventually elect to play at LSU from 1985-1987, before being selected by the Cleveland Indians in the 2nd round of the 1987 MLB Draft. Belle would spend the majority of his first three seasons in the minor leagues before making his debut with the Indians in 1989. In 62 games that year he would bat .225 with 7 HR and 37 RBI, and it was discovered that he might have a bit of an attitude problem. Belle was not your hustle down the basepath every time guy, which angered management to the point that they seriously considered releasing him. Alas they didn’t and after spending most of 1990 in the minors Belle would get the chance to become an everyday player in 1991.

The Indians in 1991 were not good, and that’s putting it lightly for a team that lost 105 games that year. But surprisingly enough they had some young and promising talent including the likes of Jim Thome, Sandy Alomar Jr., Carlos Baerga and Albert Belle who hit 28 home runs and knocked in 95 RBI that year. In 1992 Belle would improve his power numbers and production by mashing 34 home runs to go along with 112 RBI, and just like that Belle and Cleveland were moving on up. In 1993, he would establish himself as the Indians star player, by raising his batting 30 points and leading the league with 129 RBI. And in 1994 it appeared that the Indians were finally going to break their long futility streak by making the playoffs. Then the strike happened, and just like that the

Credit to: baseball-reference.com

season was over.

The 1994 season would also see Albert Belle get involved in one of the most bizarre incidents ever in baseball history. In a game against the White Sox Belle was accused of having a corked bat, so Belle’s bat was confiscated and the game resumed. Knowing the bat was corked the Indians and Belle needed to get the bat back into the hands of the team. In steps relief pitcher Jason Grimley who then proceeds to crawl through the ceiling and enter the confiscation room and replaces the original bat with another. One small problem though, the bat he replaced it with wasn’t another one of Belle’s bats but a bat that belonged to teammate Paul Sorrento. This plot was quickly uncovered and after the MLB threatened FBI involvement the Indians produced Belle’s original bat and Belle was suspended for 10 games.

In 1995 however, baseball was back and Albert Belle was back with a vengeance. The 1995 season would see Belle and the Indians dominate the American League finishing the strike shortened season with a record of 100-44 and winning the AL Pennant. The 1995 Indians were stacked with a line-up featuring the likes of Albert Belle, Jim Thome, Sandy Alomar Jr., Kenny Lofton, Manny Ramirez, Eddie Murray, Omar Vizquel, Carlos Baerga and Paul Sorrento. Belle would finish the 1995 campaign with .317 batting average to go along with his career high 50 HR and 126 RBI’s becoming the first player in major league history to hit 50 home runs and 50 doubles in a single season. Unfortunately, though this didn’t win him the MVP even though he outperformed the winner Mo Vaughn drastically.

Don’t believe me here are their 1995 stat lines.

(Bold indicates better)

Albert Belle

(.317 BA) (.401 OBP) (.690 SLG) (1.091 OPS) (50 HR) (126 RBI) (173 H)

Mo Vaughn

(.300 BA) (.388 OBP) (.575 SLG) (.963 OPS) (39 HR) (126 RBI) (165 H)

The only thing they tied on was RBI’s and still the BBWAA thought somehow that Mo Vaughn was a more deserving winner. And you know what sucks it wasn’t because Vaughn was a better player than Belle, but because Belle didn’t like the media. Belle in short wasn’t a fan of the media, and the media in response held that against him and cost him a well-deserved MVP award. This was one of the best single season performances in baseball history and he gets no recognition for it because the BBWAA decided to screw him over. And unfortunately for the Indians the Atlanta Braves finally decided to shed their choker label and won the World Series in 6 games over the Indians.

The 1996 campaign would see the Indians win 99 games and would also see Albert Belle bat .311 to go along with his 48 HR and a league leading 148 RBI. This was still however, not good enough for him to win MVP even though he outperformed the winner Juan Gonzalez

1996

(Bold Indicates Better)

Albert Belle

(.311 BA) (.410 OBP) (.623 SLG) (1.033 OPS) (48 HR) (148 RBI) (187 H)

Juan Gonzalez

(.314 BA) (.363 OBP) (.643 SLG) (1.011 OPS) (47 HR) (144 RBI) (170 H)

And after the 1996 season Belle became a free agent for the first time in his career, and chose to sign with division rival Chicago in the offseason. His first season with the Sox would see his batting average dip to below the .300 mark although he still did manage to hit over 30 home runs and 100 RBI’s so the production was still there. The next season would see him return to his old dominate self, batting .328 with 49 HR 152 RBI, just missing out on joining the 50-50 club again. This season would see him finish 8th in MVP voting even though you guessed it he had a better season than the winner.

1998

(Bold Indicates Better)

Albert Belle

(.328 BA) (.399 OBP) (.655 SLG) (1.055 OPS) (49 HR) (152 RBI) (200 H)

Juan Gonzalez:

(.318 BA) (.366 OBP) (.630 SLG) (.997 OPS) (45 HR) (157 RBI) (193 H)

It just goes to show you how corrupt and clueless the BBWAA was and still is today. This is a classic case of the media having way too much power and using that power to push their agenda. I hate to sound like a conspiracy theorist but I don’t get how you can look at these numbers and not think that he should’ve not won at least one MVP award. But because he wouldn’t jump through the medias hoops, he was soon ostracized and black-balled by the BBWAA and screwed out of 3 MVP awards.

Belle would go on to sign with the Baltimore Orioles after the 1998 season where he would continue his productive career. In his two seasons with the O’s he would finish with a .289 average and hit 60 home runs and drive 220 RBI in 302 games.

However, because of his degenerative hip osteoarthritis he would be forced into an early retirement and the BBWAA all popped a glass of champagne. Even though this man was never involved with any type of PED scandal the media still treats him like dirt. Don’t believe me, look at what NY Daily News columnist Bill Madden wrote: “He was a jerk before he got hurt and now he's a hurt surly jerk.... He was no credit to the game. Belle's boorish behavior should be remembered by every member of the BBWAA when it comes time to consider him for the Hall of Fame." In short because Belle was a jerk to the media we should totally ignore what his stats are. If you have the time, please look up Ty Cobb’s volatile attitude and you’ll see the hall of fame isn’t full of choir boys.

Belle’s reputation will be forever sealed by the media and they will never allow him to become a member of the hall of fame. Don’t believe me that he’s a hall of famer? I’ll prove it one more time, this time comparing his career numbers to hall of famer Ralph Kiner.

(P.S. The career stats of Belle’s are only for his first 10 years since Kiner only played 10 years.)

(Bold Indicates Better)

Albert Belle: (.296 BA) (.368 OBP) (.577 SLG) (.946 OPS) (321 HR) (1019 RBI) (1388 Hits) (5x All-Star) (5X Silver Slugger Winner)

Ralph Kiner: (.279 BA) (.398 OBP) (.548 SLG) (.946 OPS) (369 HR) (1015 RBI) (1451 Hits) (6x All-Star)

No credit to the game my ass BBWAA, I rest my case.

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