No One Elected to Baseball Hall of Fame Class of 2021

Bradford Doolittle, reporting for ESPN:

No player on the Hall’s 2021 Baseball Writers’ Association of America ballot reached the 75 percent threshold needed for enshrinement in Cooperstown. The results of the voting were announced by Hall of Fame president Tim Mead on MLB Network on Tuesday night.

The leading vote-getter was controversial pitcher Curt Schilling, who was named on 71.1 percent of the ballots, 16 votes shy of the minimum needed for selection. Schilling was followed by all-time home run leader Barry Bonds (61.8 percent) and 354-game winner Roger Clemens (61.6) in the voting.

These BBWAA voters need to get over themselves. It’s embarrassing to the sport that Bonds and Clemens aren’t in. Same for Pete Rose. Put them in the hall and explain what they did in the exhibit of their careers.

Schilling is a good counter-example. I think he’s a borderline hall of famer, based on performance alone. Letting his personal odiousness be the deciding factor to leave him off your ballot is reasonable. Same thing with a guy like Sammy Sosa — borderline, statistically, so sure, let your feelings about his use of PEDs be a factor in your vote. But Clemens and Bonds? There’s nothing borderline about them.

★ Tuesday, 26 January 2021