This Cubs Hall of Famer was - and is - vastly underrated for what he did on the field

I may not be the most objective person to write about Ron Santo. When I was a kid, Santo was my favorite Cub. And he remained my favorite until Ryne Sandberg came along. Santo, to this day, is still on my Mt. Rushmore of favorite Cubs. And with good reason. He was the best third baseman in baseball during the 1960s. The fact it took so long for him to be voted into the Hall of Fame is a disgrace. Let's take a quick look back at his career.

It's not just the numbers that Santo put up, it was the way he played the game. I remember the way he would range to his left on a ground ball, snag it, do a 360 and throw a strike to first. Or make a diving backhand on a hot grounder down the line, scramble to his feet and make a strong throw to first. He was also great at making a barehand pickup on a dribbler down the line and delivering a strike across the diamond for the out.

At the plate, Ron had a great eye and was an excellent run-producer for Chicago.

What do the numbers show? An elite player - and nothing less.

When asked who the best third baseman in baseball was during the 60s, the kneejerk reaction of many fans might be to say Brooks Robinson. And Robinson was indeed great. But during the 60s Ron Santo had a better WAR for the decade: Santo had a bWAR of 57.7 while Brooks had a bWAR of 53.9 for the decade.

In addition, Robinson's bWAR was fueled by incredibly high defensive numbers, which I think are weighted a little bit heavily in determining overall WAR. Santo had good defensive stats and even won four Gold Gloves, but he was clearly superior to his Orioles counterpart when it came to hitting. Santo had four seasons of 100+ RBI, topping out at 123 in 1969. He also had seasons of 99, 98,98 and 94 RBI. He hit 30 or more home runs four times and also led the National League in walks four times.

Santo also had an OPS of over .900 three times during the 60s. That was a real accomplishment, considering how diminished offense was during the decade. In an anomaly, the longtime Cubs third baseman actually led the NL in triples in 1964 with 13.

Santo was the best third baseman in baseball during the 60s. The bigger question is why it took so long for him to get elected to the Hall of Fame. That travesty is just one of the many issues about Cooperstown that disgust me. The fact that he was voted in after he passed away just seems cruel to me. To punish him for playing on a bunch of bad Cubs teams is laughable - I've even wondered if some voters didn't like the way he clicked his heels after a Cubs' victory in 1969. If that was the case, what a petty operation the Hall of Fame is.