Remember Albert Belle?

You probably do, and the former Cleveland Indians’ outfielder should have won the American League Most Valuable Player (MVP) award in 1995, and he also should be in the Hall of Fame.

Unfortunately, Belle isn’t on both accounts.

In this version of my Yesterday column — reminiscing about sports and pop culture from the 1960s, 70s, 80s and sometimes before and after — I’ll take a look at Belle’s 1995 season, as well as some other baseball players who could have won the award.

In addition, could Mike Schmidt have won his third MVP in the early 80s? What underrated rock band sang about girls named “Carrie Anne?” What ex-“Bucco” was a strong candidate for a pair of MVPs? Did you have a 70s football game that included betting “chips?” And what pro wrestler was known as “The Number One Frenchman?”

The Belle That Didn’t Ring ... Not only did Belle have good numbers in 1995, but he also helped steer Cleveland to a 100-win season and the World Series — one in which they were swept by Atlanta.

Belle mainly struggled in the postseason, hitting .273 in the divisional series, .222 in the ALCS and .235 in the World Series. However, his regular season was the one that mattered, and it hasn’t really been duplicated.

During the regular season, Belle led the major in doubles (52, tied with Edgar Martinez) homers (50), RBIs (126, tied with Boston’s Mo Vaughn), runs scored (121), and slugging percentage (.690). He was eighth in hitting (.317) in the league.

Despite a phenomenal season, Belle was edged out in the MVP voting by Vaughn, who had 39 homers, 126 RBIs, and a .300 average along with a league-high 150 strikeouts.

In comparison, Belle had a better OBP (.401) than Vaughn (.388), slugging (Vaughn .628) and OPS (1.091 to .963).

It would seem like a no-brainer that Belle would be the MVP, but his non-compliance with the media apparently cost him. Belle did not talk to the media after games.

His final career numbers were 381 homers, 1,239 RBIs and a .295 average in 12 seasons. In his final year with the Orioles, Belle belted 23 homers with 103 RBIs and a .281 average.

Schmitty for Three? ... Mike Schmidt won MVPs in 1980 and 1981, and he arguably could have won one in 1983. That was the Phillies “Wheeze Kids” year during which they lost to Baltimore.

Schmidt’s numbers were 40 homers, 109 RBIs, a .255 average along with a major-league high 128 walks and a .399 OBP.

Dale Murphy took the top honor with his 36-121-.302 line. Murphy also led in OPS (.933) and slugging (.540). Montreal’s Andrew Dawson went 32-113-.295 and led in hits (189).

It was Murphy’s second consecutive, and that fact severely hampered Schmidt’s chances, but he did have the numbers.

Schmitty did get his third MVP in 1986, when he had a 37-119-.290 slate, and he paced baseball with a .937 OPS and a .547 slugging percentage.

Stargell-Gazing ... In 1971, Pittsburgh’s Willie Stargell helped the Pirates to a World Championship over the defending champion and stacked Orioles.

For the season, Stargell smacked a majors-best 48 homers along with 125 RBIs and had an OPS of 1.026. But Stargell was superseded by the Cardinals’ Joe Torre, who led the majors in hitting (.363), RBIs (137), and hits (230), for the MVP.

Stargell finished second again in 1973, this time to Pete Rose, despite leading baseball with 44 homers, 119 RBIs, and an OPS of 1.038. Rose won the batting title with a .338 clip and had 230 hits, leading the Reds to the NLCS.

Finally, Stargell gained the top spot in 1979 (32 homers, 82 RBIs, .281) with the champion “We Are Family” Pirates (song by Sister Sledge), but he shared it with the Cardinals’ Keith Hernandez, who captured the batting title (.344, 11, 80).

An interesting note on the 1971 season was Cy Young winner Fergie Jenkins, who had a 24-13, 2.77 campaign, finished seventh in the MVP voting. Jenkins hit .243 with six homers and 20 RBIs.

Tom Terrific ... In 1969, Tom Seaver won the NL Cy Young Award with a 25-7 record and a 2.21 ERA with 208 strikeouts in 273.1 innings. He had 18 complete games in 35 starts. Atlanta’s Phil Niekro was second with a 23-13 record with a 2.56 ERA and 193 strikeouts in 284 innings, and had 21 complete games in 40 starts.

Seaver easily could have been the league’s MVP, as he was the catalyst for the World Series champions. Willie McCovey won the award with his league highs in homers (45), RBIs (126), OBP (.453), slugging percentage (.656) and OPS (1.108).

“Tom Terrific” did finish second with 243 points compared to McCovey’s 265.

It Was Bobby Not Barry ... One overlooked player from the 70s was Bobby Bonds, who managed to record MVP-like numbers most of his career. My lasting memory of Bonds was his collision at the Candlestick Park fence during an NBC Saturday Game of the Week.

In 1971, Bonds was fourth in the MVP voting with a 33-homer, 102-RBI, .285 season with 26 stolen bases. Two years later, Bonds was third in the voting with a 39-96-.283 season and led the league in runs with 131. Bonds was then dealt to the Yankees for Bobby Murcer, and he belted 32 homers, 85 RBIs, a .270 average and 30 stolen bases.

In 1977, in one of his final noteworthy seasons, Bonds had a line of 37-115-.264 and 41 swipes.

Another Amazing Game ... In 1974, Coleco released “T.V. Football,” a fun game played while watching a football game. I don’t believe I ever had it, but I may have to purchase it.

The object of the game was to predict what will happen in a live game. You predict scores for each quarter, for the entire game, what plays the offensive team will make, the results of these plays, the results of each drive, first downs, punts and kick-off returns. One player’s judgment is matched against the judgment of the other player, and you play for chips.

In today’s NFL world of gambling, this a fun and safe bet ... pardon the pun.

Smell the Holly ... In terms of top rock bands from the 1960s and early 70s, you can immediately name the Beatles, Beach Boys, Rolling Stones and Led Zeppelin to name a few.

But how many of you remember The Hollies? The British-based band burst onto the scene in the early 1960s, and began topping the charts with hits we all know such as “Carrie Anne,” “Bus Stop,” “He Ain’t Heavy, He’s My Brother,” “Long Cool Woman in a Black Dress,” and their 1974 classic “The Air That I Breathe.”

The Hollies certainly were underrated, and they should have received more recognition than they did.

WWWF/WWE Wrap ... Each column, I’ll look back at a former wrestler we likely watched in our youth.

Do you remember Rene Goulet? Born in Quebec City, Quebec as Bob Bedard, Goulet’s career spanned from 1957-1987, with his last match a Battle Royal at the old Brendan Byrne Area.

Known as the “Number One Frenchman,” the colorful Goulet entered the WWWF in 1970, and he and Karl Gotch were Tag-Team champions in 1971-72. Goulet also was the NWA Florida Southern champion, and was a WWA Pacific Northeast and NWA Georgia tag-team champion.

Goulet, whose trademark was his scorpion claw hold, compiled an overall record of 938-1,632 with 293 draws. He passed away at the age of 86 in 2019.

Tennis Anyone? ... Does anyone still watch Wimbledon? Remember when it was practically a staple to watch on the Saturday and Sunday mornings around the Fourth of July?

Your thoughts are always welcomed and will be published; email them to tnsports@tnonline.com