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Famous
Quotes
From
the "Late, Great" Willie Stargell
"The first time I met Al Oliver I was
not sure who I was meeting... But from the initial conversation
I had with him, I knew this young man had both feet on the
ground, that he had come from a good background. I was impressed
with Al before I ever saw him on the field."
"When it came to hitting...all he ever did was crush
the ball. Al was the perfect number three hitter because you
knew he was going to make contact. You knew he was going to
get on base."
"When it all came down to the finish line, and you take
a look at his credentials, you have to wonder why he's not
in the Hall of Fame. "
"It was a treat to have him play next to me, and to
have had the opportunity to play ball with him. I got to know
him and everything just fell in place. I got to know what
the "Real Al Oliver" was all about. Now that neither
one of us are playing we're still friends and that's far greater
than playing side-by-side. Our friendship will last a lifetime.
I'm very happy to have gotten to know Al Oliver." |
From
Andre Dawson
"Al, as a lifetime .300 hitter after 18
seasons, I feel is deserving (of induction into the Baseball
Hall of Fame, sic). There is no question in my mind had he not
been forced out of the game by collusion, had he been given
an all out honest attempt to achieve 3,000 hits, he would have
done it. He was pushed out of the game when he was still a .300
hitter. I feel he deserves a place in baseball today." |
From
"Bump" Wills - former
teammate with the Texas Ranges
"It's uncanny and has yet to be explained.
I don't know how many times I've sat and thought about it.
This man who has the stats he has, who's accomplished what
he has in this game still doesn't get the recognition he justly
deserves.
In my opinion there has not been a better hitter that I have
played with, or that I've seen. I've seen the great ones coming
up at a young age with the Dodger organization. Having been
on the field and in the dugouts as a child seeing Hank Aaron,
Frank Robinson, Pete Rose, and all the great players. Al Oliver
ranks up there as a hitter with those guys.
I don't understand what the lack of consideration for the
Hall was about. If you see his stats, if you've seen him play,
if you know the man, then there is no doubt that Al Oliver
should be in the Hall of Fame. I think it boils down to personalities.
People who didn't take the time to know the man intricately
passed judgment on him on certain things" |
From
Bill James - baseball writer
"I don't think you could find a case where
a black ballplayer has been denied support for the Hall of Fame
when a white player with essentially the same credentials has
drawn stronger support, or been put in. If there are such cases,
I'm not aware of it. I do think, though, that the city in which
a player performs affects some part of the voting. Al did not
play in any "media centers." It's an injustice for
him to be off the ballot. He shouldn't be put in that category.
It surprises me that he received so little support." |
From
Dock Ellis
"Al was every bit as good a hitter as Clemente.
He was a better hitter than Willie. Willie hit home runs. Willie
could hit the ball, but he couldn't hit the ball with the authority
that Al did. Al's not gonna say that but I will. He didn't have
the power that Willie had to pop the ball out of the ballpark,
but he was a better hitter than Willie, and Willie was a good
hitter too." |
From
Phil Musik
"It's ironic, the poignancy of Al being
so close to 3,000 hits, which would have put him in the Hall
of Fame, and him not getting it when you consider that he was
capable of playing when he left the game. Al had a great career
as a hitter, and to get so close is devilish. He quite possibly
could have gotten 3,000 hits had the circumstances been different." |
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From
Bob Gibson - former major league player
"If your 're going to go by statistics
you have to say, 'Yeah he belongs in the Hall.' I'm not sure
how the media even goes about selecting people for the Hall
of Fame. Obviously there are a lot of people in there that
probably don't belong, and there are some people not in who
could possibly be in there. I'm not sure what the criteria
is for selecting.
Al was a good hitter. He used to get quite a few hits off
of me. I had a hard time striking Al out. I'd make good pitches
on him and he'd nub the ball over the infield because he had
a good eye. He was a tough out." |
From
George Foster
"It's a travesty for him (Al Oliver) to
be left off the ballot when his stats are better than a lot
of players still on the ballot. There's no doubt that Al belongs
in the Hall of Fame. He has the numbers. Nobody has stated exactly
what numbers it takes to make the Hall of Fame, but look at
the numbers he had compared to the numbers of some people already
in there. Al should be there." |
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