| Hall of Fame |
Class of 1910
Ross Barnes, Charlie Bennett, Jesse Burkett, Jim McCormick, Ezra Sutton, and George Van Haltren have all been elected to the Baseball Clubhouse Hall of Fame. Each received at least six of the eight votes cast. Barnes was a player in the early days of baseball, dating to before there were organized leagues. He was a 21-year old infielder when the National Association debuted in 1871. Barnes was a dominant player in the NA, perhaps the best in the history of that league. He batted .401, .432, .425, .340 and .365 in the five years of the NA. Defensively, he played mostly second base but also shortstop and some third. Barnes was a small, speedy fellow whose career came to a halt after a leg injury took much of his speed. After the injury, he was an average player. His career OPS+ was 166. Bennett was a catcher and the most popular 19th century player in Detroit. The Tigers' stadium was named Bennett Field after him for many years. Bennett's lifetime batting average was but .256, but his career OPS+ was 118, and he was a tremendous defensive backstop in the days before gloves, masks, chest protectors and shin guards. It was a rough business, but Bennett was terrific at it, and kept up his hitting too. Burkett is a .338 lifetime hitter with 2850 hits. He won three batting titles, and also played a solid left field. Burkett starred for years in Cleveland and St. Louis. McCormick, a native of Scotland, had a 265-214 career record and a 2.43 ERA with a 118 ERA+. He led the league in wins twice and ERA twice, and pitched in two World Series exhibition matchups for pennant winners. Ezra Sutton played third base (and some shortstop) for 18 seasons and batted .294. He played from the start of the National Association in 1871 all the way to 1888 in the NL. Not an exceptionally powerful hitter, Sutton was a quick and agile fielder who banged out a lot of singles. He played for many years in Boston. Van Haltren had a .316 lifetime average with 2532 hits and 583 stolen bases. He broke in as a pitcher but became a center fielder and did well in that spot. After bouncing between teams for awhile, he spent the second half of his career with the New York Giants. Voting Results 8 ballots cast: