# 2013 MLB Hall of Fame Ballot (let the fireworks begin) **URL:** \ **Category:** The Game Room\ **Created:** [November 27, 2012, 2:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/2013-mlb-hall-of-fame-ballot-let-the-fireworks-begin/642264 "2012-11-27T14:48:55Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 10
**Author:** ![Marley23](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/45deac/32.png) [@Marley23](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Marley23)\ **Post date:** [January 9, 2013, 11:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/2013-mlb-hall-of-fame-ballot-let-the-fireworks-begin/642264/181 "2013-01-09T23:14:14Z")
> [@ElvisL1ves](#): > > If we’re going to indignantly disqualify everyone who played in the Steroid Era just because we don’t know for sure if anyone was clean If that were the case, they wouldn’t have elected Barry Larkin last year. ---
**Author:** ![wolfman](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/a8b319/32.png) [@wolfman](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/wolfman)\ **Post date:** [January 10, 2013, 12:03am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/2013-mlb-hall-of-fame-ballot-let-the-fireworks-begin/642264/182 "2013-01-10T00:03:05Z")
I am curious about the reasoning behind(at least) 8 people voting for Clemens and not Bonds. I guess the the fact Barry was convicted of a steroid related crime and Clemens wasn’t? ---
**Author:** ![ReticulatingSplines](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/e274bd/32.png) [@ReticulatingSplines](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ReticulatingSplines)\ **Post date:** [January 10, 2013, 12:41am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/2013-mlb-hall-of-fame-ballot-let-the-fireworks-begin/642264/183 "2013-01-10T00:41:13Z")
> [@MOIDALIZE](#): > > Career WAR: > > Edgar Martinez - 64.4 > Craig Biggio - 62.1 > Mark McGwire - 58.7 > Mike Piazza - 56.1 > Sammy Sosa - 54.8 > > Kenny Lofton - 64.9 > > Kenny only got 18 votes, and won’t be eligible to appear on the ballot anymore. The other guys I mentioned will remain eligible. Makes perfect sense. Yeah, I was shocked at this. We can quibble about whether he belongs in the Hall, but off the ballot entirely? What sort of bizarro universe is this? ---
**Author:** ![ReticulatingSplines](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/e274bd/32.png) [@ReticulatingSplines](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ReticulatingSplines)\ **Post date:** [January 10, 2013, 12:47am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/2013-mlb-hall-of-fame-ballot-let-the-fireworks-begin/642264/184 "2013-01-10T00:47:23Z")
Damn, missed the edit window. Anyway, I know Lofton’s hardly the best player who’s fallen victim to this (Lou Whitaker comes to mind), but still. ---
**Author:** ![Yookeroo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/yookeroo/32/323_2.png) [@Yookeroo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Yookeroo)\ **Post date:** [January 10, 2013, 12:51am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/2013-mlb-hall-of-fame-ballot-let-the-fireworks-begin/642264/185 "2013-01-10T00:51:11Z")
> [@Jas09](#): > > I do think that the suggested change to the voting scheme I saw from Posnanski (although I think he got it from somewhere else) is a great idea. Three options instead of two: Yes, Not Now, and No. This lets all those “not on the first ballot” guys get their say without all the silliness of voting No on somebody that you actually think probably is an eventual Hall of Famer. And as long as Yes and Not Now is over some threshold you stay on the ballot. Or better yet, let players stay on the ballot forever. ---
**Author:** ![etv78](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/d78d45/32.png) [@etv78](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/etv78)\ **Post date:** [January 10, 2013, 1:14am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/2013-mlb-hall-of-fame-ballot-let-the-fireworks-begin/642264/186 "2013-01-10T01:14:03Z")
**Yookeroo** -That’s how the Rock n Roll HOF does it. ---
**Author:** ![Marley23](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/45deac/32.png) [@Marley23](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Marley23)\ **Post date:** [January 10, 2013, 1:26am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/2013-mlb-hall-of-fame-ballot-let-the-fireworks-begin/642264/187 "2013-01-10T01:26:10Z")
> [@ReticulatingSplines](#): > > Yeah, I was shocked at this. We can quibble about whether he belongs in the Hall, but off the ballot entirely? What sort of bizarro universe is this? Same thing with Bernie Williams. I didn’t vote for him even though I’d be happy if he got in, but off the ballot entirely after one year? ---
