He totally deserves to be in the Hall of Fame. He's in the top 5 snubs of all time IMO. Exciting to watch on all fronts. Fred McGriff just got in and I'm hoping Lofton does soon on that same committee.
While the 2004 Yankees collapse had nothing to do with Lofton, his presence on the team was emblematic of all that was going wrong in the Bronx. He was signed by the front office to start in CF, largely because they had developed a vendetta against Bernie Williams and wanted him to retire. Joe Torre had no such qualms about playing his guy, and Kenny was instead relegated to a platoon role which made him very unhappy. Torre then picked Bernie’s name out of a hat to submit for All-Star voting, which Kenny thought was rigged and demanded proof otherwise. None of this was really Kenny’s fault, as the front office had created a toxic situation in CF by bringing in a mercenary (continuing their divergence from the home-grown team of the dynasty years) and promising him playing time over one of the heroes of the dynasty against the wishes of the manager.
The starting lineup for the mid-late 90s Indians was insane. I remember watching one game when Lofton, Baerga, Belle, hit back to back to back Homer's. As a kid I loved watching their games ( and I'm a Red Sox fan )
The Indians lineup after baerga left and Robby alomar became the 2nd basemen was even Better. If i remember correctly they set the record for runs scored in 99 with 1000 and then broke it the next season with 1020 . 1. Lofton 2. Alomar 3. Manny 4.thome 5 justice 6 Sandy alomar 7 fryman 8 Grissim 9 visquel
Totally agree …. I didn’t even think it was possible Lofton wouldn’t at least be considered borderline HOF I say He’s A HOF . Especially in the time He played in
I grew up a Jim Thome fan, and I’ll tell you what, KLo was the real deal. Helluva hitter, made solid contact. Created havoc on the bases and played incredible defense. It was especially great to see him hit .330 in 2005 with the Phillies, who became my favorite team in 2003 when Thome signed with them. Got to see KLo go deep that year at Shea Stadium. Hell, put him in the hall!😂
He was so fun to watch . My favorite moment was that crazy comeback against Seattle in 2001 . We bench our big guys because we are down by 12 and Kenny and Omar bring us the W .
I saw Lofton almost single handedly win a No Hitter by walking twice, stealing 2nd & 3rd, then scoring on a SAC fly & a fielder's choice as the Indians beat the A's 2-0. No record of the No Hitter as it was an 8 Inning one as the Indians didn't have to bat in the 9th.
I grew up watching Lofton as a kid. Live at the field. No one signed more autographs than him. I saw him signing literally until the national anthem started. He wanted to get everyone. Classy guy.
I didn’t realize he had made that deep in the playoffs so many times with so many teams. I honestly don’t know how a guy like that doesn’t make the hall of fame
Outstanding video didn't realize the final four and World Series trivia between the two Stoddard and Lofton but there's no doubt in my mind that Kenny Lofton belongs in the Hall of Fame he was an outstanding ball player in all metrics the Hall of Fame sometimes is dumber than the United States media system
videos like this is what helped me learn the MLB HoF has no real value. just bunch of people who have to much power. pete rose should be in HoF.... their reason is BS. they want pete rose out. then imo every single player, staff memeber of the astros should of been FIRED and banned from mlb for life. and i do mean every single player. and coach and assistant coach. if u didnt have proof you told the mlb about the cheating u were out. there no bs about team mates come first. when someone cheats that ends ur team mate bond. that is when i 100% quit watching all sports. i knew then all leagues etc are nothing but cheaters. league knows and really doesnt care as long as it doesnt go public.....
You Pete Rose people are so annoying. The dude was selling coke out of the clubhouse, on the phone with bookies half the games he managed. Find another martyr to proselytize about
Ahhhhhh Kenny was the best! I was lucky enough to grow up outside Cleveland in the 90's, and those Indians teams were the best! Whenever I talk or reminisce about them now, Lofton is always the first I think about. He should get in the HOF, hopefully the committee will vote him in eventually, but he's an all-timer nonetheless 👌
Im a new Yorker but i was an indians fan throughout the mid 90s because Roberto alomar, Manny Ramirez were 2!of My favorite players . I thought 97 was our year but Mesa and Tony Fernandez ruined that
Kenny Lofton is a great former player and a very talented athlete. He is a border line HOF. I think that if he had won one WS, he would have been in the HOF. The fact that he was in the WS a couple of times and was super close to winning it makes me feel sad, specially when you consider that his teams made it to the playoffs (postseason) so many times.
I really rooted for every team against Lofton's teams in every game...but, there is no one I ever respected more than him. Hopefully the Crime Dog getting in the HOF ushers Kenny in. Very deserving. Always a fan of him.
