Breaking Down the 2012 Hall of Fame Ballot

On Wednesday, the Baseball Writers Association of America announced the upcoming 2012 Hall of Fame ballot.  Included are 27 candidates (down from last year's 33)...13 newcomers and, like last year, 14 holdovers.

Unlike last year, when Roberto Alomar and Bert Blyleven got the obvious call, there are no shoe-ins whatsoever.

Leading the pack of returners is 1995 National League MVP, Barry Larkin...who is on his third ballot.  A year ago, the longtime Cincinnati Reds shortstop finished third overall with 62.1% of the vote.

Other holdovers include Jack Morris (53.5%), Lee Smith (45.3%), Jeff Bagwell (41.7%), Tim  Raines (37.5%), Edgar Martinez (32.9%), Alan Trammell (24.3%), Larry Walker (20.3%), Fred McGriff (17.9%), Don Mattingly (13.6%) and Dale Murphy (12.6%).

Three others, Mark McGwire (19.8%), Rafael Palmeiro (11.0%) and Juan Gonzalez (5.2%) are obviously adorned with the steroid scarlett letter and have about as much of a shot of making it in as you or me.

There are no notable newcomers on the ballot, which makes this a boring, boring ballot.

Leading the pack, however is possibly the most accomplished of the first ballot guys...New York Yankees fan favorite Bernie Williams.

Good friend of The Hall "Bald Vinny" might have Williams on his Yankees Mt. Rushmore, but it isn't likely that the Hall of Fame will welcome him. Sure, his .297 career batting average (including eight straight seasons of .300 or more), 2336 hits and 22 post season home runs are things of recent Yankee lore…but they are nothing but a blip on the radar of what gets mentioned alongside the names of those in Cooperstown

Other notable first ballot guys...Javy Lopez, Ruben Sierra and Vinny Castilla.

It's been a long time, but back in the day, I think we all might have been tempted to make the argument that Lopez was on his way to something. Then, well, the train left the tracks and I'm not really sure what happened to the guy. He ended his career with a respectable .287 batting average and 260 home runs.

20 years ago, Sierra was, along with Hall of Very Good frenemy Jose Canseco, Mark McGwire and Pete Incaviglia, THE future of baseball and you would have been hard pressed to find anyone to agree with you. Now, after 306 home runs and 1322 RBI…he’s an interesting footnote to an era that has long since passed.

Was Castilla a very good hitting third baseman or another one of those who was helped by the much ballyhooed Coors Effect? Both?!? Any way you slice it, his 320 home runs and near perfect hair doesn’t get him through the doors of Cooperstown without paying first.

Rounding out the ballot...Jeromy Burnitz, former two-sport star Brian Jordan, Bill Mueller, Terry Mulholland, Phil Nevin, Brad Radke, 1993 American League Rookie of the Year Tim Salmon, Tony Womack and Eric Young.

Voting results will be announced Monday, January 9.

Rafael Palmeiro is Sticking to His Story

We're less than a week out from the 2011 Hall of Fame class being announced and Rafael Palmeiro is still sticking to the same "tainted vitamin shot" story he tried selling after he was suspended for failing a steroid test more than five years ago.

"I was telling the truth then, and I am telling the truth now," Palmeiro said in an interview with SI.com. "I don't know what else I can say. I have never taken steroids. For people who think I took steroids intentionally, I'm never going to convince them. But I hope the voters judge my career fairly and don't look at one mistake."

Following the 2004 season, Palmeiro appeared to be a lock for Cooperstown with 551 home runs, 1775 RBI and a mere 78 hits shy of 3000.

Thing is...he probably wishes now that he would have hung it up instead of returning for the rollercoaster ride that was 2005.

Prior to his 19th Major League season, Palmeiro was called out by former teammate Jose Canseco in his best seller Juiced. That was followed up by that pesky Congressional hearing in which the four-time All-Star (now) infamously proclaimed that he had "never used steroids, period".

In July, Palmeiro joined Hank Aaron, Willie Mays and Eddie Murray as the only players in big league history with 500 homers and 3000 hits, but less than three weeks later, the potential Hall of Fame train seemingly derailed when Palmeiro tested positive positive for steroids.

After returning from his ten day suspension, he managed a paltry two hits in 26 at bats and couldn't find anyone to bid on his services for 2006.

It is uncertain why Palmeiro is choosing now to, again, proclaim his innocence since the minds of the BBWAA have probably already been made, but it will be interesting to see how he fares next week when the votes are announced.

So, without completely re-hashing the story of fellow (alledged) steroid user Mark McGwire, it warrants mentioning that Hall of Fame voters have denied the former slugger entrance in Cooperstown four times. 