**Author:** ![zev\_steinhardt](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/z/97f17d/32.png) [@zev\_steinhardt](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/zev_steinhardt)\ **Post date:** [January 10, 2013, 1:33am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/2013-mlb-hall-of-fame-ballot-let-the-fireworks-begin/642264/188 "2013-01-10T01:33:27Z")
> [@Marley23](#): > > Same thing with Bernie Williams. I didn’t vote for him even though I’d be happy if he got in, but off the ballot entirely after one year? Two. He was on the ballot last year too. Zev Steinhardt ---
**Author:** ![zev\_steinhardt](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/z/97f17d/32.png) [@zev\_steinhardt](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/zev_steinhardt)\ **Post date:** [January 10, 2013, 1:35am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/2013-mlb-hall-of-fame-ballot-let-the-fireworks-begin/642264/189 "2013-01-10T01:35:19Z")
> [@The\_Other\_Waldo\_Pepper](#): > > Well, there’s Lou Gehrig. It’s not certain that Gehrig was elected unanimously. He was elected in a special one-man election in 1939, and the results were never made public (beyond the fact that he earned election). But we don’t know that he was elected by a unanimous vote. Zev Steinhardt ---
**Author:** ![Marley23](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/45deac/32.png) [@Marley23](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Marley23)\ **Post date:** [January 10, 2013, 1:37am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/2013-mlb-hall-of-fame-ballot-let-the-fireworks-begin/642264/190 "2013-01-10T01:37:38Z")
> [@zev\_steinhardt](#): > > Two. He was on the ballot last year too. > > Zev Steinhardt Right you are, not that that changes the point much. ---
**Author:** ![UltraVires](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/u/ecccb3/32.png) [@UltraVires](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/UltraVires)\ **Post date:** [January 10, 2013, 3:48am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/2013-mlb-hall-of-fame-ballot-let-the-fireworks-begin/642264/191 "2013-01-10T03:48:02Z")
Bagwell, Biggio, and Morris should have made it. I loved Dale Murphy, however he was simply a very good player; not HOF material. Bonds, Clemens, et al don’t belong in my beloved Hall. ---
**Author:** ![Fotheringay-Phipps](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/d9b06d/32.png) [@Fotheringay-Phipps](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Fotheringay-Phipps)\ **Post date:** [January 10, 2013, 3:57am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/2013-mlb-hall-of-fame-ballot-let-the-fireworks-begin/642264/192 "2013-01-10T03:57:45Z")
> [@Yookeroo](#): > > Or better yet, let players stay on the ballot forever. If you did this it would exacerbate the other problem being discussed here, in that there would be more eligible players competing for spaces and keeping deserving candidates below the treshhold. ---
**Author:** ![markdash](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/ba8739/32.png) [@markdash](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/markdash)\ **Post date:** [January 10, 2013, 3:58am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/2013-mlb-hall-of-fame-ballot-let-the-fireworks-begin/642264/193 "2013-01-10T03:58:07Z")
There is no argument for Morris that does not also include Schilling. ---
**Author:** ![UltraVires](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/u/ecccb3/32.png) [@UltraVires](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/UltraVires)\ **Post date:** [January 10, 2013, 4:19am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/2013-mlb-hall-of-fame-ballot-let-the-fireworks-begin/642264/194 "2013-01-10T04:19:57Z")
> [@markdash](#): > > There is no argument for Morris that does not also include Schilling. Well, Morris has only one more shot next year. Schilling should be in as well…eventually. Schilling and Morris are both deserving of the Hall, but not in early balloting. ---
**Author:** ![JohnT](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/johnt/32/15048_2.png) [@JohnT](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/JohnT)\ **Post date:** [January 10, 2013, 4:27am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/2013-mlb-hall-of-fame-ballot-let-the-fireworks-begin/642264/195 "2013-01-10T04:27:06Z")
Again, I don’t understand the “they belong in the hall, but not in early balloting” logic. Either they belong or not. I also don’t have a problem with PED users being put in the HoF. If it’s such a big deal, just put “may have used PED’s to attain records” on their plaques. Cooperstown is a _museum_, not a church. :rolleyes: ---
