With the news that Berkman will undergo season ending (and probably career ending) knee surgery, many people are beginning to wonder if we will see Berkman enter Cooperstown. Sure, he is a terrific switch hitter one of the games best, but do his numbers rank as Hall of Fame worthy? Let’s examine them assuming his career is over, and see my conclusion on whether or not Lance Berkman will one day be in the Hall of Fame.

Games- 1,805 (1999-2012)

Games at 1B- 737  LF- 504 RF- 362 CF- 164 DH-39

Average/On-base, Slugging- .296/.409/.544

Hits- 1,843

Doubles- 412

Triples- 29

Home Runs- 360

RBI- 1,200

Runs Scored- 1,119

Stolen Bases- 86

Walks- 1,163

Strike Out’s- 1,248

Now let’s take this one step further by examining his stats as a switch hitter:

Right Side:

AVG/On base/Slugging-  .260/.362/.415

Hits- 386

HR- 47

RBI- 223

Left Side: 

AVG/On base/ Slugging- .307/.423/.585

Hits- 1,457

HR- 313

RBI- 977

Now let us compare him to the other first baseman in the Hall of Fame (Stats from Baseball Almanac):

Player	AVG	OBP	SLG	Hits	HR	RBI	Runs	SB
Berkman	0.296	0.409	0.544	1,843	360	1200	1119	86
Cap Anson	0.329	0.395	0.446	2,995	97	1,879	1,719	247
Jake Beckely	0.308	0.361	0.435	2,930	86	1,575	1,600	315
Jim Bottomley	0.310	0.369	0.500	2,313	219	1,422	1,177	58
Dan Brouthers	0.342	0.423	0.519	2,296	106	1,296	1,523	256
Orlando Cepeda	0.297	0.353	0.499	2,351	379	1,365	1,131	142
Frank Chance	0.296	0.394	0.394	1,273	20	596	797	401
Roger Connor	0.317	0.397	0.486	2,467	138	1,322	1,620	244
Jimmie Foxx	0.325	0.428	0.609	2,646	534	1,922	1,751	87
Lou Gherig	0.340	0.447	0.632	2,721	493	1,995	1,888	102
Hank Greenberg	0.313	0.412	0.605	1,628	331	1,276	1,051	58
George Kelley	0.297	0.342	0.452	1,778	148	1,020	819	65
Harmon Killebrew	0.256	0.379	0.509	2,086	573	1,584	1,283	19
Willie McCovey	0.270	0.377	0.515	2,211	521	1,555	1,229	26
Johnny Mize	0.312	0.397	0.562	2,011	359	1,337	1,118	28
Eddie Murray	0.287	0.359	0.476	3,255	504	1,917	1,627	110
Tony Perez	0.279	0.344	0.463	2,732	379	1,652	1,272	49
George Sisler	0.340	0.379	0.468	2,812	102	1,175	1,284	375
Bill Terry	0.341	0.393	0.506	2,193	154	1,078	1,120	56

Conclusion:

Lance Berkman is one of the best personalities in baseball, a six time All Star, as well as one of the games greatest all time switch hitters. He hasn’t won any major awards, only has one World Series ring(granted without him, the Cardinals don’t reach the post-season let alone win it all), and possibly ended his career on a low note. But his numbers are very comparable to some of the other Hall of Fame first baseman. Sure he doesn’t have the homers that Foxx had or the average of a Lou Gherig or Bill Terry, but his overall numbers are comparable.  He is in no means, a first ballot Hall of  Famer. But I do believe after quite a few years on the ballot he will be elected to the Hall of Fame, if he does so he would join other former Cardinals: Johnny Mize, Jim Bottomley, and Orlando Cepeda (Mize and Bottomley are in the Hall as Cardinals). What do you think, is Berkman a Hall of Famer? Comment below on your thoughts of Lance Berkman, Beef Berky, Berk, Sir Lance-a-lot, Big Puma, Fat Elvis, or whatever you want to call him.