Blue Jays have plenty of ties to the Hall of Fame ballot

A Gloveman and an Ace

Orlando Hudson

One of the best defensive second basemen to ever play in Toronto was Orlando Hudson, who played with the club from 2002-2005. Known mostly for his glove work, he was an adequate hitter as well, and brought a little bit of speed to the Blue Jays in the early 2000’s. In his best season in 2004, he hit .270/.341/.438 with 12 home runs, 58 RBI, and 32 doubles, while adding seven stolen bases.

However, it really was his glove that brought his best work to the diamond, as he earned 7.4 dWAR from 2003-05, and won the American League Glove Glove Award in 2005, his last with the Blue Jays.

He went on to play for the Arizona Diamondbacks for three seasons, before jumping around to the Dodgers, Twins, Padres, and White Sox to finish out his career in 2012. He’ll be on the ballot for the first time this year, and as much as I loved watching the guy play, he’s likely a one and done candidate.

Johan Santana

While Johan Santana may be an extreme long shot for inclusion in the Hall of Fame, you can’t help but wonder what might have been if he had been healthy through his career. He was an absolutely dominant force early on in his career with the Twins, finishing in the top 5 in Cy Young votes for five straight years, and six straight if you make it top seven, running from 2003-08. He would win the award in 2004 and 2006, and would garner MVP votes three times during that span as well.

He signed a mammoth deal to join the New York Mets, and unfortunately that’s when things started to fall apart for his career. His shoulder just couldn’t stay in tact, and after shoulder capsule, Tommy John, knee, and Labrum issues, he finally had to call it quits.

He did try to make a comeback with the Blue Jays signing a minor league deal, but unfortunately just didn’t allow him to make it all the way back to the big league level.