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The Spectacle Blog
As I mentioned in my article yesterday there was a chance that no one would be elected to Cooperstown this year and, indeed, that is what happened.
In order to be inducted, a player must receive 75% of the vote of the Baseball Writers Association of America (BBWAA). Craig Biggio of the Houston Astros garnered 68.2% of the vote followed by Jack Morris (67.7%), Jeff Bagwell (59.6%), Mike Piazza (57.8%), Tim Raines (52.2%) and Lee Smith (47.7%).
Roger Clemens and Barry Bonds, who at one time would have been first ballot Hall of Famers, received 37.6% and 36.2% on their first ballots, respectively. Meanwhile, Sammy Sosa received only 12.5% of the vote.
For the first time since 1996, the BBWAA did not elect a player to the Baseball Hall of Fame. But at least, baseball fans got to see the induction of pitcher turned Senator Jim Bunning and long time Baltimore Orioles manager Earl Weaver courtesy of the Veterans Committee that year.
The only living inductee in 2013 is Paul Hagen who is being awarded the J.G. Taylor Spink Award for baseball writing. The Ford C. Frick Award is being bestowed posthumously on Toronto Blue Jays radio broadcaster Tom Cheek. Actually, writers and broadcasters don’t get a plaque but are honored in a seperate wing of the Hall.
The three men getting plaques have been dead for decades - umpire Hank O’Day, New York Yankees owner Jake Ruppert and 19th century third baseman Deacon White.
Nothing wrong with honoring baseball’s early history but players who are alive and well should be honored as well. Buck O’Neil and Ron Santo were both honored a year too late.
Let me put it another way. There may be some vacant rooms on Chestnut Street during Hall of Fame Weekend in July.
The only good thing that might come out of it is that there will be a lot of inductees next year - Greg Maddux, Tom Glavine, Frank Thomas, Jeff Kent, Biggio & Bagwell and, hopefully, Jack Morris. Next year is Morris’ final year on the ballot.
Maddux, Glavine and Morris make one hell of a starting three.
UPDATE: Five members of the BBWAA left their ballots blank as a protest against the so-called steroids era. And what exactly do Jack Morris and Alan Trammell have to do with the steroids era?
They deny Craig Biggio his rightful place in Cooperstown because he happens to be a contemporary of Bonds and Clemens?
Can you say collective punishment?
And what of Jeff Bagwell and Mike Piazza? Do these BBWAA have evidence they did anything wrong?
They would probably respond with a blank stare.
View all comments (25) | Leave a comment
More Blog Posts by Aaron Goldstein
http://spectator.org/blog/2013/01/09/no-one-elected-to-baseball-hal
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Glen H| 1.9.13 @ 2:59PM
Someone falls off the HOF ballot if they do not receive 5% of the vote, not 15%. We are not done with Sammy Sosa. I think you are confused with the other provision, that one falls off after 15 years of futility.
Aaron Goldstein| 1.9.13 @ 4:43PM
Yes, I overthrew the cut off man. The post has been amended.
JmsA| 1.9.13 @ 3:15PM
Well done. None of the cheaters should be allowed in. Looking forward to the possible induction of Greg Maddux next year.
ejp| 1.9.13 @ 6:52PM
If "none of the cheaters should be allowed in" then kindly start circulating a pettition for the immediate removal from the HOF of Gaylord Perry, Don Sutton and Leo Durocher (just for starters).
Paul McGrath| 1.9.13 @ 3:29PM
As I've said before, a special provision should be made for pitchers who win a ten-inning shutout in the seventh game of a World Series. Nobody ever did this before and nobody is likely to do it again .
(I'm very pleased to see his numbers are up this year!)
Bob Grant| 1.9.13 @ 3:38PM
This is the best Hall of Fame year ever! Where is it written there should be inductees every year? It keeps the HOF from being watered down.
I wish other sports' HOF's would follow suit.
Derek Leaberry| 1.9.13 @ 4:35PM
Ozzie Smith gets inthe Hall with 98 % of the vote with as a .240 banjo-hitter who played half his games on the semi-concrete fake baseball park in St. Louis which exaggerated his average fifteen points, and Tim Raines, Mike Piazza, Jeff Bagwell, Craig Biggio, Alan Trammell and Kenny Lofton can't get 75 %. That's a travesty. But sportswriters aren't much themselves. Most are failed athletes who live vicariously off athletes they wished they'd been. Sportswriters are down there with lawyers, politicians, bureaucrats, strippers, whores and pimps.
Aaron Goldstein| 1.9.13 @ 4:56PM
I guess you never saw the Ozzie Smith play. It's interesting how you manage to omit Ozzie's 13 Gold Gloves. Kind of difficult to keep out the best defensive shortstop in MLB history. They didn't call him the Wizard of Oz for nothing.
He became a better hitter later in his career. His .262 average wasn't earth shattering but he did steal 580 career bases.
