Larry Walker retires

[Larry Horse]

"Cardinals outfielder Larry Walker is calling it a career. "I couldn't even breathe," Walker told the St. Louis Post-Dispatch about his final at-bat on Wednesday night. "All these emotions were going every direction. I knew it was it. I'm not coming back." The 38-year-old played 17 seasons and hit .313 with 383 homers, 1,311 RBI, 1,355 runs, 2,160 hits, and 230 steals. He won the NL MVP award in 1997, was named to five All-Star games, collected seven Gold Gloves, and led the NL in batting average three times."

 

I never realized he had those stats. I hope this doesn't mean Giles will be in St. Louis next year.

[abuck1220]

darn, i was hoping he'd gimp through another season in the cardinal outfield.

[ZMovieman]

Congrats on a wonderful career Larry.

[RockTheIvy]

Hopefully he gets some HOF attention. I realize he played some games in Coors, but I wonder what the Steroid stuff does to someone like Walker's stats.

[CubsWin]

Hopefully he gets some HOF attention. I realize he played some games in Coors, but I wonder what the Steroid stuff does to someone like Walker's stats.

I'm glad you brought up HOF. I'd be interested in what some people here think about how he stacks up. His numbers sure look deserving at first glance, but like you so aptly pointed out, there are extenuating circumstances.

 

That .313 lifetime batting average and the MVP he won should go along way, though.

[mhuber92211]

Larry Walker is a HOF. Of course I also think Dale Murphy is one too and for some reason (not really stats) I always likened the 2 similar.

[vance_the_cubs_fan]

Here are the hitters most comparable to Larry Walker:

Duke Snider (892) *

Ellis Burks (878)

Joe DiMaggio (870) *

Johnny Mize (861) *

Frank Thomas (849)

Chuck Klein (842) *

Manny Ramirez (841)

Edgar Martinez (837)

Bob Johnson (837)

Luis Gonzalez (834)

 

There's some nice hitters on that list. I'm borderline on Walker's HOF candidacy. On face value, the numbers look pretty good. He does have an MVP and a very nice time BA. I could probably be presuaded to accpet him as a HOF, but I'm not sold on him.

[vance_the_cubs_fan]

On the other hand, Murphy is not a HOF. He was a very good player that just doesn't quite reach HOF status. He has a career .265 avg, which in my opinion falls way short of HOF status. His career OPS is good, but not HOF worthy.

[JeffH]

He was a fine player, but the only way Larry Walker ever gets into the Hall of Fame is if he buys a ticket.

 

As it should be.

[RynoRules]

Not sure if he is, but let me strat by saying that I love these debates.

 

My guess is that his nos. will be obscured by the fact that his best years were at Coors and played during the steroid era. I'm not indicting him in that regard, just pointing it out.

[rawaction]

Not quite a HOF'er. If he had stayed healthy in Colorado, he would have been a shoe-in. Great player, not quite a Hall of Famer.

[Mizzou]

Walker has always been one of my favorite players. It's sad to see him go out like this.

[sethuel1]

I have always admired Larry Walker. I remember my first game in the bleachers (and the only time I have ever sat in right), Walker went after a foul ball hit right behind the Colorado bullpen, and, in his attempt to catch it, went headfirst into the bricks. At this point, Colorado was up (surprise!) by about 5 or 6 runs. The entire bleachers gave him a standing O as he walked back to his position.

[Transmogrified Tiger]

No, Walker was a consistent all-star, but no one would call him one of the best players of the era. Plus Coors/steroids/whatever.

[YearofDaCubs]

Not quite a HOF'er. If he had stayed healthy in Colorado, he would have been a shoe-in. Great player, not quite a Hall of Famer.

Agreed. Him being injured so frequently will cost him the HOF.

[don_kessinger_was_good]

Walker is another "close, but no cigar" guy. You can't give him serious consideration when guys like Andre Dawson, Dale Murphy and Bill Buckner aren't in the HOF, and almost surely never will. The batting titles are nice, but Bill Madlock has four of them, and he's not getting in the HOF. And neither will Walker.

[JeffH]

Bill Buckner?

[UMFan83]

This move will DOOM the Cubs. The Cardinals are smart and they will go hard after, and sign Brian Giles. Ugh, the Cubs never had a shot at him...

[UK1679666180]

I think the Cubs likely passive interest in Giles will factor in Giles going elsewhere rather than a bidding war or preference between the two teams.

 

Doesn't mean I can't hope, though. :D

[stitchface]

Walker has always been one of my favorite players. It's sad to see him go out like this.

 

 

I've missed Crazy Train . . .

[stitchface]

I think the Cubs likely passive interest in Giles will factor in Giles going elsewhere rather than a bidding war or preference between the two teams.

 

Doesn't mean I can't hope, though. :D

 

If the Cubs only show passive interest and St. Louis signs Giles, I would think it safe to say Jim Hendry is not interested in competing in the NL Central.

[HoopsCubs]

I think the Cubs likely passive interest in Giles will factor in Giles going elsewhere rather than a bidding war or preference between the two teams.

 

Doesn't mean I can't hope, though. :D

 

If the Cubs only show passive interest and St. Louis signs Giles, I would think it safe to say Jim Hendry is not interested in competing in the NL Central.

 

Many analysts believe Giles could end up in St. Louis. They have money to spend too.

[stitchface]

That may be hoops, but hendry should be active in preventing this - Giles will go where he wants but the Cubs cannot sit back and not do anything.

[HoopsCubs]

That may be hoops, but hendry should be active in preventing this - Giles will go where he wants but the Cubs cannot sit back and not do anything.

 

From all indications, Jim Hendry is a fairly private individual when it comes to player dealings/negotiations. None of us can say with any certainty that he isn't interested in Giles. All we can say is that the press hasn't reported it (yet). I will remind you that there weren't any tangible reports about Hendry chasing Nomar or Derrek Lee either until literally 24-36 hours before the deals went down. We all just have to show some patience - difficult task, I know.

 

Hoops

[BigbadB]

Last year, there was all kinds of news about the Cubs wanting to go after Beltran. This year, the news has been Furcal. Do they pick and choose their spots to drop a bomb on the media?

 

I agree, Hoops. I need to be patient and let things materialize the way Hendry prefers to do it. But, why can't he at least address what the problems with this team are, so that we know that he knows what those problems are?

 

For example, "we need to improve OBP throughout the line up". Or, "we need to reduce the pitch counts and walks from our pitching staff."

 

This isn't naming names. It's telling your fan base what problems will help fix this team. That's all I really want. I don't want this "we know what we need to do to right the ship" crap.