Is Marty Marion A Hall of Famer?

By Paul Semendinger

Two weeks ago, I wrote an article that showed that between 1960 and 1985 most players who finished in the Top 10 of vote-getters for the Hall of Fame eventually earned enshrinement into the hallowed halls of Cooperstown. The most notable exception to that rule was Marty Marion, who finished among the Top 10 no fewer than eight times but never received enough votes to gain entry into the Hall of Fame. No player in that period finished so high in the Hall of Fame voting so often and failed to gain entry.

I began to wonder if Marty Marion belongs in the Hall of Fame...

In this day and age, most Hall of Fame arguments begin with WAR. Unfortunately, many of the arguments also end with WAR. For many fans, and baseball writers, if a player's WAR isn't high enough, he isn't a Hall of Famer. For many, WAR makes a cut-and-dry case. To those in the WAR camp, a score of 60 or better signifies that a player is Hall of Fame worthy. None of that bodes well for Marty Marion's Hall of Fame case.

Marty Marion was a sensational gloveman who didn’t hit enough to merit Hall of Fame consideration.Photo byBowman Gum

Marty Marion was a standout defensive shortstop who was not much of a hitter. Marion's lifetime batting average was an unimpressive .263. Marion never hit .300 in any season. He never hit even .290.

Marion's best batting average for any season was .280. Marion also didn't hit for power. He hit just 36 homers in his career. Marion didn't drive in runs, totaling just 624 runs batted in. All of these low numbers drag down Marion's lifetime WAR to an unimpressive 31.8. Among all-time shortstops, Marion ranks #69 all-time.

I believe WAR is a great starting point for a Hall of Fame discussion. I do not believe it is the be-all and end-all. But, a WAR of 31.8 doesn't even seem to be in the ballpark for Hall of Fame consideration. Still, I wanted to dig more deeply.

Marion's great skill was with his glove. In his day, he was considered the game's best- fielding shortstop. Some said that he was possibly the greatest fielding shortstop of all-time. His defense was instrumental in helping his team, the St. Louis Cardinals, reach four World Series (winning three of them) between 1942 and 1946.

Marion's defense was so impressive that he was selected the National League's Most Valuable Player in 1944. Marion was also seen as a leader on the diamond.

In his career, Marion earned MVP votes in seven different seasons, including six consecutive times from 1941 through 1946. In his day, he was considered one of the best, as the MVP votes seem to prove.

What hurts Marion's Hall of Fame case is the fact that his playing career wasn't very long. He played 13 seasons in the big leagues, but only 11 as a starter.

For players with shorter careers, there usually needs to be a standout feature to their play to help propel them into the Hall of Fame. For Marion, that standout feature is his defense but, unfortunately, defense is still very difficult to quantify. The numbers don't seem to bear this out. It can be said that Marty Marion was a great fielder, but in his career, he never led the league in chances, putouts, assists, or double plays.

It seems, then, that Marion's Hall of Fame case rests upon his leadership and the perception of his defense. Other glove-first shortstops from his relative era who were also on frequent pennant-winners, such as Pee Wee Reese and Phil Rizzuto, are in the Hall of Fame. With this, though, we come back to WAR.

Reese, not much of a hitter, had a WAR of 68.4 (14th all-time among shortstops), while Rizzuto compiled 42.2 WAR (41st all-time among shortstops).

Rizzuto's case (based just on WAR) is weak, at best, but still his performance was miles ahead of Marion's. Another glove-first shortstop, who was also a St. Louis Cardinal, was Ozzie Smith, who had a WAR of 76.9. Smith ranks eighth all-time among shortstops.

All three of those shortstops had careers much more noteworthy than Marion.

As I considered Marty Marion's case, I decided to go in one other different direction — All-Star games.

In his 11 full seasons, Marion was selected to eight All-Star contests. That alone sounds impressive, but I wondered if it really is.

I made a list of the eligible players who have not reached the Hall of Fame but who have the most All-Star appearances.

Heading that list are players excluded from the Hall of Fame for well-documented reasons: Pete Rose (17), Barry Bonds and Alex Rodriguez (14), Mark McGwire and Manny Ramirez (12), and Roger Clemens (11).

Next, though came some border-line players: Bill Freehan (11), Steve Garvey (10), plus Elston Howard, Dave Concepcion, Fred Lynn, Frank McCormick, and Gary Sheffield (9 each).

There are a host of players with eight All-Star games, like Marion, who are not in the Hall of Fame. This standard also does not help Marty Marion's case.

One name on the All-Star list that stands out is Dave Concepcion. On the surface, he seems like a good match for Marty Marion. Both of those players were glove-first All-Star shortstops on teams that were multiple-time champions.

I thought also of Bert Campaneris. Campy was in seven All-Star games.

Again, unfortunately, for Marion, when comparing him to Concepcion and Campaneris, two similar-type players, he comes up wanting.

While WAR isn't everything, it does serve as a guide. Both Concepcion and Campaneris are miles ahead of Marion.

Concepcion's lifetime WAR of 40.1 ranks 45th all-time. Campaneris was much more impressive (even with one less All-Star appearance) with a WAR of 53.0, good for 22nd all-time. (Campaneris actually has an interesting Hall of Fame case himself.)

When one looks at the players most like Marty Marion, the case becomes crystal clear. Of the 10 players most similar to Marty Marion, only Leo Durocher is in the Hall of Fame. But he’s there as a manager, not a player.

The most similar player to Marion is Rafael Ramirez, who also isn't getting called to Cooperstown any time soon.

It seems that Marty Marion was an outstanding defensive shortstop who had an impressive career.

It also seems clear that while he was an excellent player, he wasn't a Hall of Famer.

Paul Semendinger was just elected Vice President of the Elysian Fields Chapter of SABR. Dr. Semendinger has written a number of books including From Compton to the Bronx (with Roy White), The Least Among Them, Scattering the Ashes, and 365.2: Going The Distance. Paul will be running the NYC Marathon to support the Sesame Workshop. You can donate to support helping to educate children today by donating here: https://fundraiser.sesameworkshop.org/2024-nyc-marathon-fundraiser/drsem?tab=MyPage