Especially by the owners. Expanded playoffs is a rather obvious money-grab by a small bunch of billionaires. Fuck 'em!
I have to agree with my esteemed colleague here.
At least it’s honest. I doubt the players will mind anyway.
The thing is, a “lockout” in December doesn’t really mean anything. If they get a deal in time for spring training no one will remember this happened. If they don’t, well, attendance is already flat; this isn’t a sport that needs another kick in the nuts.
As a baseball card collecting kid in the 1970s, I am thrilled to see Minnie Minoso in the hall. Legendary.
Minoso was an oiverdue choice, as was O’Neil.
I don’t think Gil Hodges, as a player, is anywhere near HOF level. There are many, many players with careers that look a lot like his. He’s sort of like Tino Martinez.
I would assume the Miracle Mets weighed in his (Hodges) favor - deserved or not.
I am so very happy for Buck O’Neil’s family and friends. Growing up in Kansas City he was an absolute fixture, and so crucial to building awareness of the importance of the Negro Leagues. He and Minoso have been waiting for far too long.
When are they going to weigh in on Keith Hernandez? He only made the Cardinal’s Hall last year. Another victim of the War on Drugs. He admitted his mistake, talked elequently about cocaine - “It’s the devil on this earth” - and never did it again.
I see they also elected Jim Kaat and Tony Oliva. Really good players but it’s becoming increasingly weird to induct guys like that and leave Barry Bonds and Roger Clemens out.
Dick Allen (career OPS+156) was an even better ballplayer than any of these inductees, and somehow he misses out. These committees are the worst.
He missed by one vote, based on what I just heard on the news. 
Yeah, recent veterans’ committee inductees are opening the door for a lot of slightly-better-than-average players. Jim Kaat pretty much just played forever. Who’s next? Jamie Moyer?
And Gil Hodges, as a player, is a level below a guy like Fred McGriff. Hodges is pretty much exactly Dale Murphy, who never really got all that close in the writers’ votes.
For that matter McGriff was replaced at first in Toronto by John Olerud, who IMHO was also at least as good a player as Hodges. I like the Martinez, McGriff and Olerud comparisons because those players, like Hodges, were also key parts of elite championship teams, something that Dale Murphy (or say Carlos Delgado or Edwin Encarnacion) cannot say.
Olerud and Tino combined received less than 2% of writers’ votes. Who knows, 40 or 50 years from now maybe they’ll get another look.
Not that I think either are deserving, by the way, but you can’t help but say, “well if this guy’s in then you have to put that guy in.”
I saw an article on the MLB subreddit over the weekend which was exactly that: “Now that Jim Kaat is in the Hall, here’s the case for Jamie Moyer.”
Ha! I mean Kaat and Moyer are not wildly different. Neither was ever finished in the top 3 for the Cy Young award. Kaat does have a ton of gold gloves, so that’s worth something I guess.
I liked Kaat when he was broadcasting Yankee games, so I’m trying to ignore his 108 ERA+ and focus on the old school stuff. 283 wins! Won 20+ games three times! 16 gold gloves! Actually, that last one is pretty cool. Either he was an excellent fielder or he really fooled a lot of people.
That bar does keep getting lowered, though. Seeing Kaat and Morris (105 ERA+) get in makes a guy like Pettitte (117 ERA+) look like a shoo-in.*
*I know era+ is just another trivial stat. I just wanted to toss in one baseline metric.
The problem with these selections is, ya know, exactly that. If you don’t start your thought process with “is this guy really the best player of his era/position who’s not in? And if not, why am I voting for him?” then you end up here, having to explain why Jamie Moyer isn’t a Hall of Famer. Or what about Tommy John? He was just as good as Jim Kaat. Let’s put Bartolo Colon in the Hall!
Tony Oliva is, at least, kind of a unique case. No one is really like him; Don Mattingly, kinda, but not the same position.
I don’t know the schedule of these committees, but guys like Dwight Evans and Lou Whitaker almost have to make it in now.
The Modern Game Era committee meets again in 2024.
Next year is Early Baseball, which should elect no one.