[FuzzyRussianHat]

Two members were added to the MLB Hall of Fame in the 1941 class, both on the first ballot. Pitcher Bailey Johnson was close to unanimous at 99.4%, while pitcher Fabian Fusco made it in at 70.2%. Another pitcher, Ray Biedermann, barely missed out on his ninth ballot at 64.9%. SP Dee Walters (61.4%, RP Paul Leo (59.1%), 3B Franz Bolt (57.6%) SP Rush Anest (55.0%) and 1B Emanuel McCain (52.6%) all had solid showings but missed out.



Getting dropped after 10 attempts was catcher Seth Bryant, whose MLB career was primarily in Kansas City with two seasons as well in Charlotte. He peaked at 43.4% on his fifth try and won three Silver Sluggers, but lacked counting stats as a catcher with 52.6 WAR, 276 home runs, 1879 hits, and 1050 RBI. Reliever Peter Atkinson made it 10 seasons on the ballot, peaking at 41.8% on try two. He had 266 saves and a 2.10 ERA with 31.9 WAR.



Bailey “Basket Case” Johnson – Starting Pitcher – Brooklyn Dodgers – 99.4% First Ballot

Bailey Johnson was a 6’0’’, 200 pound left handed pitcher born in Cedar Grove, New Jersey. He wasn’t a fireballer at 94-96 mph velocity, but had tremendous stuff and movement with a deadly slider and forkball to compliment a solid fastball and a rare changeup. Johnson also fielded the position very well, twice winning Gold Glove in his career.

He had a great college career at Purdue, finishing third in the NCAA Pitcher of the Year race in 1915. In the 1916 MLB Draft, Brooklyn picked Johnson third overall, but he opted to return for his senior college season. In the 1917 MLB Draft, Brooklyn called again, this time with the fourth overall pick.

He’d spend the first decade of his career with the Dodgers and immediately became the staff ace, leading the National Association in WAR (9.0) as a rookie. He didn’t get Rookie of the Year, but finished second in Pitcher of the Year voting.

The Dodgers never made the playoffs in his tenure, but Johnson couldn’t be blamed He led the NA in strikeouts five times and WAR thrice with the Dodgers. He peaked in 1923 with a 23-7 record, 2.34 ERA, career-best 313 strikeouts and 9.8 WAR. This earned him his only Pitcher of the Year, but he would finish second or third on six different occasions in his career. In 1921, Johnson tossed a no-hitter against Boston.

In 10 seasons with Brooklyn, Johnson had a 152-118 record with a 2.69 ERA, 2549 strikeouts over 2570.2 innings with 245 quality starts, 110 complete games, and 73.3 WAR. The Dodgers traded Johnson to Las Vegas for prospects for the 1928 season at age 31.

Johnson spent seven years with the Vipers and remained a solid contributor, twice leading the American Association in WAR. He finally had a chance to pitch in the postseason, although Las Vegas didn’t make any deep runs during his tenure. In 1932, the always sturdy Johnson dealt with a herniated disc and back problems would pop up sporadically for the rest of his career. But he still finished his LV run with a 119-60 record, 2.99 ERA, 1471 strikeouts over 1624.1 innings with 45.7 WAR.

In his last year with the Vipers, he crossed 4000 career strikeouts, joining Newton Persaud as the only MLB pitchers to do so. He also became the fourth pitcher to 250 career wins. He left Las Vegas and signed with Philadelphia for 1935, but struggled in his one season with the Phillies and retired that offseason.

The final line: 276-184, 2.83 ERA, 4064 strikeouts over 4277.1 innings, 381 /564 quality starts, and 119.0 WAR. At the time, he was behind only Persaud in career WAR for pitchers. One of the most consistent ace pitchers of all time, Johnson was an easy Hall of Fame choice and unsurprisingly got in above 99%.



Fabian Fusco – Starting Pitcher – Atlanta Aces – 70.2% First Ballot

Fabian Fusco was a 6’1’’, 195 pound left-handed pitcher from Ocoee, a town near Orlando, Florida. Fusco ended up as a reliable journeyman pitcher with solid stuff and movement with 94-96 mph velocity. His best pitches were a changeup and forkball, along with a solid sinker and slider. His movement made him tough to hit, but he was also at times hard to catch with spotty control. His 1709 career walks would be second most all-time behind only Casey Esnault’s 1810.

Fusco attended Western Michigan University and was picked 22^nd overall in the 1918 MLB Draft by Atlanta. Arguably, Fusco’s best single season was his rookie year with 7.0 WAR, a 21-7 record, and 3.09 ERA. He was second in Rookie of the Year voting and Pitcher of the Year voting. He’d never finish that high in the voting-ever again despite his longevity.

He’d spend only five years and change with the Aces, but it would be his longest run and ultimately most successful. He went 99-66, with a 3.61 ERA and 38.6 WAR. Atlanta made it to the American Association final twice in his run But he was viewed as being greedy and disloyal, and was traded at the deadline in 1924 to Kansas City.

Fusco finished his 20s with the Cougars, then signed for three seasons with Los Angeles. His Angels tenure ended with a deadline trade in 1930 to Philadelphia, where he finished the year. Fusco signed in 1931 with Montreal for two seasons, then spent one year with Toronto and his final two seasons with Houston. In that stretch, he basically never missed a start, becoming the sixth MLB pitcher to cross 250+ wins.

The final line: 262-219, 3.56 ERA, 4522.1 innings with 3156 strikeouts and a 88.2 WAR. His longevity allowed him to put up respectable career totals, despite never being dominant or having a signature run with a team. The voters decided that his tallies were enough to get him to 70.2% and a first ballot induction into the Hall of Fame.