Baltimore Orioles: Ranking the O’s six Hall of Famers

It’s Hall of Fame day! Today we’re looking at the Baltimore Orioles six Hall of Famers, and ranking them

The Baltimore Orioles currently have six players in the Baseball Hall of Fame. There’s a chance that number increases to seven by the end of the day today, depending on whether the BBWAA voters elect longtime Orioles’ pitcher Mike Mussina.

Assuming Mussina is elected, it seems likely that he’ll represent the Orioles in Cooperstown. Mussina spent ten of his eighteen years in Baltimore, amassing 58% of his career bWAR with the Orioles. We just wrote about Mussina’s case for the Hall, and as Orioles fans, we’re hoping that he gets the call today.

But what about the rest of the Orioles in the Baseball Hall of Fame? How do they stack up against each other?

No. 6 – Earl Weaver

This one isn’t that difficult as Earl Weaver is the only person on this list to never have played for the Orioles. He managed the O’s from 1968-1982, and again in 1985 and 1986.

Weaver helped build an incredibly successful franchise during his time in Baltimore, and helped lead the Orioles to the 1970 World Series title over the Cincinnati Reds.

Over seventeen years with the Orioles, Weaver posted a .583 winning percentage with six division titles and four American League pennants.

Weaver was inducted to the Hall of Fame in 1996. He was a great manager but at the end of the day, he was a manager; the players are the true difference makers.

No. 5 – Eddie Murray

Steady Eddie played in Baltimore for 13 years, winning the 1977 Rookie of the Year award and posting an .868 OPS with 343 home-runs.

Murray spent the second half of his career bouncing around the league, spending his final nine years between four teams (Dodgers, Indians, Mets, and Angels), but he made the majority of his career contributions in Baltimore.

He’s one of twenty-seven players in the 500 homer club, has 3,255 career hits, and holds the MLB record for most games played as a first-baseman. He had twelve seasons with at least 25 home-runs, and posted six seasons with at least 100 RBI.

Murray was an eight-time All-Star and finished in the top-five in MVP voting five times. He won a World Series title with the 1983 Orioles, and was inducted to the Hall of Fame in 2003.

No. 4 – Jim Palmer

Jim Palmer is arguably the best pitcher in Orioles’ history; it’s either him or Mussina and whichever one you prefer likely just depends on which era you grew up in.

Palmer played his entire nineteen year career with the Orioles, throwing a total of 3,948 innings with a career 2.86 ERA. He won 268 games and amassed 2,212 strikeouts, both of which are Orioles’ records.

Palmer’s 68.9 career bWAR is the most ever for an Orioles pitcher – Mussina’s career 83.0 mark is higher, but Moose posted just 47.8 bWAR as an Oriole.

Palmer won three Cy Young awards with the Orioles in ’73, ’75, and ’76. He had five separate top-5 finishes and received American League MVP consideration eight times, finishing second in MVP voting in 1973. He was inducted to the Hall of Fame in 1990.

No. 3 – Brooks Robinson

We just wrote about Brooks Robinson, calling him the best third-basemen in Baltimore Orioles history. Nothing has changed, though we have two guys ahead of him on this list.

Robinson is one of the best defensive players of all-time. At the time of his retirement, his .971 fielding percentage was the best ever for a third-baseman, and the mark is still good for fourth best in MLB history.

By all measures, Robinson is an elite Hall of Famer. He appeared in fifteen consecutive All-Star games, won sixteen consecutive Gold Glove awards, and won the 1964 American League MVP award.

His 78.4 career bWAR is second best in franchise history. and he’s second only to Cal Ripken Jr in Orioles history in games played (2,896), at-bats (10,654), hits (2,848), runs scored (1,232), total bases (4,270), doubles (482), and RBI (1,357). Brooks was inducted to the Hall of Fame in 1983.

No. 2 – Frank Robinson

Frank Robinson is one of the most underrated baseball players in Baltimore Orioles history. The O’s acquired him in 1966, and that year he went on to win the Triple Crown and the American League MVP while helping lead the Orioles to their first World Series title in franchise history.

Robinson won the National League Rookie of the Year award in 1956 and would go on to win the National League MVP in 1961 with a 1.015 OPS, 37 home-runs and 124 RBI. His 1966 AL MVP award made him the first player to earn MVP honors in both the American League and the National League. To this day, he’s still the only player to have done it.

His 586 career home-runs are good for tenth all-time. He hit a league-leading 49 homers in 1966, and he had eleven 30+ home-run seasons in his career. In 1975, Robinson was named player-manager of the Cleveland Indians, becoming the first African-American manager in MLB history.

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Robinson would go on to manage four teams after his playing career, and would post a career .475 winning percentage. Robinson is one of the best Orioles of all time, and I seriously considered having him first on this list. He was inducted into the Hall of Fame in 1982.

No. 1 – Cal Ripken Jr

Cal Ripken Jr is baseball’s Iron Man, and is one of the best players to ever put on an Orioles uniform. He played the game the right way, and taught an entire generation of Orioles fans how to appreciate the game of baseball.

Cal appeared in nineteen consecutive All-Star games, from 1983-2001. He won the American League Rookie of the Year award in 1982, and won the American League MVP in 1983, helping lead the Baltimore Orioles to their third World Series championship in franchise history.

He won his second MVP award in 1991, and he won eight Silver Slugger awards in his career. Cal is the Orioles all-time leader in games played (3,001), at-bats (11,551), runs (1,647), hits (3,184), home-runs (431), and RBI (1,695).

His streak of 2,632 consecutive games played is almost certainly never going to be broken, and he’ll forever be a legend in the city of Baltimore. He was inducted to the Hall of Fame on his first ballot in 2007 with 98.5% of the vote.

We’ve got our fingers crossed that the writers elect Mike Mussina this year, and that he goes into Cooperstown representing the Baltimore Orioles. Tune in tonight at 6pm eastern on MLB Network, or on MLB.com to see whether Mussina makes it.