[FuzzyRussianHat]

Emmett “Black Jack” Pierson – Starting Pitcher – Buffalo Blue Sox – 71.4% First Ballot

Emmett Pierson was a 5’10’’, 190 pound right-handed pitcher from Ashburn, Virginia; a city with about 46,000 people within the Washington metropolitan area. He was nicknamed “Black Jack” for his outspoken love of the casino, which did earn plenty of side eyes from concerned officials. Pierson was never caught up in any gambling scandals, but his loud mouth and lack of intelligence did get him in trouble at times. Still, most teammates felt he was well meaning and several gave him high grades for his leadership skills.

At his peak, Pierson had excellent stuff along with very good movement and control. He had a solid 97-99 mph fastball, but it was his changeup that was world class and frustrated batters to no end. Pierson also had a good slider and okay curveball in the arsenal. His stamina was better than most and he had generally great durability over a 20-year career. Pierson struggled at holding runners, but he fielded the position very well and won a Gold Glove in 2016.

Pierson spent three years in college at the University of North Carolina, where he tossed 308 innings with a 2.60 ERA, 18-14 record, 346 strikeouts, 54 walks, 125 ERA+, 46 FIP-, and 13.5 WAR. Buffalo thought he looked excellent in light blue and picked him second overall in the 2012 MLB Draft. Pierson was a full-time starter right away for the Blue Sox and maintained that role generally for 12 seasons. Six times, his ERA would be below three.

In 2016, Pierson led the National Association in strikeouts with 268. He bested that with 282 in 2017 and won his lone Pitcher of the Year, also leading in wins (21-7) and WAR (8.6). Those were all career bests as was his 2.40 ERA, finishing 0.39 away from a Triple Crown. Pierson was also the leader in 2018 with 15 complete games and was third in 2019’s Pitcher of the Year voting. After the 2017 season, Buffalo signed him to a seven-year, $143,700,000 extension.

The Blue Sox were historically one of the weaker franchises in MLB. They got above .500 a few times during Pierson’s tenure, but only had one playoff berth with a one-and-done wild card in 2017 at 98-64. His lone MLB playoff start was a complete game loss, allowing three runs in eight innings. Buffalo averaged 76.8 wins per season during Pierson’s run.

Pierson had remained generally solid through, but did fall off noticeably in 2022. A sprained ankle cost him six weeks and he had easily his worst ERA to that point at 4.30. Pierson was better in 2023, but closer to league average after being a clear ace before that. He executed his player option in his contract, but Buffalo was ready to move on.

In December 2023, Pierson was traded to Phoenix for C David Story and CF Hugh Coatsworth. It was a nice haul for Buffalo, as the latter would win two Silver Sluggers and the former got a Gold Glove. With the Blue Sox, Pierson had a 175-146 record, 2.91 ERA, 3002.2 innings, 2926 strikeouts, 667 walks, 118 ERA+, 79 FIP-, and 72.6 WAR. Pierson’s #6 uniform would eventually be retired, joining Hall of Fame Class of 1940 Derek Edwards as the only jerseys retired by Buffalo.

Pierson got to 3000 career strikeouts in one respectable season for the Firebirds with a 16-15 record, 3.88 ERA, 255.1 innings, 204 Ks, and 3.3 WAR. Phoenix finished 90-72, but fell two wins short of a wild card. He became a free agent for the first time at age 34 and signed a four-year, $44,000,000 deal with Calgary. The Cheetahs had just ended a 29-year playoff drought as a wild card and hoped Pierson could help them become a more regular contender.

In his three seasons there, they were stuck in the 70s for wins. Pierson also dealt with a herniated disc for the early part of 2026. His production was good though especially for a guy in his mid 30s with 623 innings, 36-34 record, 3.96 ERA, 454 strikeouts, 114 ERA+, 82 FIP-, and 14.5 WAR. Calgary wasn’t going anywhere though and traded Pierson with a year left on his deal to Salt Lake City for two prospects.

Pierson’s one season with SLC was merely decent with a 10-13 record, 4.31 ERA, 201.2 innings, 133 strikeouts, 101 ERA+, and 3.5 WAR. He also lost more than a month to biceps injuries. Pierson was a free agent again at age 38, but MLB teams felt they could find similar production from younger and cheaper options. Thus, his time in Major League Baseball came to close. Pierson wasn’t ready to retire yet and opened up an international search.

