Do You Agree With Baseball Hall of Fame Voters? (POLL)
For the first time since 1996 no players will be inducted to the Hall of Fame.
Major League Baseball will have no players making their way into the Hall of Fame this year.
Baseball writers across the country elected to shut out Barry Bonds and Roger Clemens from Cooperstown on Wednesday.
According to the New York Times, it was the "most resounding referendum on the legacy of steroids in baseball," and only the eighth time ever no players got the required 75 percent of votes from baseball writers.
Former Houston Astro Craig Biggio came the closest getting 68 percent of the votes.
Sammy Sosa, another name involved in steroids, was also rejected by voters, along with former Mets catcher Mike Piazza and another former Astro Jeff Bagwell.
Bonds and Clemens were the two biggest names involved with steroid scandals that marred Major Leage Baseball in past seasons.
Which player do you believe should have made the Hall of Fame? Take our poll or share your thoughts in the comments section.
Robert Mihaly
9:17 am on Friday, January 11, 2013
Biggio's skills were more subtle than those of the others who were on the first ballot this year, but the game would be better with more players like him. In 20 years with the mid-market Houston Astros, playing 2nd base and catcher, he contributed better than average offense for those normally defensive positions, including high slugging percentage and on-base percentage. Biggio, a non-steroid user who is 32nd all time in runs created, would be the kind of player who would be highly prized in the concept of money ball...not flashy, but always getting it done. The tendency for the baseball writers to not elect a player the first time they're eligible ought to be something they think long and hard about. It makes me wonder if they will do the same to Omar Vizquel when he's up for the vote. Vizquel, known for his acrobatics on the field, has far lower numbers for slugging and on-base percentages than Biggio had. We'll see.
Pat Ballasch
11:20 am on Friday, January 11, 2013
I think keeping drugs out of sports is a good idea. If you have an anything goes philosophy you put too much pressure on athletes that don't want to destroy their bodies for a short term gain. Owners of (say) football teams in the U.S. often trash out their players knowing there's five or six guys ready to take their place. You can rationalize anything for the money but what good is it without a decent (physical) quality of life.