Glasscock Again Denied Access To Hallowed Hall
In what has sadly become an annual tradition, once again the BBWAA has failed to elect John Wesley “Pebbly Jack” Glasscock to the National Baseball Hall of Fame. Glasscock, whose major league career extended 17 seasons from 1879-1895, stood out as one of the finest shortstops of the 19th century. With the stick in his hand, Glasscock managed to hit .290/.337/.374 (a 112 OPS+) and was a defensive whiz to boot. According both Fangraphs and Baseball Reference, Glasscock measured in excess of 60 wins above replacement for his career, and was easily one of the 20 most valuable shortstops in baseball history despite playing in an era where teams often played fewer than 100 games a year.
Standing just 5’8”, Glasscock was smaller than most of his contemporaries, but it proved to be more important how he used his size, as he played his position like a much bigger man and he would invariably leave his teams more than satisfied with his performance. In his prime, it was difficult indeed to get him off the field, as he led the majors in games played at short through 1899. He was always a man in motion, had intimate knowledge of the ins and outs of the sport, and seemingly would always come through in the clutch.
