The Hall Of Fame Vote

The Hall Of Fame Vote


I don’t have a Hall Of Fame Vote but if I did I would have taken it very seriously. I think there are some out there who don’t do that. I don’t think it is a majority though and most do take it very seriously. When you have to get 75 percent of anything it is going to draw a lot of debate, not everyone is going to agree and that is just fine. There is nothing wrong with debate over merit or non-merit but it should be kept civil. Everyone has a right to do what they feel is the right thing and they shouldn’t be killed for it.

There does need to be some change though, I think the 10-player limit should be taken away. I think you should be able to vote for whomever you want to vote for with no limit. If you feel someone is worthy you should be able to vote for that person. I think the BBWAA mostly does a good job but it should be opened up to more of the new age media like the bloggers, announcers and others in the baseball community. Why should just the card-carrying members of the BBWAA decide this? There are others out there who care just as much about the game. There are some out there who care more then some who are currently voting.

I don’t think the vote should be made as an example. Deadspin purchased a vote of a writer; I don’t think that is right. What did we learn in all of this today?? We learned that the PED issue is a very big issue and the writers are still struggling with how to handle it. Jeff Bagwell and Mike Piazza would be in the Hall already if it wasn’t for this issue. They both went upward, the only two on the ballot who did so. They clearly are being hurt by the suspicion of PED use even though there was never any evidence that these players have taken steroids. Barry Bonds and Roger Clemens are first ballot Hall Of Famers who can’t even crack 40 percent. The reason why is simple, it is because of the PED use or suspected use. I don’t think they are ever going to get in as they went backwards. Rafael Palmeiro didn’t pick up five percent and is off the ballot for good. Mark McGwire only got 11 percent and Sammy Sosa around seven percent. The point is that these steroid guys or suspected guys aren’t coming even close the Hall Of Fame. I do think that Piazza and probably Bagwell will get in soon but should they be punished on suspicion?? Should clean players from the so-called steroid era be singled out because of when they played?? I don’t think so but this is a very complex issue. It is hard to know who did and didn’t use. There are certain guys of course like Bonds and Clemens where the evidence is too great but really how do we know.

I wouldn’t be surprised if there is a guy already in the Hall who took something and if not I am sure there will be in the near future. The best thing of all of this is that baseball is in the spotlight again. There is no sport that draws so much attention to a hall of fame vote. The passion out there is real and the debate is real, this is a good thing for the sport of baseball. It will be interesting to see if anything changes going forward, in the mean time lets recognize the three very deserving members of the Hall Of Fame Greg Maddux, Tom Glavine and Frank Thomas. They will be the class of 2014 along with the three managers, Tony LaRussa, Bobby Cox and Joe Torre.

No one is elected to the Hall Of Fame by the BBWAA

The 2013 Hall Of Fame Class was an unbelievable one in name. It was star studded and included many locks for the Hall Of Fame. I should say they were locks if the suspicion and taint of steroids wasn’t hanging over them. Barry Bonds, Rogers Clemens, Mike Piazza, Craig Biggio. When you hear those names I am sure most would think Hall Of Famers except they aren’t at least not right now. 
Mike Piazza had a near 60 percent showing as the first time on the ballot, I am sure he will get in one day. You have to remember that these guys as long as they receive five percent of the vote stay on the ballot for 15 years. That is a long time for minds to be changed and circumstances to be different. I think this ballot was just a perfect storm as many PED users or suspected users were on the ballot for the first time. This is the first time you had so many of those guys on the ballot and I think the writers were very conflicted.

I think next year you will still have a strong case and probably have many go in. The Veterans committee for instance will have Tony LaRussa, Bobby Cox and Joe Torre all on the ballot, I bet they all get in. Greg Maddux, Tom Glavine will be on for the first time and may both get in. I would say Maddux for sure, what about Mike Mussina, he is a borderline Hall Of Famer and it will be interesting to see how he does. Jack Morris is a guy that may have been caught with the other guys and overlooked a little. There are a lot that think he should be in and next year will be his final year on the ballot. I personally am not so sure he should be a Hall Of Famer. He had a near four ERA which I don’t consider very good.
I think that this is a good debate too have and baseball will be front and center now as this debate is not going away. I think the debate about the Hall Of Fame and steroids will lead us into Spring Training and then the season will start to take over. This is a very tough thing to go through with the steroid era, I really don’t know what to make of it. I have been leaning towards the if they deserve to be in by the numbers then they should be in. I have to be honest though I don’t know if I would of put supposed or known PED cheats in on the first ballot. I probably if I had a vote left Clemens and Bonds off and then voted for them later on. I don’t think McGwire and Sosa are worthy steroids or no steroids, they were too one dimensional for me.

Let the debate continue but I don’t think you can really blame the writers for this. Let’s remember the players, the owners they turned a blind eye to steroids and allowed this to happen so the game could take off again and the money gained out of it. They got tough after the fact but we can’t be naïve, we all know that they let this happen, it isn’t the writers fault that they chose to taint the sport. Lets have a healthy debate about who should be in and who should be out but lets not make it like it’s the end of the world. I think everyone is entitled to their opinion and to vote how they want to vote, let’s also remember these players have 15 years to get in, it isn’t a one and done proposition.

Some random notes for a quiet Saturday

I can't believe I forgot about this yesterday but the San Francisco Giants and Tim Lincecum avoided arbitration. He signed a 2 year deal for 23 million. It would of been really interesting to see what would of happened in arbitration and coming out of it. It is good they settled though for him and the team. The Yankees apparently have targeted a cuban defector as the successor to Derek Jeter at shortstop. Here is the story from George King of the New York Post. The Yankees have gone down this road before with El Duque who had great success with the Yankees. They also had Jose Contreras who was not as good as they thought and Juan Miranda who has been good in the minors but has not made it to the majors regularly yet. They also bombed out with Adrian Hernandez and Andy Morales. We will see what happens but usually if the Yankees want someone they will get him. Scott Richmond of the Toronto Blue Jays suffered a shoulder injury while preparing for spring training. He was hoping to make the rotation, he will now be behind the other pitchers due to this injury. The Washington Nationals have interest in veteran right hander Kris Benson. He hasn't pitched a full season since 2006 when he was with the Orioles. His wife is the more famous one, Anna Benson who once said that if she caught him cheating she would sleep with the whole team he was on. His agent is saying he is now 100 percent healthy and had a good workout in front of several teams. This will probably be the extent of the blogging today as it is really quiet. We will get heated up though starting on Wednesday with pitchers and catchers. Everyone take a deep breath and relax and then lets get going with the Baseball season finally. I hope everyone will comment and start discussions on here as we go through spring training and then the season. I welcome any and all suggestions even if they are against me or a criticism. Just remember to keep it clean and I will get back to everyone. I almost forgot to I had a article published on www.numberonebaseball.com this morning. It is a 2010 season preview for the Yankees. I also did one for the New York Mets but I am not sure when that will be published. Please check it out and also read me on that website and keep coming back here for more news and insight, I thank you for all the support and continued support.