He landed in Ivory Coast on a three-year, $40,000,000 deal with Abidjan of West African Baseball. Pierson had some back troubles bothering him in 2029, then missed much of 2030 to shoulder inflammation. In two years, Pierson tossed 255.2 innings with a 14-14 record, 4.22 ERA, 181 Ks, 109 ERA+, and 3.2 WAR. He didn’t meet the vesting criteria and was a free agent again for 2031.

Pierson had one more season in WAB on a one-year, $3,200,000 deal with Touba, an expansion team entering its second season. He struggled over 143.2 innings with a 5.58 ERA, 5-15 record, 129 strikeouts, and 79 ERA+, although the 102 FIP- and 1.5 WAR suggested bad defense made him look worse than he was. Still, he was clearly below average at this point and retired that winter shortly after his 41^st birthday.

In MLB, Pierson finished with a 237-208 record, 3.20 ERA, 4091.2 innings, 3717 strikeouts, 951 walks, 340/530 quality starts, 195 complete games, 51 shutouts, 115 ERA+, 81 FIP-, and 93.9 WAR. As of 2037, Pierson ranks 75^th in wins, 78^th in innings, 12^th in shutouts, 18^th in strikeouts, and 41^st in WAR among pitchers. He does sit outside of the top 100 for rate stats. For his combined pro career, Pierson had a 256-237 record, 3.34 ERA, 4491 innings, 4027 Ks, 1062 walks, 113 ERA+, 83 FIP-, and 98.6 WAR.

Pierson reached some important statistical milestones, but some voters felt he was borderline. He was perhaps overlooked too having played on almost exclusively mediocre teams. The strikeouts and Pitcher of the Year award carried the day for most voters though. Pierson received 71.4% on his debut ballot, narrowly breaching the 66% requirement for a first ballot nod. This made him the fourth of five added into Major League Baseball’s Hall of Fame for 2033.



Lorenzen Campbell – Left Field/First Base – Milwaukee Mustangs – 66.8% Sixth Ballot

Lorenzen Campbell was a 6’2’’, 195 pound left-handed left fielder and first baseman from the capital of Jamaica, Kingston. Campbell was the first Jamaican inducted into MLB’s Hall of Fame. He was known for impressive home run power, especially facing right-handed pitchers. Campbell’s 162 game average got you 42 homers, 20 doubles, and 3 triples.

Against righties, Campbell was dominant with a .942 career OPS and 185 wRC+. He was middling against lefties though with a .680 OPS and 106 wRC+. The weakness against LHP gave Campbell merely above average contact stats overall. He was solid at drawing walks with a merely okay strikeout rate. Campbell was a skilled baserunner, but he was limited by average-at-best speed in his prime.

Campbell made about 55% of his starts at left field, where he was a subpar defender. About 1/3 of his starts came at first base with the rest in right field with awful grades in both spots. LF was where his best results came and you’d put up with iffy defense for a strong bat. Campbell’s durability was mostly good over a 16-year career and he mostly avoided big injuries. He was considered a great leader in the clubhouse and became well respected and liked throughout the game.

Jamaican prospects generally ended up in the Central American Baseball Association, but MLB teams occasionally scouted the Caribbean. A scout from Milwaukee took a liking to Campbell and signed him to a developmental deal in December 2003. After three full years in their academy, he was sent to minor league Madison with decent results in 2007. Campbell impressed enough to earn a starting job for 2008 and held it for 11 years.

Campbell took the National Association’s Rookie of the Year in 2008 with 39 homers, .899 OPS, and 4.9 WAR. His second year was arguably his best with Milwaukee with career highs for runs (106) and home runs (51). He also had 8.0 WAR, his highest with the Mustangs. Milwaukee had generally been mediocre with occasional flashes earlier in the decade. Campbell’s 2009 effort helped them make a shocking turnaround, going from 57-105 in the prior year to 92-70 and an Upper Midwest Division title.

