MANY FACTORS DETERMINE VOTES
As the National Baseball Hall of Fame Class of 2017 is announced this week, four USA TODAY Sports writers with a vote share their ballots and the rationale behind some of the picks:
Jeff Bagwell, Barry Bonds, Roger Clemens, Vladimir Guerrero, Edgar Martinez, Mike Mussina, Tim Raines, Ivan Rodriguez, Curt Schilling, Larry Walker
I remain uncomfortable taking a stand against players for whom there is compelling evidence of performance-enhancing drug use, especially if the Hall of Fame and Major League Baseball won’t provide any meaningful guidance. But here’s another ballot with more than 10 players worthy of induction. So check the box for players who are clean — or aren’t blatantly not clean — and use the remaining spots for those we can’t be certain of. That’s how Bonds and Clemens get my vote for the second year in a row and why I can kick the can down the road on Manny Ramirez and Sammy Sosa.
Gabe Lacques
Bagwell, Bonds, Clemens, Guerrero, Trevor Hoffman, Raines, Rodriguez, Schilling, Gary Sheffield, Walker
Martinez’s candidacy has mostly trended upward — he hit 43% last year and could reach 60% in this, his eighth year on the ballot. His supporters have grown more vocal, as well, so I feel compelled to address not voting for him. A .312 batting average, .418 on-base percentage and .515 slugging percentage over 18 seasons are remarkable. His career offensive Wins Above Replacement (WAR) of 66 ranks 70th all time. He won two batting titles and finished in the top five in on-base-plus-slugging percentage (OPS) six times. But save for 1992, he spent the vast majority of his best seasons at designated hitter. In 18 seasons, he amassed 2,247 hits and 309 homers. If most of your legacy is carved out at DH, sublime counting numbers are more important — particularly given that Martinez’s greatness came in the most inflated offensive era in baseball history. Martinez was often overshadowed by teammates Alex Rodriguez and Ken Griffey Jr. Yet in the Seattle Mariners’ 116-win season of 2001, with both of them gone, Martinez ranked fifth among Seattle hitters in WAR.
Bob Nightengale
Bagwell, Bonds, Clemens, Guerrero, Hoffman, Fred McGriff, Raines, Ivan Rodriguez, Sheffield, Sosa
The most penalized player during the steroid era was McGriff. He barely survives on the ballot year after year, but if not for the steroid era, I’m convinced he’d be in the Hall of Fame. McGriff, who hit 493 homers, surely would have eclipsed the magical 500 mark without the 1994-95 player strike. He is the only player in baseball history to be on the ballot with at least 475 homers, not linked to PEDs and not be in the Hall of Fame. If you’re into metrics, his OPS+ (accounting for league and ballpark) is better than that of Hall of Famers Dave Winfield, Eddie Murray and Tony Gwynn. He was the model of consistency with 10 seasons of 30 or more homers and eight seasons of at least 100 RBI. Enough whining about Martinez, who happens to have 184 fewer homers and 289 fewer RBI than McGriff.
Jorge L. Ortiz
Bagwell, Guerrero, Hoffman, Jeff Kent, Raines, Ivan Rodriguez
I don’t think there’s a right or wrong way to answer the PED question. My approach has been to vote for worthwhile candidates who have been suspected of PED use if there’s no paper trail linked to them or a compelling case that goes beyond conjecture. So I voted for Mike Piazza in the past and this year voted for Bagwell and Rodriguez. When guys have obvious Hall of Fame credentials but more persuasive evidence of PED use against them — Bonds, Clemens, Sosa and Ramirez — I have chosen to leave them off my ballot until their final year of eligibility, at which point I will give them serious consideration. Kent hit more home runs as a second baseman than anybody else, and he had eight seasons of 20 homers and 100 RBI, compared with two seasons for Hall of Famer Ryne Sandberg. If you compare their career offensive numbers, Kent beats him in every meaningful category except steals. Granted, he was not in Sandberg’s class defensively, but Kent was a solid second baseman with limited range.