Card of the Week - 2/12/14

Sometimes in Showdown, a card just works for you.  It doesn't necessarily fit your style of play, but when on your team, that card is just pure awesomeness.  For me, I despise having slow guys on my teams.  No matter how much a guy can mash, if he is speed C, I don't put him on my team.  Unless, that is, he is the Crime Dog.

There is nothing really special about this card.  An OB 10, 18+ HR is an above average card, of course, but not getting on base until a 6 is worrisome, let alone the one lone double he can get.  But when he is on my team, magic happened.

I once played a tournament with all of the cards from 2000-2001 divided into their respective teams, and Fred McGriff carried the Devil Rays through the first two rounds undefeated with a .684 BA and 1.473 OPS for the tournament.

As a player, McGriff was a borderline great player.  Since he became eligible for the HOF, he has put up fairly solid numbers for the player he was.

HOF Voting results:
2010: 116 (21.5%)
2011: 104 (17.9%)
2012: 137 (23.9%)
2013: 118 (20.7%)
2014: 67 (11.7%)

He finished his career a mere seven home runs short of the magic 500, with a career .281 BA and .886 OPS.  He was a 5-time All-Star and 3-time Silver Slugger who, between the years of 1987 and 2002, would play in no fewer than 107 games in a season.  He was consistently on the field, but not with the same team as he played for 7 different teams, never staying longer than 5 years in one location.  His 1999 season was a good year for him with a .310 average, 32 HR, 104 RBI, and a .957 OPS at the age of 35.  Only his 1994 season was statistically better for the Crime Dog.  The Showdown community benefited from his outstanding season.

And he did have one of the greatest nicknames of all time...which is why the 2000 Fred McGriff is this weeks COTW.