Kenny Lofton isn't in the Hall of Fame because he doesn't have a WS ring, his trade to the Braves was done at his request rather than the looming Free Agency (he signed a contract with the option of two more seasons)
As an Os fan it pains me to know that we traded Finley, Harnisch and Curt Schilling to the STROS and didn't get Lofton back in that trade. Outside of skin tone, these GMs have no qualifications
The issue with Lofton was that his first year on the ballot may have been the most loaded ballot ever. No one was elected that year because the votes were so spread out. Writers can only vote for 10 on a single ballot. I suspect many writers figured that Kenny would get the requisition 5 percent to stay on the ballot so they used their vote elsewhere. That same ballot also had: Biggio, Bagwell, Piazza, Raines, Lee Smith, Schilling, Bonds, Clemens, Walker, Trammell, McGriff, Edgar Martinez, McGwire, Sosa, Palmeiro. So when you talk about unluckiest player, well, there you go. He had the terrible luck to have his first year on the ballot be THAT year.
Never understood why Houston traded him to Cleveland, I saw him in person in the winter league (Venezuela 1992) and he was ready to shine in the big show. Pretty bad scouting by the Astros
How does a guy consistently hit over .300 until he's 40 and steal as many bags and play as good of defense as he did and NOT BE IN THE HALL OF FAME. TRAVESTY!
He was robbed on so many levels...I always loved his game AND I was a White Sox fan...He should have been first ballot Hall of Fame...Seriously...He was great and didn't use steroids.
Sports writers shouldn't be the ones who decides in any professional sports. It should be former players, HOFers, managers and coaches. After all aren't these the ones who'd know better than anyone
To me correct that he's not s HOFamer for the simple fact he sat 20 to 30 games a year against left hand pitching. No great hitter is s platoon player.
This is quite possibly the dumbest comment I’ve ever read in my life. U have absolutely no clue what u are talking about. None. He played every single game for literally the first decade of his career. He’s a 6 time All star. 4 time gold glove. A career.300 hitter with 2,400 hits. Almost 700 stolen bases. I’m just gonna stop because u are completely lost. He was the best leadoff hitter in MLB for at least 5 to 7 years. His defensive war stats are the 😅SECOND in history only to a Willie mays. Calling Kenny Lofton a platoon player is literally the dumbest thing I’ve ever heard.
Opposing managers knew that he was the key to the Indian's success in the 90s. He's better than many that are in the Hall. If you gave a manager a choice between a prime Kenny, a prime Mazeroski, a prime Baines, and a prime Rizzuto, Kenny wins hands down. Not even close. Could beat you with his legs, his glove, his bat (didn't hit a lot of homers but boy, did he flash power when his team needed it!
Yaz had 1967. I don't know if another player ever had a year where one player put his team on his back like that. I think that puts him over the top. Triple Crowns are special. @@NLDVC
He totally deserves to be in the Hall of Fame. He's in the top 5 snubs of all time IMO. Exciting to watch on all fronts. Fred McGriff just got in and I'm hoping Lofton does soon on that same committee.
While the 2004 Yankees collapse had nothing to do with Lofton, his presence on the team was emblematic of all that was going wrong in the Bronx.
He was signed by the front office to start in CF, largely because they had developed a vendetta against Bernie Williams and wanted him to retire. Joe Torre had no such qualms about playing his guy, and Kenny was instead relegated to a platoon role which made him very unhappy. Torre then picked Bernie’s name out of a hat to submit for All-Star voting, which Kenny thought was rigged and demanded proof otherwise.
None of this was really Kenny’s fault, as the front office had created a toxic situation in CF by bringing in a mercenary (continuing their divergence from the home-grown team of the dynasty years) and promising him playing time over one of the heroes of the dynasty against the wishes of the manager.
Kenny Lofton was so great, it's a shame that he never got his proper assessment by the Hall of Fame just because the ballot was so stacked that year.
The starting lineup for the mid-late 90s Indians was insane. I remember watching one game when Lofton, Baerga, Belle, hit back to back to back Homer's. As a kid I loved watching their games ( and I'm a Red Sox fan )
The Indians lineup after baerga left and Robby alomar became the 2nd basemen was even Better. If i remember correctly they set the record for runs scored in 99 with 1000 and then broke it the next season with 1020 .
1. Lofton
2. Alomar
3. Manny
4.thome
5 justice
6 Sandy alomar
7 fryman
8 Grissim
9 visquel
Totally agree …. I didn’t even think it was possible Lofton wouldn’t at least be considered borderline HOF
I say He’s A HOF .