I do agree that Raines, Piazza, Bagwell, Biggio and Trammell should be in and for that matter Lou Whitaker. Trammell and Whitaker were the greatest double play combination of all time.
For the record, Ozzie Smith was inducted into Cooperstown in 2002 with 91.7% of the BBWAA vote.
No player, not even Babe Ruth, ever got 98% of the vote.
Derek Leaberry| 1.9.13 @ 5:12PM
I saw Smith play. He was a hot doggin back-flipper who got to maybe one ball a week more than Robin Yount or Alan Trammell, the difference being that they could hit and Smith, without the astro-turf fake hits, made Rabbit Maranville seem like Babe Ruth. Next time dominant defensive catchers like Jim Sundberg, Bob Boone and Bill Freehan are encased in the Hall, I'll support Smith. Fort that matter, when shortstops Mark Belanger and Omar Vizquel are in the Hall, I'll support Smith.
Aaron Goldstein| 1.10.13 @ 8:44AM
Ozzie was the greatest defensive shortstop of all time and in a class by himself. His Defensive WAR is the highest of all time amongst any position player in MLB history. To dismiss him as nothing more than "a hot doggin' back-flipper" is to fail to see the trees for the forest.
JP| 1.10.13 @ 11:11AM
Ah yes,
the 1980s Cards. I think it was 1986 when Vince Coleman had 100 SBs, and 4 other players had 30 or more. I was a Cubs fan and everytime one of those guys were walked it was an automatic double. In those days speed did kill. Think of the pressure on the pitchers. Too bad the Cards had only one WS title.
BTW, Ozzie Smith was an outstanding fielder. People think Jeeter is great. He's half the fielder Smith was.
Occam's Tool| 1.9.13 @ 4:39PM
Hopefully, Morris gets in next year and Murph gets in by Veteran's committee.
It is interesting to note that the magnificent Yogi Berra was elected on the second year of eligibility, and in his 1st year no one was elected, either.
Lee Smith should get in. I watched him. He was THAT good.
Bonds was NOT the greatest player of all time. That still belongs to George Herman Ruth. I would also put Joe Dimaggio above Bonds as well. Lifetime batting average for Bonds---.298. For Ruth---.342 (yeah, THAT high, with an ERA of 2.77. 23 wins in 1916, 24 wins in 1917, led the AL with ERA of 1.75 in 1916).
Sorry, Bonds couldn't sniff Ruth's jockstrap. The ONLY thing he did was hit more home runs than Ruth, by cheating.
Butch| 1.9.13 @ 5:11PM
Last I heard, Occam Babe Ruth still holds the AL record for shutouts in one season, nine. That record was tied by "Louisiana Lightening," Ron Guidry. Naah, Bonds is not in his league, nor is McGuire, or for the matter, IMHO, Hammerin' Hank.
Bob K| 1.9.13 @ 4:43PM
Why is there a separate wing in the Hall for the Journalists? How about a separate building outside instead? Call it the Outhouse if you like.
Crassus| 1.9.13 @ 5:21PM
Great idea--The Outhouse. Bill Conlin could be the chief turd.
Butch| 1.9.13 @ 5:14PM
Heard on the radio this morning that Biggio is 20th all time in hits, over 3,000. Why does that not qualify him?
Bob K| 1.9.13 @ 6:13PM
I know why. I just checked it out. He is from King's Park, NY and went to Seton Hall College in NJ but played all of his baseball in Houston, Texas. The baseball writers, all of whom are looking for work in NYC, can't forgive that!
wombat1| 1.9.13 @ 7:09PM
Nobody elected this time?
Good!
Shows they have some real standards.
Albert Constantine Jr.| 1.9.13 @ 7:22PM
"But at least, baseball fans got to see the induction of pitcher turned Senator Jim Bunning and long time Baltimore Orioles manager Earl Weaver courtesy of the Veterans Committee.
The only living inductee is Paul Hagen..."
Did I miss your obituary on Jim Bunning?
Aaron Goldstein| 1.9.13 @ 8:42PM
Bunning and Weaver were inducted in 1996.
Paul Hagen is the only living inductee for 2013.
RJ| 1.10.13 @ 1:04AM
If we could only have been so fortunate last November.
JP| 1.10.13 @ 11:12AM
I think the majority of players inducted are inducted via the Veterans Committee. Which means Sosa will be inducted in 2149.
Le Cracquere| 1.10.13 @ 12:07PM
If Biggio, Bagwell, Raines, and Piazza aren't HoFers, then we need to padlock the Cooperstown property and open a museum that values baseball-related achievement. (And if Morris gets in before any of the above, we need to burn the building after it's padlocked.)
Occam's Tool| 1.10.13 @ 3:59PM
Trammell, Morris, and Lee should have gone in this time. That would have sent an even STRONGER message than no one.
atilla| 1.14.13 @ 1:46PM
If the BBWAA'ers don't complain about drug use in MLB then why get so righteous when it comes time to acknowledge their outstanding performances.
PHONEY BALONEY, GOOD TIME R&R