Milwaukee had the worst record of the playoff teams, but managed to make it to the National Association Championship Series where they eventually fell to defending champ Cincinnati. Campbell had a strong showing over 14 playoff games with 14 hits, 12 runs, 4 doubles, 5 home runs, 11 RBI, 1.106 OPS, 222 wRC+, and 0.9 WAR. Mustangs fans had hopes that they’d contend regularly, but that wasn’t the case.

For the rest of Campbell’s tenure, Milwaukee didn’t make the playoffs and only had three more winning seasons. For his entire run, they averaged 77.3 wins per season. Campbell carried on with solid production and won his lone Silver Slugger at first base in 2012. He signed an eight-year, $108,600,000 extension after the 2011 season.

In 2017, Campbell was third in MVP voting, his only time as a finalist. He was on a stellar pace, but a torn hamstring in mid-August required surgery and sidelined him the rest of the year. Campbell had by far his best triple slash of .332/.382/.677 with a 1.058 OPS, 219 wRC+, and 7.8 WAR. He regressed back to more merely decent numbers in 2018 with 138 wRC+, .796 OPS, and 4.0 WAR. Still, Campbell was again good for 40+ home runs. Milwaukee had shown promise in 2017 at 88-74, but fell back to 72-90 in 2018.

With Campbell approaching age 32 with one year left on his deal, the Mustangs traded him before the 2019 season to St. Louis for four prospects. For Milwaukee, Campbell finished with 1649 games, 1592 hits, 945 runs, 204 doubles, 456 home runs, 1035 RBI, .272/.349/.550 slash, 173 wRC+, and 63.5 WAR. He remains extremely popular with Mustang fans, but he surprisingly never saw his #37 uniform retired.

The Cardinals had won pennants in 2013-14, but had just missed the playoffs in 2017-18. They also didn’t look at Campbell as a rental, giving him a five-year, $111,600,000 extension in February 2019. In his debut, Campbell led the NA with 48 home runs. His 2020 had his career high for WAR at 8.3, but his power fell off after that as for the first time, he failed to hit 30 home runs in 2021. St. Louis got a wild card in 2020 with a one-and-done, but otherwise were usually stuck around .500 with Campbell.

In his later years, Campbell did play for his native Jamaica in the World Baseball Championship. From 2021-24, he played 40 games with 29 hits, 16 runs, 5 doubles, 9 homers, 18 RBI, 13 walks, 10 steals, .204/.302/.444 slash, 118 wRC+, and 1.3 WAR. Ultimately though, Campbell’s opportunities to play in big games were limited by fate.

Campbell’s numbers against lefties were becoming quite poor in his later years, getting reduced to a platoon role in 2023 with .728 OPS and 1.0 WAR in 130 games and 78 starts. He had a year left on his deal in 2024, but St. Louis cut him after a poor spring training. Campbell spent the year unsigned and retired in the winter at age 37. With the Cardinals, he had 696 games, 602 hits, 348 runs, 89 doubles, 158 home runs, 355 RBI, .263/.335/.518 slash, 158 wRC+, and 20.9 WAR.

In total, Campbell played 2345 games with 2194 hits, 1293 runs, 293 doubles, 614 home runs, 1390 RBI, 828 walks, 1535 strikeouts, 107 stolen bases, .269/.345/.541 slash, 169 wRC+, and 84.3 WAR. As of 2037, Campbell ranks 49^th in homers, but he was out of the top 100 for all other stats. Much of his resume was dependent on dingers. Even though homers were more common in the 21^st Century, Campbell was still one of only 54 guys in MLB’s 130+ year history to make the 600 club.

The rest of his stats though were fairly borderline and Campbell was hurt by the lack of big seasons, lack of awards, and being stuck on mostly mediocre teams. Still, only one guy in MLB history previously had gotten 600+ homers and failed to make the Hall of Fame after ten ballots. Campbell’s popularity also helped his cause, but the skeptics made him wait it out.

Campbell never was below 50%, debuting in 2029 with 56.5% of the vote. He barely budged with 54.1% and 54.7% the next two years. Campbell then jumped up to 62.3% and 65.5%, painfully close to the 66% requirement. On his sixth try in 2034, he just barely stepped over the line at 66.8% to make it in even amongst a loaded group. Campbell became the fifth and final addition for Major League Baseball’s HOF in 2034.