@MarkKnudson41
Visiting Cooperstown, New York and the Baseball Hall of Fame is something every single baseball fan should make time to do at some point in their adult life. It’s spectacular and the displays and exhibits are truly amazing.
But there is one flaw.
It’s too small. Not the building or the surrounding facility. Those are fine. The Hall is too small in terms of the number of former players enshrined. There are not enough plaques on the walls.
That’s what struck me the first time I visited the Hall in the spring of 2015. There was far more empty space on the walls of this museum than there were plaques honoring former baseball greats.
With the enshrinement of Derek Jeter and Larry Walker, the number of Hall of Fame inductees rose all the way to 333. In more than a century of Major League Baseball, those who vote on the worthiness of the candidates have only been able to agree (to this point) on 333 names. There have been around 21,000 players who’ve played in the big leagues, which equates to somewhere in the vicinity of 1% of them being voted into the Hall.
Sorry, but that’s just not enough. And those who refuse to see this and recognize more greats from the past – guys who were a big part of the game during their playing or coaching days – need to get over themselves. There are a lot more worthy players than that.
Above all else, Cooperstown is a museum. Museums exist to tell the story – the history – of all things related to the theme of the place through exhibits of all different kinds. Baseball’s history is rich and you simply can’t tell the full tale with only 1% of the names.
To be fair, there are many exhibits and artifacts from players like Pete Rose who aren’t in the Hall themselves. For a player like Rose, that seems a little hypocritical, but at least baseball isn’t leaving the entire story of the game’s all time hits leader totally sidelined. You can see the bat Pete used and some other stuff from him on upper floors. You just can’t see Pete.
Voting in many more former greats to Cooperstown won’t hurt the Hall, it will make it better.
They should start with Rose, simply because baseball’s new partnerships with the sports betting industry makes his exclusion almost laughable. There’s been no accusations that Rose ever did anything intentional to hurt his team or cause them to lose games. He didn’t “shave points” or throw games. Few players have wanted to win every night more than Pete. He made mistakes by gambling on baseball and it was illegal, and he’s paid a stiff price – something that could and should be chronicled in the Hall, alongside his plaque with that long list of accomplishments. You can’t tell the story of Major League Baseball without including the guy who got more hits than anyone else who ever played.
The same goes for Roger Clemens and Barry Bonds, two of the game’s greatest who made bad decisions that cost them first ballot inductions. They were both sure fire Hall of Fame players well before either man (allegedly) touched a performance enhancing substance. Both of their career statistics are skewed by the alleged use of PED’s, which is once again something that could be and should be chronicled on their plaques, alongside their notable accomplishments on the field.
There are also “borderline” players and old timers that have yet to get the nod. Star first baseman Richie “Dick” Allen missed election by the “Golden Days Era” Committee by a single vote last week. That committee did see fit to add Gil Hodges, Tony Oliva, Minnie Minoso and Jim Kaat to the Hall. These guys were all household names during their playing days and should be part of the museum. They were an integral part of the game back then. The “Early Baseball Era” Committee voted in former Negro League stars Bud Fowler and Buck O’Neil – each among the biggest name players of that time.
At least it appears that these two committees will be trying to force the doors open a little wider from now on.
That means that at least six men will be inducted next summer. It could be more, considering the ballots that are being tabulated right about now. Those results will come out in January, but it won’t be a shock if none of the guys on this year’s regular ballot get enough votes for enshrinement. That would be a damn shame, because there are several names on the ballot this year, including former Rockies great Todd Helton, who should be in Cooperstown.
Chances are the high and mighty members of the BBWAA will make Helton wait longer. Same with Andruw Jones and others who still have several more years left on the ballot. However, this is the last go ‘round for Bonds and Clemens, so if they don’t make it this time – and it’s unlikely they will – their waits will extend until those old timers committees take up their cases. Same with Curt Schilling, one of the best post season pitchers ever, who was never linked to PED’s, but who’s often offensive, bigoted and downright frightening social media proclamations will probably end his chances by mere percentage points. Schilling could be the first former great ever to tweet his way OUT of the Hall of Fame.
For whatever reason, Baseball Hall voters – members of the Baseball Writers of Association of America – seem to feel like they need to protect the place like it’s delicate and breakable. Their standards are almost impossibly high and when pressed about it, some act as if lowering those standards would be sacrilegious. Some are fine with sending in a blank ballot each year.
That’s not the way to protect the game. They best way to protect it is to promote it by telling the full story of baseball’s history, not just an abridged version.
Be sure to catch “The Park Adjusted Rockies Podcast” with Mark Knudson and Manny Randhawa available where you find all your favorite podcasts.