Andre Dawson is a Hall-of-Famer

On Wednesday afternoon in the lobby of the Indianapolis Marriott I saw Andre Dawson doing a MLB TV interview. I waited until he was done, shook his hand and hugged him. The conversation was short, because there was no need for words. We go back to 1976, his debut with the Expos at Jarry Park. He is a friend. He has borderline Hall-of-Fame numbers, but is a full-fledged Hall-of-Fame man and that combination should get him enshrined at Cooperstown with the announcement on Jan. 6.

I never understand readers and fans when I receive emails or read blogs making fun of media members because they write something nice about a truly nice man. It's almost as if it's a sign of weakness. Say something good about John McDonald and they point out his anemic offensive stats and say he doesn't deserve the praise and is only being written about because he's a nice guy. That is so bizarre. Life is more than OPS and WHIP and VORP and Range Factor. There's the human factor.

Andre Dawson is the kind of man that represents what is good about baseball. He's not perfect as none of us are, but he is profoundly human and understands his responsibility to his family, his team, his fans and the game. He tore up a knee as a kid in school and never complained, but never played a 100-percent healthy game in all his years in the majors, the first nine seasons on the rock hard, artificial turf of Olympic Stadium. Check his numbers in that light.

I remember Hawk as a rookie in 1977. He was shy and unsure of himself in dealing with media and the public. I was a young p.r. guy helping him with the media. I watched him grow. I saw him go from a borderline left fielder with a weak arm, to a Gold Glove centre fielder that runners feared to challenge.

I remember a short hop off the fence in deep left centre that bounced 30-feet straight up. Dawson waited patiently for the ball to come down, barehanded it and threw a flat-footed one hopper to third base, nailing a stunned Steve Sax. I remember Hawk coming out of the training room for post-game interviews with bags of ice on both knees the size of Volkswagen airbags. He never talked about his knees. I remember a game at Three Rivers Stadium with a triple and a swooping, graceful catch in the alley, then the bus was held for him because he needed extra ice time. He emerged and could not walk onto the bus without ratcheting himself up on the arm rails. He played the next night.

I remember a spring training where he reported to camp during a workout and came to the outer diamond in West Palm Beach in uniform ready to go. The workout stopped and teammates applauded and came over for their hug from their leader. On a team with Gary Carter, he was the leader.

The kid from Miami who in 1977 was too shy to do interviews emerged into a master of the "what-needed-to-be-said" interview by the time he left Montreal to seek his fortune with the Cubs. His smile lit up a room and his laugh got his teammates to stop and ask what was going on. When Tim Raines went to rehab after the 1982 season, it was Dawson that made sure he lockered next to his wayward teammate after that and that he remembered what needed to be done. Raines stayed on the straight and narrow and named his second son Andre.

Dawson is a man's man, never holier than thou, but more often better than thou. My youngest son was born in 1993, seven years after Dawson left the Expos. I named my son Patrick Andre, hoping that some of his namesake's quiet fortitude would rub off as he grew up. So far so good.

Hawk is a Hall-of-Famer, not just for the numbers.

Comments

[PlatinumCard]

Good stuff, Rich. I like it.

[Gord Hunter]

I listened to Hoagie's show and came directly over to read your story on Andre Dawson. Eloquent, enlightening, passionate and everything a sports story should be. I hope the rest of the writers who vote DO read this piece.

[Greg]

If you want to write a piece about John McDonald entirely in that context, that's one thing. If you're writing a column about John McDonald deserving more playing time (for instance) it's a completely different matter isn't it?

[Andrew]

Too bad Andre couldn't have played today on the perfectly manicured natural grass outfields that have become the norm in MLB...even Rogers Centre's field turf would've perhaps seemed like playing on a fluffy mattress for him and his knees!

[erc]

Five tool player. Believe he was voted by players as best all-around player in the NL, maybe baseball, in a poll taken in the late 70's.
Great player and an easy guy to root for. Hope he makes it.

[RJodoin]

And don't forget how he struck out 128 times in his sophomore year and managed to hit .308 two years later. That guy never gave up. What a man. Too bad Dale Murphy was in the way for the MVP votes during those years, that would probably have helped Hawk's Hall of Fame chances now. I'll have my fingers crossed on January 6.

[Kyle]

Thanks for the Dawson memories, Richard. My interest in baseball was sparked by those Expos teams. And although as an up-rooted (and re-planted) Torontonian I've always been a Jays fan, the Expos have always meant more to me, and Dawson was/is a big part of that. As fans we could see the pain he endured, be endure he did.

[Stanley]

You mentioned one Hall of Famer in that essay - Tim Raines.

Andre Dawson may have been a Hall of Fame guy. Not a Hall of Fame player.

[S L]

Great piece Mr. Griffin. I think it says it all that two kids are named after him. And who know, some people who have 'hall of fame' stats, but who were not "hall of fame guys" should not be kept out of the hall. But surely, people like Dawson - who almost have the numbers to back it up - should be rewarded for being 'hall of fame guys". That's really what's baseball is about - not just numbers.

[Tony Wellington]

Hall of Fame Player for sure. Thanks. The Hawk was as good a player as ever wore the Expos jersey. 5 tools for sure.

[justmike]

Numbers need context to matter. Just look at Hawk's stats once he moved over to the Cubs. I never wanted to see him go, but he must've been licking his chops to play 81 games a year at Wrigley.

[RJodoin]

He made it in !!!