Berkman's final career numbers: .293/.406/.537, 366 home runs, 1,234 RBIs, 51.8 WAR.

Hall voters, of course, require a tough-to-dissect combination of peak value and career value. After struggling in 2010 with a knee injury, Berkman bounced back with a terrific 2011, hitting .301 with 31 homers. He had a great World Series, hitting .423, driving in five runs, scoring nine. The Cardinals won it all. In 52 career postseason games, his batting line is .317/.417/.532.
So where does that leave us?

A player who was one of the elite hitters of his generation.

Ten Hall of Fame-caliber seasons, plus a great partial season in 2000 (.297/.388/.561 in 114 games) and a not-so-great 2010.

A terrific postseason performer.

A player who didn't win an MVP award but fared well in the voting.

On the negative side: Not much defensive or baserunning value, a late career start (his first big year came at 25) and relatively low career totals.

We all know how the Hall favors longevity (Andre Dawson, Tony Perez) over shorter, higher peaks (Dale Murphy).

So, is Berkman gonna be the 3rd Killer B to make the hall? Does he deserve if?

Nope. Not a HOFer.

Good Lord.

No way. Amongst steroid-era bat-first guys he comes behind Bonds, Thomas, Manny, Ortiz, Sheffield, Thome, Big Mac, Edgar, Pujols, maybe even Walker and Giambi. Out of that group, I'd put in Bonds, Thomas, Manny, Edgar, and Pujols for sure and think hard about Big Mac, Thome, and Ortiz. Walker, Sheffield, Giambi, Berkman, and others like them have numbers that look pretty good on the historical spectrum but not good enough for the era in which they played.

Posted by dahsdebater on 1/30/2017 4:40:00 PM (view original):
No way. Amongst steroid-era bat-first guys he comes behind Bonds, Thomas, Manny, Ortiz, Sheffield, Thome, Big Mac, Edgar, Pujols, maybe even Walker and Giambi. Out of that group, I'd put in Bonds, Thomas, Manny, Edgar, and Pujols for sure and think hard about Big Mac, Thome, and Ortiz. Walker, Sheffield, Giambi, Berkman, and others like them have numbers that look pretty good on the historical spectrum but not good enough for the era in which they played.

Lance Berkman Stats During 2000s and MLB Rank
	G	BA	OBP	SLG	OPS+	H	2B	HR	RBI	R	rWAR
Stats	1,473	.300	.413	.559	148	1,553	357	309	1,026	959	46.2
Rank	9th	23rd	7th	12th	6th	18th	7th	9th	7th	9th	9th
Baseball Reference

I think he might gets some points for being a switch hitter too

I wouldn't put him in. Even if you look at him as a LF (instead of 1B), he doesn't compare very well to other HOFs (or guys who should be in). He was very good, he was not a Hall of Famer.

no

He's no Edgar Martinez.

He's no Edgar Martinez.

I put him in. In the "let's put everyone in", I see no reason to exclude Lance.

Posted by MikeT23 on 1/30/2017 8:07:00 PM (view original):
I put him in. In the "let's put everyone in", I see no reason to exclude Lance.

I mean, you can say that about the Hall of Fame. Just know, it's still the hardest HoF to get in. Basketball is the "let's put everyone in" club. The top 10 PGs, top 10 SFs, top 10 Cs, of every decade get in