I was debating with myself since the news broke that no one was voted into the Baseball Hall of Fame if I should write a piece or not. Obviously, here I am writing my two cents on why baseball got it all wrong. The voters need to get off their little soapbox and start looking at the baseball player and not the person. The Hall of Fame is about telling the story of baseball and how it’s grown. You cannot have the Hall of Fame without telling the story of how one performance jolted the Red Sox in a game seven or how one man crushed the home run record. In case you still don’t know, the old voters cannot get out of their own way.
The league talks about “growing the game” but refuses to vote Curt Schilling, Barry Bonds, and Roger Clemens into the Hall of Fame where they belong. Let’s take a dive into some stats, shall we?
Curt Schilling:
His numbers in the regular season are low-ish for the Hall of Fame, but when you look at when it counted in the postseason, Schilling went 11-2 with a 2.23 ERA and a 0.97 WHIP in 19 starts and 133 1/3 career playoff innings. Schilling won three World Series rings (2001 D-Backs, 2004 and 2007 Red Sox) and was named MVP of the 1993 NLCS and co-MVP of the 2001 World Series with Randy Johnson. Curt Schilling helped break the curse of 85 long years without a championship in Boston. Schilling tweeted he wanted his name off of next year’s ballot, and I don’t blame him. He should’ve been inducted into the Hall of Fame years ago. It is now a waiting game.
Barry Bonds:
Barry is an interesting case for the Hall of Fame. He is most famous for beating the late great Hank Aaron’s home run record. Bonds is always scrutinized for his “use” of steroids. Baseball’s home run king never admitted to using PEDs and never tested positive. But in April 2011, Bonds was found guilty of lying to a grand jury during the government’s investigation of BALCO by testifying that he never knowingly took any illegal substances. Barry Bonds was a different breed in the box leading the MLB all-time in home runs (762), walks (2558), and intentional walks (688). Bonds also racked up 2935 hits in his career alongside 514 stolen bases. You have a player who is first all-time in home runs, almost in the 3,000 hit club, over 500 stolen bases, and the most feared batter to step into the box. Get Barry into the Hall.
Roger Clemens:
Just like Barry Bonds, Clemens never tested positive for or admitted use of PEDs, but he did go to trial on perjury charges related to PEDs. On June 18, 2012, jurors returned with a not-guilty verdict for Clemens after close to 10 hours of deliberation. The verdict capped the 10-week trial and five-year investigation into Clemens. The pitcher was accused of perjury, making false statements, and obstructing Congress during his February 2008 testimony. Another stud player in the league for 24 years with a 354-184 (.658%) win-loss record, a 3.12 career ERA, and 4,672 career strikeouts. Next year is Clemens, Schilling, and Bonds last year on the ballot. They need 75% of the votes to get in.
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