**Author:** ![RickJay](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/bb73d2/32.png) [@RickJay](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RickJay)\ **Post date:** [January 10, 2013, 4:37am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/2013-mlb-hall-of-fame-ballot-let-the-fireworks-begin/642264/196 "2013-01-10T04:37:22Z")
> [@jtgain](#): > > Well, Morris has only one more shot next year. Schilling should be in as well…eventually. Schilling and Morris are both deserving of the Hall, but not in early balloting. You either deserve to be in the Hall of Fame or you don’t. There’s no difference on the plaque between first year and fifteenth. It’s time for people to drop this ridiculous “not onthe first ballot” crap. Is Curt Schilling a Hall of Famer? Yes or no? It’s a simple, binary question. And I’ll say straight out that anyone who didn’t vote for Craig Biggio doesn’t know shit about baseball. ---
**Author:** ![etv78](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/d78d45/32.png) [@etv78](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/etv78)\ **Post date:** [January 10, 2013, 8:56am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/2013-mlb-hall-of-fame-ballot-let-the-fireworks-begin/642264/197 "2013-01-10T08:56:46Z")
What does everyone think of dropping the threshold to 66.7%? ---
**Author:** ![The\_Other\_Waldo\_Pepper](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/the_other_waldo_pepper/32/12370_2.png) [@The\_Other\_Waldo\_Pepper](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/The_Other_Waldo_Pepper)\ **Post date:** [January 10, 2013, 1:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/2013-mlb-hall-of-fame-ballot-let-the-fireworks-begin/642264/198 "2013-01-10T13:19:17Z")
> [@zev\_steinhardt](#): > > It’s not certain that Gehrig was elected unanimously. Hey, the other guy figured _“Apparently no one in the history of baseball has ever been elected unanimously.”_ I’m using Gehrig to reduce certainty, not declare it. ---
**Author:** ![storyteller0910](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/ecae2f/32.png) [@storyteller0910](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/storyteller0910)\ **Post date:** [January 10, 2013, 1:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/2013-mlb-hall-of-fame-ballot-let-the-fireworks-begin/642264/199 "2013-01-10T13:25:37Z")
> [@jtgain](#): > > Bonds, Clemens, et al don’t belong in my beloved Hall. …which is fine, and fair, as long as you accept that, given a few years’ worth of perspective, your Hall will be utterly irrelevant in terms of the interest in creates in new fans and in terms of its value as a historical archive. In the sentence above you’ve dismissed the best position player and best pitcher in five decades; why should anyone take the Hall seriously as anything other than a curiosity ever again? ---
**Author:** ![unwashed\_brain](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/u/a9adbd/32.png) [@unwashed\_brain](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/unwashed_brain)\ **Post date:** [January 10, 2013, 1:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/2013-mlb-hall-of-fame-ballot-let-the-fireworks-begin/642264/200 "2013-01-10T13:57:10Z")
I think people forget how good a player Murph was in his era. Those complaining his peak was too short need to look at what he did over the entire decade of the 80’s. These are rather impressive credentials: **• Led MLB in total bases during the span of 1980-1989 (2,796)** **• 2nd (only to HOFer Mike Schmidt) in total home runs from 1980-1989 (308)** • 2nd (only to HOFer Eddie Murray) in total runs from 1980-1989 • 1st in total home runs from 1980-1989 among all Major League outfielders (308) • 1st in total RBIs from 1980-1989 among all Major League outfielders (929) • 2nd in total hits from 1980-1989 among Major League outfielders (1,553) • 2nd in total extra-base hits from 1980-1989 among Major League outfielders (596) From his son’s open letter re-stating his dad’s case: [http://hardballtalk.nbcsports.com/2012/12/08/chad-murphy-argues-for-his-dad-dale-murphy-to-get-into-the-hall-of-fame/](http://hardballtalk.nbcsports.com/2012/12/08/chad-murphy-argues-for-his-dad-dale-murphy-to-get-into-the-hall-of-fame/) [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/2013-mlb-hall-of-fame-ballot-let-the-fireworks-begin/642264.md?page=9) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/2013-mlb-hall-of-fame-ballot-let-the-fireworks-begin/642264.md?page=11)