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One player was added to the Major League Baseball Hall of Fame with the 1976 voting. LF/DH Tyler Whisnant was a no doubt first ballot selection getting 98.0% of the vote. 1B Ric Campbell in his debut narrowly missed the 66% cut with 62.8%. Catcher Gray Caraway on his sixth attempt was at 60.1%. Also above 50% were LF CJ West (56.5%, 4^th), SP Richard Thieman (56.5%, 3^rd), SP Jeremiah Rutledge (56.1%, 5^th), and closer Wes Kihn (50.2%, 2^nd).



Getting dumped after ten failed attempts on the ballot included 1B/DH Gil Zabala, who posted 2267 hits, 1366 runs, 409 doubles, 507 home runs, 1471 RBI, a .285/.366/.537 slash and 59.2 WAR. Solid power stats, but he was stuck on a weak Seattle team for almost his whole career and only once won a Silver Slugger. A local favorite, but Hall of Very Good type who peaked at 37.8% on his debut. Also dropped was pitcher Phil Savard who in a 19-year journeyman career had a 232-203 record, 3.94 ERA, 3980.1 innings, 3353 strikeouts, and 58.5 WAR. Nice longevity and he won 1947 Pitcher of the Year, but Savard was mostly a tenured average arm. He peaked at 23.8% on his debut ballot.



Tyler Whisnant – Left Field/Designated Hitter – Miami Mallards – 98.0% First Ballot

Tyler Whisnant was a 5’10’’, 200 pound left-handed hitter from Elizabethton, Tennessee, a small town of around 14,000 people in the far northeastern part of the state. Whisnant was an all-time great contact hitter, graded in his peak as an 11/10 at contact. He was also incredible at avoiding strikeouts and putting the ball in play in general, although he was decent at drawing walks too. Whisnant wasn’t a singles slap hitter though, as he was reliable for around 25-35 home runs and 25-35 doubles per year. He was a below average baserunner and a fairly lousy defender. Whisnant made about 60% of his starts in right field with about 30% as a designated hitter and occasional games at first base. He was also typically pretty durable throughout his 20 year career.

Whisnant went to the University of Kentucky for college and was second in NCAA MVP voting in his sophomore season. In 147 college starts, he had 178 hits, 92 runs, 35 doubles, 43 home runs, 127 RBI, and a .313/.382/.609 slash. This made Whisnant a top prospect for the 1950 Major League Baseball Draft and he was picked second overall by Miami. He was immediately inserted into the starting lineup and was only out of the lineup in his decade with the Mallards with various minor injuries. He took second in 1951 Rookie of the Year voting.

His second season saw his first of five Silver Sluggers, also winning the award in 1954, 56, 59, and 64. In 1954, he led the National Association with 7.8 WAR and 223 hits. He’d lead the AA in hits twice more with Miami and earned his first batting title in 1959 with a career-best .371 average. His 1.020 OPS was also enough to earn his lone MVP award. Whisnant also took third in 1956. He was one of the few redeeming things for Miami in the 1950s, as they were consistently a bottom-level team. They’d never make the playoffs in his tenure, but he’d be very popular and see his #2 uniform retired later on. With the Mallards, Whisnant had 1893 hits, 936 runs, 275 doubles, 254 home runs, 860 RBI, a .337/.388/.532 slash and 48.7 WAR.

At age 31, Whisnant entered free agency and signed a six year, $886,000 contract with Oklahoma City beginning in 1961. He’d take third in MVP voting in his Outlaws debut and finish second in 1962, winning his second batting title in 1962 and leading in hits both years. His 238 hits in 1961 was the fifth-most in an MLB season to that point. Whisnant’s signing helped put OKC over the top as they’d get to the American Association Championship Series from 1961-63 and win the title in 1961 and 63. In 1961, the Outlaws won their first World Series ring and Whisnant was the AACS MVP. In 39 playoff games, he had 53 hits, 21 runs, 7 doubles, 7 home runs, and 21 RBI.

Oklahoma City began to rebuild as Whisnant entered his mid 30s and his sixth season there saw his only season to that point with a sub .300 batting average. He finished with 1229 hits, 603 runs, 187 doubles, 174 home runs, 628 RBI, a .333/.382/.532 slash and 31.4 WAR in his Outlaws tenure. At age 37, he became a free agent again and signed for the 1967 season with Portland.

Whisnant had a bit of a resurgence in his two seasons with the Pacifics, posting 8.2 WAR with 359 hits, 155 runs, and a .324 average. They would trade him though to Cincinnati before the 1969 season and he’d miss two months of his Reds season with a sprained knee. At age 40, he went back to where it started on a three-year deal with Miami. Whisnant became the eighth MLB hitter to reach 3500 hits, but ultimately struggled in his return to the Mallards. Miami cut him in early August and Whisnant opted to retire that winter at age 41.

Whisnant’s final stats: 3582 hits, 1743 runs, 530 doubles, 496 home runs, 1727 RBI, a .334/.384/.530 slash, 146 wRC+ and 91.0 WAR. At retirement, his batting average was second best among all Hall of Famers behind only John Roberts’ .342. He was seventh in hits at retirement and in the top 20 in runs scored and doubles. The resume and role in Oklahoma City’s World Series title made Whisnant a lock and easy choice with 98.0% on the first ballot.