In Dusty we trusty (to make these sorts of boneheaded remarks)

Thanks to Paul for sending me this insight from Dusty Baker, answering whether he believes Jim Thome is a Hall of Famer:

"Of course he is. I have no doubt he belongs. He's going to hit 500 HRs, and that's an automatic ticket to the HOF. You can't change that. If you say 500 isn't good enough anymore, then are you going to say guys need 3,500 hits now instead of 3,000? I'd say he's definitely in."

First off, let me just say I agree that Jim Thome is a Hall of Famer, except it has about ten times more to do with his 34th-best all-time career OPS+ of 149 than with his impending 500th homer. Jim Thome could've retired before this season, and I'd have still considered him a HOFer.

This week during an ESPN Mets-Braves broadcast, Dan Schulmann made a similar remark--roughly, "Maybe 600 is now the benchmark for a home run hitter." Sadder than the fact that analysts and fans hold these benchmarks so dear is the fact they are unwilling to adjust them until another happy, round number seems reasonable.

The real crime with the HR benchmark in particular is that, in some cases, it potentially penalizes great homerun hitters for being great homerun hitters. Frank Thomas was a perfect example before he reached 500. There should have never been a question about Frank Thomas's candidacy, even before he revived his reputation in Oakland. He'd already had a brilliant, almost-unmatched career. He was already one of the best hitters in the history of baseball because he was so proficient at every aspect of hitting. But because he also hit a lot of homeruns, a lot of people looked at him as a "homerun hitter" and more or less blinded themselves to the rest of his abilities, the nearer he got to 500. And because he was close to 500 but not yet there, these same people started holding him to this requisite, as if homeruns were Thomas's only contribution to the game.

Fortunately for Thomas and Thome, they've hung on long enough to ward off the effects of such idiocy, but not everyone is so lucky. We may see this with Jeff Bagwell in a few years. Really, he shouldn't have a problem getting in, but I have a bad feeling he'll at least have to wait a few ballots because he retired with 449 HR. Like Thomas, of course, he was an excellent hitter in any regard, but because power was a huge part of his game, that's what a lot of voters will look at exclusively.

Here's my point: Whether they're too high are too low, benchmark numbers are generally absurd, and rigid faith people pay them is even worse. Frank Baker got the nickname "Home Run" Baker for hitting 11 in 1911. As recently as 1992, 35 homers led the NL, and 32 led the AL in 1976.

Standards change, period. I'm not putting out anything that everyone doesn't already know. But if people like Dusty Baker don't comprehend this, then they're probably dumb enough to start Neifi Perez.