Next
up on the “Hall of Fame Inductee” parade for the 1970’s is former
perennial all-star third baseman Eddie Mathews, who bashed his way to a
Cooperstown induction in 1978:
Mathews was a beast at the plate, hitting 30 or more homers in a season
ten times during his career, with four of those seasons totaling over
40.
He’d also drive in over 100 runs five times and score over 100 eight
times while topping a .300 batting average on three occasions while
leading the National League in walks four times, homers twice, and
getting named to nine all-star teams.
Twice a runner-up in Most Valuable Player voting, he played for the
Braves from Boston, to Milwaukee and their inaugural season in Atlanta
in 1966, the only player to do so.
By the time he finished his stellar career Mathews collected 512 homers,
1453 runs batted in, 1509 runs scored and a .271 average along 1444
walks and a .509 slugging average.
Until a guy by the name of Mike Schmidt came along, he was THE power-hitting third baseman in the games long history.