you are right about this year rex, he has been playing great. But he's a really interesting case. He had 8 years of greatness or so, and then 3 or 4 years of worthlessness. Now 3/4 of a year of playing solid again. Personally, if he retired today I don't think he gets in.
But like you said, if he puts even 4 more years of average numbers up and doesn't get hurt, then you can add those totals to what he did in his "great" years and they all add up.
Similar to Terrell Davis in a way. He'll never get into the hall of fame, but he was one of the greatest ever for 4 or 5 years.
Like you said, if he can stay healthy and put up another 4 years, he will for sure get in. But, if he ended his career today with injury, I doubt he would get in.
I still think hes a bad fit for the sox, as you don't mess with chemistry. You gain some pop in center field, but you lose some range as Rowand is definitely the better defensive player this year (obviously not for career), but I think the range of Griffey in center has fallen off a bit over the years.
gl