As I do every time this year, I mailed in my official Hall of Fame ballot. To grow up loving baseball and to vote for the Hall of Fame is a tremendous thrill for me even after all these years. It is also a responsibility I take very seriously, which is why I don’t understand the rationale of some of my colleagues who use their vote as a political statement. If you don’t want to vote, then surrender your vote.
I can comprehend checking off two or three names if that’s all you believe are worthy and not going for the ten maximum. I can even understand if you want to vote in a confirmed steroid user if that’s your prerogative.
What I’ll never understand is submitting a blank ballot as sort of a protest vote against what they see as a tainted ballot laden with steroid cheats. There were four blank ballots in 2014, five in 2013, six in 2012, and nine in 2011.
Because candidates stay on the ballot based on the percentage of votes, there’s a chance worthy players could be left off because of this ridiculous practice. That’s blatantly unfair and penalizes deserving players. If you have a problem with some of the players on the ballot, use your keyboard and have at it – after all – you are a writer.
I take pride in my vote, do a lot of research and talk to players, managers, coaches and general managers to gain input each December. And, it’s still a difficult task sometimes. So on that note, here are the ten players I voted for this year and why:
- Craig Biggio: He should have been voted in last year. Over three thousand hits. Aren’t you paying attention?
- Mike Piazza: I hear the steroid rumors, but that’s all they are. Innuendo and some back acne aren’t reason enough to bar him.
- Jeff Bagwell: Like Piazza, he’s not linked to steroids in any official capacity. Writers should be more responsible than to buy into rumors.
- Tim Raines: Arguably one of the three best leadoff hitters in history along with Hall of Famers Rickey Henderson and Lou Brock.
- Lee Smith: There’s a bias against him, but he’s third on the career list with over 400 saves.
- Edgar Martinez: There’s a bias against him, also, because he’s a designated hitter. But, that’s an official position, and he was as good as anybody at it.
- Mike Mussina: He could have pitched another two years and won 300 games, which is automatic entry. Seventeen straight seasons with double-digit victories, and 11 overall with fifteen or more, often pitching with inferior teams against the American League East.
- Randy Johnson: A ten-time All-Star and five-time Cy Young Award winner with over 300 victories and 4,875 strikeouts. He’s a slam dunk. He also threw over 200 innings in 14 seasons.
- Pedro Martinez: He was an eight-time All-Star and three-time Cy Young Award winner. His average season was 17-8 with a 2.93 ERA and 217 innings pitched.
- John Smoltz: He won 213 games, but likely would have won over 300 if he didn’t miss the 2000 season with an injury and returned as a closer where in saved 154 games.
Note: I did not vote for any of the players who were directly linked to steroids, either by direct testimony or because they were implicated to steroid or PED use in the Mitchell Report. Until the Hall of Fame and Major League Baseball put a notation on their plaques that they played in the steroid era and their records come with an asterisk, that will be my stand.
