My Hall of Famers

	With or without The Streak, Cal Ripken Jr. is a slam-dunk Hall of Famer. John Iacono/SI

1. Cal Ripken Jr. He's an obvious no-brainer choice for the Hall. But we love to make up debates nowadays, and one I heard was whether he'd be a Hall of Famer if he didn't play in 2,632 consecutive games. That is almost like wondering whether Hank Aaron would be a Hall of Famer without the 755 home runs. In any case, my answer is yes. Until Alex Rodriguez goes back to shortstop, Ripken is still the recordholder for most home runs at the position, by one.

2. Jack Morris. He doesn't receive nearly the support he deserves. Beyond being the winningest pitcher of the '80s, he made 14 Opening Day starts and was the ace of three World Series winning teams, not to mention the MVP of the 1991 Series, one of the best ever.

3. Goose Gossage. I agree with him when he says he is one of the greatest closers ever. While he doesn't have career stats a lot of voters look for, he was a dominant force on three World Series teams and saved 300 games after beginning his career as a starter. And this is at a time when saves often meant going two or even three innings.

4. Tony Gwynn. Eight batting titles makes him an automatic selection.

5. Dave Parker. A great all-around talent who practically goes unnoticed at this time every year, quite possibly because he used drugs (though not the performance-enhancing kind). He could do it all, placed in the top five in MVP voting five times and was a better all-around player than Jim Rice, who also makes my ballot.

6. Andre Dawson. A tremendous all-around talent who lasted 21 years on ravaged, wrecked knees, which was long enough to hit 438 home runs and steal 314 bases. While I don't believe he should have won the 1987 MVP as a member of the last-place Cubs, he'll always be a Hall of Famer to me. Unfortunately, not enough other voters agree.

7. Rice. The one player I've changed my mind on. His six top-five MVP finishes reflect that he was one of the game's best players for a decade. He was fairly one dimensional and didn't play long enough to crack 400 home runs, but I'll give him a "yes" for the second time.

8. Steve Garvey. A consummate winner, at least during his playing days. It's a wonder he doesn't get more support, what with a record 10 All-Star appearances at first base, eight .300 seasons and a litany of fielding records and NLCS hitting records.

9. Dave Concepcion. He wasn't the player A-Rod or Derek Jeter is, but in his time he was the standard for shortstops, making nine All-Star teams and quietly helping the Big Red Machine be what it was.

Close but not quite

10. Don Mattingly. It's not a bad case. He had a very similar career to Kirby Puckett and was one of the game's best for at least a half-decade before a bad back sapped him of his greatness. Mattingly also was one of the finest-fielding first basemen of all-time, not to mention a legend in New York (and very likely the next manager of the Yankees).

11. Alan Trammell. The best argument I have heard for Trammell is this question: Would the Tigers ever have traded him straight up for Ozzie Smith? While the answer probably is no, Smith gets extra points for fame, acrobatics and probably being the greatest ever defensively.

12. Tommy John. The man lasted forever, and he won 288 games, which is certainly Hall-worthy. He also gets an extra point for being the guinea pig for the game's most famous surgical procedure. He was not among the best often enough during those 26 years, though.

13. Dale Murphy. He was a back-to-back MVP with 398 career home runs who could also field and run. I'm a little surprised he doesn't get more support. But then I can't argue too strongly since I don't vote for him either.

14. Orel Hershiser. An excellent pitcher who was the best in the world in 1988. I can't imagine how he finished as low as sixth in MVP voting that year. But I just can't make it up to him here.