This edition of Fair or Foul features Brian Joura who does a fantastic job running Mets 360. Have you ever considered the possibility that Carlos Beltran has had a Hall of Fame career? Well, Brian builds a solid case for Tron, and if he’s right, going in while wearing a Mets cap seems like a no-brainer. Here is some of what he has to say and as always I encourage you to read the full piece at Mets 360.

I want to talk about Beltran in another manner. This offseason he signed a two-year deal with the Cardinals. If Beltran can stay healthy and produce during the span of that contract, he can strengthen what already is a solid Hall of Fame case. And barring a return to the Royals, Beltran will have spent more time with the Mets than with any other team in his career.

It’s entirely possible that 10 years are so from now that Beltran will go into Cooperstown wearing a Mets cap on his Hall of Fame plaque.

For the benefit of those who feel like Beltran should not enter the Hall without a ticket, let’s look at his Hall of Fame resume. He’s a Rookie of the Year Award winner, a six-time All-Star, a three-time Gold Glove Award winner and his 88 percent lifetime Stolen Base percentage is one of the highest marks in MLB history. He’s been an outstanding postseason performer, with a .366/.485/.817 slash line in 101 PA.

I was very compelled by his head-to-head comparison with Duke Snider and was shocked at how well Beltran stacks up:

Essentially, Snider had Beltran’s career, plus three better seasons. But it should be pointed out that Beltran is still active and his career-best 152 mark came last season. If Beltran stays healthy, he will knock the bottom two OPS+ marks off his 10-best list during his time with the Cardinals. So, how can Beltran be so close to Snider when the Duke laps him with the bat? Because there’s more to baseball than just hitting and Beltran stars in these areas while Snider – let’s just say he was a great hitter.

Brian concludes his article by saying, that even if he retired today, “Beltran would go down as one of the top 10 CF in MLB history.” That’s pretty amazing and I know my partner Kelly will get an absolute kick out of that.

It’s a great article, worthy of a great debate, and by debate I don’t mean an Animal House style food fight.