Kent’s Place in History

It’s interesting to read the accolades given to Jeff Kent on his retirement. Esteemed writers such as Tim Kurkjian have lavished praise on Kent, a slugging 2nd baseman and the 2000 NL MVP. But I’m more inclined to follow those who say, let’s wait and see. After all, there’s a good reason why the Hall of Fame has a five-year waiting period before possible enshrinement.

Kent has hit the most home runs among second basemen, and he has 1,500+ RBIs. But I can’t agree with some commentators who rank him as the top 2B of the last 25 years. In my book, he’s a shade behind the top three: Roberto Alomar, Ryne Sandberg and Craig Biggio. Alomar was an acrobat at 2B, with a dazzling combination of speed and power during his prime. Sandberg set the gold standard for defense and was, for his era, a slugger as respected as Kent. After starting out as a catcher, Biggio became a Gold Glove 2nd baseman and offensive catalyst with more than 3,000 hits and 1,800 runs scored – among the tops of all time. Each one of these players had at least 300 steals, led by Alomar's 474. Thet also combined for 23 Gold Gloves, while the workmanlike Kent never won that honor.

The bottom line: Kent may well earn a plaque in Cooperstown, but there’s no harm in waiting to consider the case.