Does Chase Utley belong in the Hall of Fame?

[Хahar 🤔]

Explain your answer.

[Cincinnatus]

He certainly deserves more recognition than he gets, but if he can't come back with a couple more productive seasons I don't think it'll matter how much I like him.

[NewYorkExpress]

He's a better second baseman the Soriano was (and still is one now) but Hall-of Fame voters usually don't like people tailing off at age 30-ish. They usually like their players to get better until about 36-37, and then decline fast.

[Хahar 🤔]

For reference, here are the position players who have accumulated the most rWAR since 2005, Utley's first season as a starter:

1. Albert Pujols: 64.9
2. Chase Utley: 56.7
3. Miguel Cabrera: 51.0
4. Adrian Beltre: 47.7
5. Robinson Cano: 45.4

[Joe Biden 2020]

I'm going to err on the side of no for now.  I certainly hope I'm wrong because he's one of the "good guys" in the game, I believe.  By good, I mean clean.  Can anyone verify this?  He also seems to be a genuinely good guy personally.

[7,052,770]

For reference, here are the position players who have accumulated the most rWAR since 2005, Utley's first season as a starter:

1. Albert Pujols: 64.9
2. Chase Utley: 56.7
3. Miguel Cabrera: 51.0
4. Adrian Beltre: 47.7
5. Robinson Cano: 45.4

That pretty much clenches it...

[free my dawg]

I'm really on the fence with this one. A few healthy, good seasons like this one and he'll be in.

[patrick1]

Id certainly rather have the dominant player at his position for the better part of a decade than a career compiler of stats who is never among the elite.

[Orser67]

I'm a Phillies fan. In regards to the "good guy" thing: he's a fan favorite who has always treated fans well. He's extremely competitive and plays hard (e.g. plate collisions), but I don't think he's ever crossed the line into dirty play.

I'd put him in the Hall of Fame, but I'm obviously pretty biased. I will say that, aside from Roy Halladay and Cliff Lee, I think Utley (when healthy) has clearly been the best player on the Phillies since his first full season in 2005.

Utley grades out pretty well by JAWS, a sabrmetric system that takes into account both overall productivity and a player's peak production. As has been pointed out, Utley definitely suffers from a lack of longevity compared to other HOFers. Utley's problem (compared to other HOFers) isn't just that he's been injury-plagued, but also that he didn't become a full-time regular until the relatively late age of 25.

http://www.baseball-reference.com/leaders/jaws_2B.shtml

On a tangent, when GW Bush (who used to be a Texans owner) was asked who he would pick to start a team from the ground-up in 2008, he chose Utley and Roy Halladay.