Rickey Henderson: Twenty-eight baseball writers did not choose Rickey Henderson on their Hall of Fame ballots. That’s just stupid.

Imagine the ideal leadoff hitter. Picture him in your mind. He’s not as good as Rickey Henderson.

Leadoff hitters need to get on base. Rickey Henderson had 15 seasons with an on base percentage greater than .400, and that excludes three additional seasons above .394.

His OBP was so phenomenal that he lead the league in OPS as a leadoff man in 1990. His career adjusted OPS+ is 127, higher than Andre Dawson’s 119 and nearly equal to Jim Rice’s 128. A more indicative stat would weight OBP heavier than slugging, making Henderson’s numbers even more impressive.

Once leadoff hitters reach base, they should cause a ruckus. Rickey Henderson did it better than anyone. He stole 1,406 bases over his career with a success rate better than 80 percent. From 1980 to 1991, he led the league in steals in eleven out of twelve seasons. He finished fifth in 1987, despite playing only 95 games.

He was exceedingly difficult to get out, and made you pay when you couldn’t.

Rickey Henderson may not have remembered anyone else’s name, but everyone else sure knew his.

Jim Rice: I was five years old when Jim Rice retired. I never saw him play. For me he was never “the most feared hitter of his era” or “the Hammer of God sent to scourge the Yankees.€ My vision of Rice is not enhanced by this direct experience, but nor, one could argue, is it deceived by it.

From 1977 to 1979 and again in 1983, Rice was an elite power hitter. In those four seasons, he posted an adjusted OPS+ of 141 or higher and hit 39 or more home runs. In his other seasons he ranged from better than average to very good, generally hitting about 25 home runs with OPS+ of 115-135. He was a very good (borderline great) hitter.

Rice’s presence doesn’t stain the Hall of Fame, but nor does he add to it. He’s not in the discussion for best player at his position. He would not make an all-time Red Sox outfield. His less heralded teammate Dwight Evans has nearly as much of an offensive hall of fame case as Rice and was a better defender.

There is just no convincing statistical argument for Jim Rice. His defenders such as Gordon Edes [Ed. A noted Boston homer] resort to stats such as “only three hitters have had three seasons of 200 or more hits and 35 or more home runs: Alex Rodriguez, Vladimir Guerrero and Rice.€

There’s a reason for that. Most elite hitters weren’t pitched to enough to get 200 hits. Mickey Mantle never did, neither did Ted Williams. It’s obviously not a benchmark for determining great hitting.

And while we are on the subject of Ted Williams, Rice’s best season according to adjusted OPS+ was 1978 (157). Williams had above a 160 OPS+ in eighteen of his nineteen seasons. He had a season worse than Rice’s best just once as a 40-year-old in 1959. He was so embarrassed, that in his final season, at 41, he put up a 190. Those two men do not belong in the same Hall of Fame.