Especially in the time He played in
He shoulda been a HOF’er. Dude is a legend
Word
I grew up a Jim Thome fan, and I’ll tell you what, KLo was the real deal. Helluva hitter, made solid contact. Created havoc on the bases and played incredible defense. It was especially great to see him hit .330 in 2005 with the Phillies, who became my favorite team in 2003 when Thome signed with them. Got to see KLo go deep that year at Shea Stadium. Hell, put him in the hall!😂
KLo? 🤨
@@rodprops KLo? Kenny Lofton
@@lorimeyers3839 never heard anyone refer to him by that name 🤷♂
I'm from Cleveland. And Lofton is my all time favorite athlete. And I didn't even play baseball, I was a football player
He was so fun to watch . My favorite moment was that crazy comeback against Seattle in 2001 . We bench our big guys because we are down by 12 and Kenny and Omar bring us the W .
I saw Lofton almost single handedly win a No Hitter by walking twice, stealing 2nd & 3rd, then scoring on a SAC fly & a fielder's choice as the Indians beat the A's 2-0. No record of the No Hitter as it was an 8 Inning one as the Indians didn't have to bat in the 9th.
wow thats really a great info to know thanks bro🫡
daaaannngg!!!
Close to "Immorality?" Did he do something bad I dont know about?
no just his teammates, he was only close
His teammates just failed him smh
That typo in the thumbnail is unfortunate as hell lol
What typo ???!!
@@YouCanChangeYourWorldTodayit used to say “so close to immorality” but it’s been fixed now.
@@charliep123he thinks he’s slick but the chat never forgets
The real life Willy Mays Hayes
My thoughts exactly!
I grew up watching Lofton as a kid. Live at the field. No one signed more autographs than him. I saw him signing literally until the national anthem started. He wanted to get everyone. Classy guy.
You’ll ALWAYS be a Hall Of Famer to me Kenny!
2:29 and that trade became part of a trade tree that will still be active if the Guardians trade Clase at some point instead of letting him walk in FA
I didn’t realize he had made that deep in the playoffs so many times with so many teams. I honestly don’t know how a guy like that doesn’t make the hall of fame
I think you meant "immortality" in the thumbnail not "immorality"
Yeah I thought for a second it was a Wander Franco video.
Kenny will get in from the vets committee like mcgriff the players know he should be in
God I hope u are right.
Outstanding video didn't realize the final four and World Series trivia between the two Stoddard and Lofton but there's no doubt in my mind that Kenny Lofton belongs in the Hall of Fame he was an outstanding ball player in all metrics the Hall of Fame sometimes is dumber than the United States media system
Holy shit that 02-04 highlight blew my mind. 😵
One of the best catches of all time. Watching the slow motion of the play is more impressive. The ball was 3' over the fence.
videos like this is what helped me learn the MLB HoF has no real value.
just bunch of people who have to much power.
pete rose should be in HoF....
their reason is BS.
they want pete rose out. then imo every single player, staff memeber of the astros should of been FIRED and banned from mlb for life.
and i do mean every single player. and coach and assistant coach.
if u didnt have proof you told the mlb about the cheating u were out. there no bs about team mates come first. when someone cheats that ends ur team mate bond.
that is when i 100% quit watching all sports. i knew then all leagues etc are nothing but cheaters. league knows and really doesnt care as long as it doesnt go public.....
You Pete Rose people are so annoying. The dude was selling coke out of the clubhouse, on the phone with bookies half the games he managed. Find another martyr to proselytize about
Ahhhhhh Kenny was the best! I was lucky enough to grow up outside Cleveland in the 90's, and those Indians teams were the best! Whenever I talk or reminisce about them now, Lofton is always the first I think about. He should get in the HOF, hopefully the committee will vote him in eventually, but he's an all-timer nonetheless 👌
Wow, well done, u got my like/sub, I hope Kenny lofton sees this .
Veterans Committee will get him in.
Probably. That committee is has made a mockery of the Hall already. Maseraski Baines etc.
I'm a Clevelander, I still think about Lofton being held at third...
Im a new Yorker but i was an indians fan throughout the mid 90s because Roberto alomar, Manny Ramirez were 2!of My favorite players . I thought 97 was our year but Mesa and Tony Fernandez ruined that
A degree in "Studio Production"?
Kenny Lofton is a great former player and a very talented athlete. He is a border line HOF. I think that if he had won one WS, he would have been in the HOF. The fact that he was in the WS a couple of times and was super close to winning it makes me feel sad, specially when you consider that his teams made it to the playoffs (postseason) so many times.
I really rooted for every team against Lofton's teams in every game...but, there is no one I ever respected more than him. Hopefully the Crime Dog getting in the HOF ushers Kenny in. Very deserving. Always a fan of him.
Should be in the HOF. Deserved to be Rookie of the Year. He played hard and never dogged it.
