Ron Santo, why not in the Hall of Fame?
He was named National League All-Star 9 times during his 15 seasons of play (1960 – 1974) and won five Gold Glove awards for excellence in the field (1964-1968). Santo made his debut with the Cubs on June 26, 1960. He played with the team until 1973, after finishing his career with the cross of the Chicago White Sox in 1974. During his 14-season run with the Cubs, Santo hit 337 home runs, was the first third baseman to hit over 300 home runs and win five Gold Gloves, a feat, and only together with Mike Schmidt, a player Hall of Fame . In 1966, in the midst of trying to break the Cubs team consecutive game hitting streak, Santo was sidelined for nearly two weeks after the beaning fractured his cheekbone. Santo returned (and broke the record) that had an improvised ear-flap batting helmet in order to protect the injury. Earflaps have become standard on batting helmets. In the early years of his playing career, he carefully concealed the fact that he had type 1 diabetes. He fears that thi
