2015 TOOTBLAN Hall of Fame Class

Starling Marte

The Pirates had the first TOOTBLAN of the year on US soil in 2014 and never gave up the lead. He finished the year with 18 (though none after August 31) to edge fellow Hall of Famers Yasiel Puig (class of ‘15) and Carlos Gomez (class of ‘14).

Yasiel Puig

Puig had two TOOTBLAN in Australia to open the MLB season and was a steady presence on the leaderboard throughout the year. Like few others, Puig puts his TOOTBLAN up in bunches - two on March 22, May 1 and August 14. Plus, his TOOTBLAN drive the right people crazy.

Travis Snider and Gabby Sanchez

Snider and Sanchez pulled off the greatest TOOTBLAN of the TOOTBLAN era, automatically gaining entry into the TOOTBLAN Hall of Fame.

2014 TOOTBLAN Hall of Fame Class

Kolten Wong

With the Cardinals trailing 4-2 in Game 4 of the 2013 World Series, Wong committed a pinch-run, walkoff TOOTBLAN. Pinch. Run. Walkoff. TOOTBLAN. In. The. World. Series.

Any one of those – pinch run, walkoff and World Series – would have made Wong’s gaffe a significant one. But packaging them all together ensured Wong would be a unanimous selection for the 2014 class.

Jose Altuve

Altuve led MLB in 2013 with 17 TOOTBLANs. He was picked off eight times and thrown out seeking an extra base six times for the Astros. He was even hit by a batted ball for a TOOTBLAN.

Alejandro De Aza

De Aza, who finished one back of Altuve with 16 in 2013, specialized in getting doubled off (six times). He was picked off another five times for the White Sox.

Carlos Gomez

Gomez was the TOOTBLANiest player on baseball’s TOOTBLANiest team (the Brewers had 82 in 2013). Gomez ran into 15 outs, including five pickoffs and five outs on fielder’s choice with an open base.

Gregor Blanco

Blanco finished with 11 TOOTBLANs to lead the Giants in 2013, but that’s not why he was voted to the Hall of Fame. He earned his seat by having a baseball-best three TOOTBLANs in one game. In a Sept. 27 win against the Padres, Blanco was thrown out attempting to stretch a single into a double in the first inning, picked off first in the fourth inning, and gunned down at home in the eighth inning.

2013 TOOTBLAN Hall of Fame Class

Ryan Theriot

Theriot is the inaugural inductee into the Hall because he was the inspiration for the creation of the TOOTBLAN, as a major component of the Ryan Theriot Adjusted On-Base Percentage. Details here.

Jean Segura

Segura earns first-ballot Hall of Fame honors for doing this:

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The man stole second, stole first and then was caught stealing second. That’s a Hall of Famer, even though he didn’t actually earn a TOOTBLAN on the play.

Ruben Rivera

This just speaks for itself:

Fred Merkle (Veterans Committee)

Merkle gets in for committing perhaps the most famous TOOTBLAN in baseball history - the “Merkle Boner.” The story is here:

Part Two:

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