Is Johnny Damon a Hall of Famer?

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Is Johnny Damon a hall of famer? Roger Mooney of the Tampa Tribune breaks it down.

This is what Joe Maddon thought he was getting when the Rays signed Johnny Damon on Feb. 1: An average left fielder with some life in his bat and the reputation of being a great clubhouse guy.

This is what Maddon actually got: A better-than-great clubhouse guy with a lot of life left in his bat, who is quietly putting the finishing touches on what is looking like a Hall of Fame-career.

"This liberal arts kind of player, a guy who's fulfilled a lot of different arenas or areas, he's not just specialized in the home runs or strikeouts or 3,000 hits," Maddon said. "He's done a lot of things real well."

What Damon has mostly done real well for the Rays is get on base. It took him less than 70 games to set the franchise mark for consecutive games of reaching base at least once at 39. It took a failed drug test by Manny Ramirez to make Damon the Rays full-time designated hitter, and it took Damon those same number of games to establish himself as the best DH in franchise history.

Damon is about to catch Jimmie Foxx for 72nd place on the all-time hits list, and he is about to become the 53rd player in major league history with 500 doubles.

With that milestone double, Damon will become 11th player with 500 doubles, 100 triples, 200 home runs and 2,500 hits. The other 10 are in the Hall of Fame.

Evan Longoria laughs with awe when he hears those numbers.

"It's kind of crazy to think that, because his approach and his outlook on a daily basis is like he's a rookie player, you don't really take a step back and think about the stuff he's accomplished in his career," Longoria said. "I think he'll be in the Hall of Fame without a doubt, just looking at his numbers right now."

Damon is keenly aware of where he stands in baseball history and where those with similar career stats stand, and those fellas have their mail forwarded to Cooperstown.

"I think I can now," Damon said when asked if he sees himself as a Hall of Famer. "Regardless of whether I get to 3,000 hits or not, I think the runs scored and winning the championships definitely helps me out. But it's tough because I've definitely been on some teams where the focus has been on other players, like the A-Rods and the Jeters and the Mannys and stuff, and a lot of the stuff you've done gets overlooked. But if you ask a lot of (my) former teammates, they would believe so, and I guess at the end of the day that's the most important thing, to have the respect from all of your teammates, and I feel like I have that."

Longoria, the three-time All-Star third baseman with two Gold Gloves, said he learns something from Damon every day. Longoria marvels at how well Damon prepares himself for a game, and how much fun Smiling Johnny Damon has playing.

"He goes out there and has fun. That's the biggest thing," Longoria said. "You can tell he enjoys playing the game every day."

Damon entered Saturday night's game needing 356 hits to reach 3,000. At the pace he's on, he'll need two more seasons to reach that milestone.

"He talks about sticking around and trying to extend his contract here," Longoria said. "That would be cool to play with him a couple of more years and possibly watch him get that 3,000 hit."

The Rays could do worse at DH. In fact, with the exception of Jose Canseco's 31 homers during the first half in 1999, they have.

The team will be tempted to move Damon in July should they fall out of playoff contention, and his modest $5.25 million contract will be an issue in the offseason should they try to resign him.

But in nearly three months, Damon has proven to be the perfect DH for the Rays – relatively cheap and very productive.

And, Damon wants to play close to Orlando home and wants to play for a playoff contender.

Plus, he's highly motivated to add to those Hall of Fame credentials.

"For us it's a positive," Maddon said, "because as he's motivated it's going to bring out the best in his performance. We're going to reap the benefits of him attaining these numbers."