Hall Of Famer Andre Dawson..More Beltre Banter

Andre Dawson received the votes he needed and he is the newest member of the baseball Hall of Fame. He briefly played for the Boston Red Sox and Red Sox Nation congratulates him. Before he heard the joyous news, he took a trip to the cemetery. His words follow...

"I went by a cemetery to visit my mom and also my grandmother," he said. "It's the first time I had done that. I just felt a little bit more optimistic about this year, and I just wanted to share a few things at that grave site. It meant a lot to me to get out there."

It was Andre's ninth try to gain induction and this time, HE DID IT! Good for him. Bert Blyleven, the pitcher with the impossibly good curve, fell five votes shy and Roberto Alomar eight. So close. Dawson said this after his vote total was announced...

"If you're a Hall of Famer, eventually you're going to get in no matter how long it takes," Dawson said during a telephone conference call. "As I sit here, the only thing I can think of is that it was well worth the wait."

Nice job, Andre! Changing the subject to more of a Red Sox one, Andre Beltre is not your normal contact hitter. In fact, he swings a lot...too much, in fact. Read this little blurb, please...

"He’s certainly not the prototypical Red Sox hitter,” a longtime American League scout said yesterday. “He’s got good bat life and the power to hurt you, but he’s not going to be Kevin Youkilis up there, grinding out his at-bats. He won’t be a great situational hitter.”

Beltre has above average power but has a low on-base-percentage and swings at a ton of pitches. If he grows to like the Green Monster, he might hit 40 doubles. That would be nice. He'll bat near the bottom of the order (eighth, just in front of Scutaro). When it comes to defense, he's one of the best. That's part of Theo Epstein's game plan...great pitching, a great bullpen and superior defense. It'd be nice if Papi can return to being BIG Papi. He could cement the entire offense together and make it better.

That's it for this Thursday. Nadia will be leaving this coming Wednesday. I'll miss her. As always, BE WELL and I'll see you tomorrow.