Andre Dawson

Andre Nolan Dawson was the oldest of eight children, raised in Miami by his grandmother Eunice Taylor and his uncle, who nicknamed him "The Hawk" for the way he attacked ground balls in practice. He walked on to the baseball team at Florida A&M with bad knees and no scholarship offers, played 21 major league seasons despite 12 knee surgeries, collected 2,774 hits, hit 438 home runs, stole 314 bases, won eight Gold Gloves, and in 1987 presented the Chicago Cubs with a blank contract because no team would sign him, then won the NL MVP on a last-place team. Don Zimmer said, "I don't think I ever managed a greater player or a human being." Ryne Sandberg said, "No player in baseball history worked harder, suffered more, or did it better than Andre Dawson." The BBWAA elected him to the Hall of Fame in 2010 with 77.9% of the vote.

Miami

Dawson was born on July 10, 1954, in Miami, Florida. His grandmother Eunice Taylor helped raise him while his mother worked. He paid his younger brothers cookies to toss rocks for batting practice with a broomstick. He tore the cartilage and ligaments in his right knee during a high school football game in 1971, the first of many surgeries that would define his career.

Dawson attended Florida A&M University as a walk-on and played three years. No scout had recruited him. The Montreal Expos drafted him in the 11th round, 250th overall, in the 1975 draft. He played 186 minor league games before reaching the majors in September 1976.

Montreal

Dawson won the 1977 NL Rookie of the Year, batting .282 with 19 home runs, 65 RBI, and 21 stolen bases. He played center field at Olympic Stadium, where the artificial turf destroyed his knees over the next decade. He underwent surgery after surgery, eventually losing the cartilage in both knees, and shifted from center to right field as his mobility declined. He finished second in MVP voting to Mike Schmidt in 1981 and to Dale Murphy in 1983. His 1983 season was his finest in Montreal, batting .299 with 32 home runs, 113 RBI, 104 runs, 189 hits (leading the league), and 25 stolen bases.

Dawson won six consecutive Gold Gloves with the Expos from 1980 through 1985. He made the All-Star team five times in Montreal. He loved the city and the franchise but needed grass under his feet to save what remained of his knees.

The Blank Contract

After the 1986 season, collusion among owners suppressed the free agent market and Dawson received no offers. Montreal offered a pay cut he called "insulting." With his agent Dick Moss, Dawson flew to the Cubs' spring training camp in Mesa, Arizona, carrying a signed blank contract. He wanted the Cubs because they played in the National League, on natural grass, and during the day. GM Dallas Green initially dismissed the gesture as "a dog and pony show."

Green evaluated the proposal and made the lowest offer possible. "Mr. Dawson, the best offer that we can make you is $500,000," Green told him. The salary was the second lowest among Cubs regulars. Dawson accepted immediately. "I can't describe the feeling of elation I experienced," he said, walking out of the GM's office.

Dawson hit 49 home runs in 1987, tying Mark McGwire for the major league lead, drove in 137 runs, won the Home Run Derby at the All-Star Game, hit for the cycle on April 29, and was struck in the face by an Eric Show pitch on July 7 (24 stitches). He won the NL MVP with 269 points, beating Ozzie Smith by 76 points, and became the first player in history to win the award while playing for a last-place team. The Cubs finished 76-85, last in the NL East. Dawson dedicated the season to his grandmother Eunice, who died early that year.

438

Dawson won two more Gold Gloves with the Cubs in 1987 and 1988, giving him eight for his career. He played six seasons in Chicago, then spent two years with the Red Sox and two with the Florida Marlins, retiring after the 1996 season. He hit his 400th home run on April 15, 1993, at Fenway Park.

Dawson finished with 2,774 hits, 503 doubles, 98 triples, 438 home runs, 1,591 RBI, 314 stolen bases, and a .279 batting average across 2,627 games and 21 seasons. He was one of only a handful of players with 400 home runs and 300 stolen bases, joining Willie Mays and Barry Bonds on a short list. He made eight All-Star teams, won eight Gold Gloves, and earned the 1977 NL Rookie of the Year and the 1987 NL MVP.

The Expos retired his number 10 in 1997. Dawson first appeared on the Hall of Fame ballot in 2002 with 45.3% of the vote and climbed steadily for nine years before reaching 77.9% in 2010. "I feel Montreal was a platform," he said, "but Chicago catapulted me." At his induction, alongside manager Whitey Herzog, Dawson delivered the line his teammates and opponents already knew. "If you love this game," he said, "the game will love you back."