I loved Kenny Lofton and was excited when he joined the White Sox
What I think hurt Lofton are the number of different teams he played for towards the end of his career
I think it was the fact he only played 150 games twice in 17 years.
Lofton was a great player.
Clearly should have been a hall of famer. Best leadoff hitter of his generation. Great base stealer, defender, bunter and played in the steroid era.
Kenny Lofton isn't in the Hall of Fame because he doesn't have a WS ring, his trade to the Braves was done at his request rather than the looming Free Agency (he signed a contract with the option of two more seasons)
As an Os fan it pains me to know that we traded Finley, Harnisch and Curt Schilling to the STROS and didn't get Lofton back in that trade.
Outside of skin tone, these GMs have no qualifications
So close to "immorality."
Missed it by *that* much.
It's just another part of the Lofton Curse.
It’s sad this man is not in the HOF. One hell of a ball player snubbed by those geeks again.
The issue with Lofton was that his first year on the ballot may have been the most loaded ballot ever. No one was elected that year because the votes were so spread out. Writers can only vote for 10 on a single ballot. I suspect many writers figured that Kenny would get the requisition 5 percent to stay on the ballot so they used their vote elsewhere. That same ballot also had: Biggio, Bagwell, Piazza, Raines, Lee Smith, Schilling, Bonds, Clemens, Walker, Trammell, McGriff, Edgar Martinez, McGwire, Sosa, Palmeiro.
So when you talk about unluckiest player, well, there you go. He had the terrible luck to have his first year on the ballot be THAT year.
Lofton is my favorite player in EA sports Triple Play '99 game. 😂😂
#oldschool
Other than Mickey Mantle he was my favorite player of all time. He had hall of fame talent.
Nice guy. I waited on him in Atl on a night after a div series W where he hit a walkoff HR. Why they traded himI'll never know.
Never understood why Houston traded him to Cleveland, I saw him in person in the winter league (Venezuela 1992) and he was ready to shine in the big show.
Pretty bad scouting by the Astros
Lofton and Belle should go in together.
Do you mean "immortality?"
He was really a Bad@ss Player! He lit up the field on both sides! He should have gotten at least one ring!
It’s a crime he’s not a HOFer
9:5 lol todd zeile.... that not how you say his name lol.
more like zeal.
that said great video fast paced.
How does a guy consistently hit over .300 until he's 40 and steal as many bags and play as good of defense as he did and NOT BE IN THE HALL OF FAME. TRAVESTY!
He was robbed on so many levels...I always loved his game AND I was a White Sox fan...He should have been first ballot Hall of Fame...Seriously...He was great and didn't use steroids.
Doesn't he still have a chance to get in? They remain on the ballot for 15yr.. often played along time
Sports writers shouldn't be the ones who decides in any professional sports. It should be former players, HOFers, managers and coaches. After all aren't these the ones who'd know better than anyone
Letting former players vote would be nad because they would be biased for players from their former team
He's a HOF'er
Fix your thumbnail. It’s not that hard.
Algorithm!!!
No sir, Fred Merkle is the unluckiest player of all time!
Gotta fix the title my dude...
To me correct that he's not s HOFamer for the simple fact he sat 20 to 30 games a year against left hand pitching. No great hitter is s platoon player.
This is quite possibly the dumbest comment I’ve ever read in my life. U have absolutely no clue what u are talking about. None. He played every single game for literally the first decade of his career. He’s a 6 time All star. 4 time gold glove. A career.300 hitter with 2,400 hits. Almost 700 stolen bases. I’m just gonna stop because u are completely lost. He was the best leadoff hitter in MLB for at least 5 to 7 years. His defensive war stats are the 😅SECOND in history only to a Willie mays. Calling Kenny Lofton a platoon player is literally the dumbest thing I’ve ever heard.
So close to "Immorality" ? Did you mean "ImmorTALITY", or did I miss the point of the video ?
do we think his near-immorality played a part in his egregious hall of fame snub?
Egregious? Lol. What magic numbers does he have?
Yu kneed too beegin shpell chequing befour posteen
Opposing managers knew that he was the key to the Indian's success in the 90s. He's better than many that are in the Hall. If you gave a manager a choice between a prime Kenny, a prime Mazeroski, a prime Baines, and a prime Rizzuto, Kenny wins hands down. Not even close. Could beat you with his legs, his glove, his bat (didn't hit a lot of homers but boy, did he flash power when his team needed it!
Harold Baines being in is a joke...hell even Carl Yazstremski being in is questionable.
Yaz had 1967. I don't know if another player ever had a year where one player put his team on his back like that. I think that puts him over the top. Triple Crowns are special. @@NLDVC