Miller deserves a spot in Hall of Fame

[Omaha Steve]

http://mlb.mlb.com/news/article.jsp?ymd=20091129&content_id=7726262&vkey=perspectives&fext=.jsp&c_id=mlb

11/29/09 2:25 PM EST

Mike Bauman

It is past time for the members of the Veterans Committee to elect Marvin Miller to the National Baseball Hall of Fame.

The voting members of the committee that selects executives and pioneers for induction into the Hall have a responsibility to elect Miller, in the interest of fairness, justice, and honest recognition of what he accomplished.

Miller transformed the fundamental nature of baseball's labor/management equation. He turned the players' union from a vague idea into a powerful force. In so doing, he transformed the status of players --all the way from indentured servitude to the millionaires they are today.

If the argument is that the pendulum has swung too far, that the Major League Baseball Players Association has gone from powerless to too powerful, that simply would indicate what a terrific job Miller did on behalf of his union's membership.

He deserves to be in the Hall of Fame, even if many members of current baseball ownership still hold a grudge against him. Miller and his union defeated ownership at numerous turns in his 16 years as head of the MLBPA. This is a matter of public record, clear and indisputable.

The Veterans Committee voting on executives and pioneers two years ago did not choose to elect Marvin Miller. But it did elect a former Commissioner of Baseball -- the late Bowie Kuhn.

FULL story at link.