As I watched baseball’s Hall of Fame ceremony from Cooperstown recently, I couldn’t help but think ex-Wildcat basketball player Kenny Lofton was as deserving, or more, than 2025 inductees Dick Allen and Dave Parker. The numbers tell the story:
Lofton had 2,428 hits, hit 130 home runs, stole 622 bases, had a career batting average of .299 and played in six All-Star games with four Gold Gloves.
Former Arizona basketball player Kenny Lofton, a longtime Major League Baseball player after his days as a Wildcat, speaks with media before having his name raised in the UA men’s basketball Ring of Honor at McKale Center March 2, 2024.
Allen had 1,848 hits, hit 351 home runs, stole 133 bases, had a career batting average of .292 and played in seven All-Star games.
Parker had 2,712 hits, hit 339 home runs, stole 154 bases, had a career batting average of .290 and played in seven All-Star games.
According to baseball’s all-encompassing “WAR” statistic, which measures the overall value of each player, Lofton is the ninth-best center fielder in history, ahead of such Hall of Famers as Duke Snider, Andre Dawson and Richie Ashburn.
Let’s hope the Hall of Fame’s ERA Committee reconsiders Lofton in the coming years.
