Paul Molitor was inducted into the Hall of Fame yesterday (http://mlb.mlb.com/NASApp/mlb/mlb/events/hof/y2004/index.jsp). I know he was a generally crappy player in RBI, but he was an RBI-er, and I think his induction at least merits a forum discussion.
I have a 1992 baseball card of Molitor, Robin Yount, and Pat Listach entitled "Brew Crew". The people at Upper Deck (I think; can't remember the brand for sure) thought Listach was going to be the next big thing in Milwaukee.
the only memory i have about pat listach is that he had one of those names that echoed well in the stadium when announced by the PA man. "Pat-at... Listach-istach". another good one was Chuck-uck.... Knoblauch-oblauch. Listach was the rookie of the year in 92 with a .290 average and like 1 homer, so i don't know who he beat out for that one.
in order to not hijack the thread: Paul Molitor had a very compact swing and had 3319 hits over 21 seasons.
SUB HIM IN FOR RNDLPH IN THE AL TODAY!!!
Listach was an up and coming fantasy player back in the day because he could steal bases and play short. That was before every SS hit 25 dingers...
only rookies hit molitor lead off (for those who aren't adverse to playing the all star teams)...that's McGwire's spot day in and day out.
I hate the phrase, "day in and day out."
Listach won the ROY taking 20 First Place votes for a total of 122 points. Kenny Lofton took second place taking 7 First Place votes for a total of 85 points.
Comparison of numbers:
AB H HR BA OPS SB
Listach 579 168 1 .290 .701 54
Lofton 576 164 5 .285 .726 66
Apparently, the fix was in.