Would you vote for Omar Vizquel for the Baseball Hall of Fame?
The Baseball Writers Association of America has released the ballot for the 2025 Baseball Hall of Fame voting, so we are doing polls on the players on the list.
Today is shortstop Omar Vizquel.
Omar Vizquel was originally signed by the Seattle Mariners out of Venezuela in 1984. Vizquel broke into the majors in 1989, and spent the next five seasons as the Mariners’ regular shortstop before being traded to Cleveland after the 1993 season for Felix Fermin, Reggie Jefferson, and cash.
Vizquel spent the next 11 years with Cleveland, and that’s the team that I think we generally associate Vizquel with. Vizquel was a fixture for those mid- to late-90s Cleveland teams that were very good year in and year out, but never could quite win it all, including losing in the World Series in both 1995 and 1997.
Vizquel left Cleveland as a free agent after the 2004 season and joined the San Francisco Giants, for whom he played from 2005-08. Vizquel joined the Rangers in 2009 as a utility infielder, as well as the Jedi Master to young Padawan Elvis Andrus. Vizquel then spent two years as a utility guy for the Chicago White Sox before finishing his career in 2012 with the Toronto Blue Jays.
Vizquel was a glove-first player, putting up an OPS+ better than 100 only twice in his career. Despite playing in one of the most offense-friendly eras in the history of baseball, Vizquel reached double digits in home runs only once in his career. He did provide value on the basepaths, stealing 29 or more bases five times in his career, and he had a respectable .336 OBP for his career, due in large part to walking almost as often as he struck out.
Vizquel had the reputation for being an elite defender at shortstop, which is reflected in his winning 11 Gold Gloves at the position. The defensive metrics show that he was a very good defensive shortstop over the course of his career, though not necessarily at the same level as the greatest to ever play. Fangraphs has Vizquel at +129.5 defensively, which is 16th all time among shortstops, just a hair behind Rabbit Maranville and Marty Marion, who are both at +130.0. As a point of reference, Mark Belanger and Ozzie Smith grade out as the best ever using Fangraphs’ metrics, at +241 and +239, while Cal Ripken Jr. and Joe Tinker are 3rd and 4th, at +181 and +180.
Maranville is, historically, perhaps the best comp for Vizquel among Hall of Famers. They both hung around forever, with Vizquel playing 24 seasons and Maranville 23 seasons. Both were still regulars very late in their careers, with Maranville still being the starting shortstop for the Boston Braves (and getting MVP votes) at age 41, while Vizquel was a regular for the Giants at age 40. Each had a career 82 OPS+ while having the reputation for being a tremendous defender.
Vizquel ended his career with 2877 hits, 404 stolen bases, and a .272/.336/.352 slash line. Along with the 11 Gold Gloves, he made three All Star teams and appeared on the MVP ballot once, in 1999, when he finished 16th. 1999 was also the one year that he finished top 10 in the league in bWAR for position players.
Vizquel’s career bWAR of 45.6 is 31st all time among shortstops, between Vern Stephens and Roger Peckinpaugh, with Miguel Tejada and Tony Fernandez also close by. Because he had a long career but not a very high peak, his JAWS score places him 45th all time, between Donie Bush and Rico Petrocelli, and just a little behind Maranville and Belanger.
So, if you were a Hall of Fame voter this year, would you vote for Omar Vizquel?
Cast your vote below…