My Ballot
Voters are allowed to select up to 10 players on their ballot but that doesn’t necessarily mean you must vote for that many. Some years there aren’t 10 worthy candidates and it would be irresponsible to vote for an unqualified player simply because open spots remain on your ballot.
The debate over how to handle players tainted by PEDs has led to an overcrowded ballot. Since I’m not opposed to considering PED offenders, I was able to find 10 worthy candidates. Some are admittedly on the edge of consideration so it’s easy to see why some voters would select fewer than 10.
Here are the players (in no particular order) I would vote for if I were to cast an official ballot.
- Roger Clemens
- Curt Schilling
- Manny Ramirez
- Barry Bonds – If the Rocket gets in then we have to let Bonds in too, right? He’s the all-time home run king who also ranks fifth in OBP and Slugging. He trails only Babe Ruth with a career 164.4 fWAR.
- Mariano Rivera – First on the all-time saves list, an unhittable cutter, and a ridiculous 0.70 ERA in the postseason. One of the few Yankees that even Red Sox fans had to admire.
- Edgar Martinez – The DH bias can’t be held against him anymore now that Harold Baines is in. A career .312 hitter who won two batting titles. Getting enshrined as a primary DH further paves the way for David Ortiz.
- Mike Mussina – Never the best pitcher in the league but consistently very good for a long time. Moose piled up 270 career wins and posted a 3.68 ERA while pitching his entire career in a loaded AL East during the peak of the steroid era.
- Roy Halladay – Doesn’t have the longevity to match Mussina’s wins or K’s but was more dominant at his peak. Won a pair of Cy Youngs and finished as the runner-up twice.
- Larry Walker – Playing in the pre-humidor Coors Field inflated his numbers but he was a 20/20 threat before moving to Colorado and remained a solid hitter on the road. Coors boosts home run totals but power wasn’t what made Walker special. He won three batting titles, seven Gold Gloves, and an MVP. A five-tool player who would have thrived in any environment.
- Billy Wagner – Sixth all-time with 422 saves and 24.1 fWAR by a reliever. His 11.92 K/9 puts him in the top-10 in strikeout rate among relievers with 300+ innings. The Today’s Game committee recently inducted Lee Smith and Wagner is arguably the better closer of the two.
Most of these players won’t get in this year, as Rivera is currently tracking as the only sure bet. Some of them may never get in. You can make a case for or against almost any of them and there may be some players I excluded who deserve to be in the Hall of Fame. Only ten are allowed on each ballot and these are the players I would select. Who would you pick?