Last year, McGwire received only 23.7 percent of the vote (75 percent is needed for enshrinement) and, frankly, early indications are that Palmeiro probably won't do much better.

Cooperstown 2011: Rafael Palmeiro

RAFAEL PALMEIRO
First Year on Ballot

PLAYING CAREER: Chicago Cubs (1986–1988), Texas Rangers (1989–1993), Baltimore Orioles (1994–1998), Texas Rangers (1999–2003) and Baltimore Orioles (2004–2005)

ACHIEVEMENTS:  Career batting average of .288, with 3020 hits, 569 home runs, 1663 runs scored and 1835 RBI.  Ranks in the top 30 all-time in total bases (10th), home runs (12th), RBI (15th), at bats (15th), doubles (16th), games played (18th), hits (24th) and runs scored (30th).  Had a batting average of .300 or higher six times.  From 1995 to 2003, averaged 41 home runs and 120 RBI a season while carrying a .285 batting average.  Palmeiro is one of only five players in history to hit over 200 home runs for two different clubs (Baltimore and Texas) and is is history's most prolific home run hitter to have never won the home run crown.  Four-time All-Star selection (1988, 1991, 1998-1999) and three-time Gold Glove Award winner (1997-1999). 

WHAT THEY'RE SAYING ON TWITTER: 

@Dukefrukem:  Rafael Palmeiro won't be inducted into the hall of fame right?
 
@Kanarisp:  3020 hits, 569 HR, .288 = Rafael Palmeiro non-hall of fame stats.
 
@MLBreports:  I have thought about this one. Palmeiro will not make the hall. Will not survive 1st ballot. You heard it here first. 

 
HOVG THOUGHTS:  Beautiful mustache or no...it’s hard to look at Palmeiro’s numbers and not get pissed off.  All spectacular, albeit wasted, numbers. His 5388 total bases ranks him tenth all-time and the afore mentioned hits and home runs total makes him one of only four players to have 3000 hits and 500 dongs. That being said, there isn’t a snowball’s chance that a guy who pointed his finger to Congress and proclaimed “I have never used steroids, period” gets in a mere six years after being found guilty of doing the opposite.

Happy Anniversary Mitchell Report

It’s been three long years since the Report to the Commissioner of Baseball of an Independent Investigation into the Illegal Use of Steroids and Other Performance Enhancing Substances by Players in Major League Baseball become public and engrained itself within our collective conscience as the “Mitchell Report”.

The report was the result of former senator George Mitchell’s nearly two-year investigation into the use of steroids and human growth hormones in Major League Baseball.

89 players were named in the 409-page report and this year’s Hall of Fame class, while not the first to have suspected steroid users, features a handful of the report’s biggest names.

Everyone already knows the plight of Mark McGwire and his inability to get any where near the 75% that he needs to get enshrined in Cooperstown.

First on the ballot in 2007, McGwire has hovered between 21.9 and 23.7% in the four tries on the Hall of Fame ballot. Arguments can and have been made as to whether or not the former slugger and his 583 home runs are Hall-worthy with or without the steroid allegations.

But now that he has admitted that he, in fact, did use performance-enhancing drugs throughout his career…will we see a drop in support?

This year, there are four first-time nominees on the ballot that also appear in the “Mitchell Report”…six-time All-Star Kevin Brown, two-time MVP Juan Gonzalez, former Rookie of the Year Benito Sanitago and, of course, the guy who will most surely test the Hall of Fame voters the most.

Rafael Palmeiro.

Palmeiro has the most Cooperstown-worthy numbers (he’s one of only four players with more than 3000 hits and 500 home runs) of anyone that’s been on the ballot in recent years, but, it will be his suspension in 2005 that will basically put a fork in his chances at enshrinement.

But according to the “Mitchell Report”…Palmeiro didn’t knowingly do anything wrong.

On August 1, 2005, Major League Baseball announced that Baltimore Orioles first baseman and designated hitter Rafael Palmeiro had violated the league's joint drug program and would be suspended for 10 games. Palmeiro subsequently acknowledged that he had tested positive for the anabolic steroid stanozolol, the generic name for Winstrol, but he repeatedly denied that he had ever "intentionally taken steroids."

Unfortunately, the suspension will overshadow the numbers. The big question isn’t if he did or didn’t…it’s how will the voters treat him.

Palmeiro’s former teammate Texas Rangers Juan Gonzalez wasn’t named directly in the Mitchell Report, but the two-time MVP was linked to some suspicious luggage found while he played in Cleveland.

On the evening of October 4, 2001, Canadian Border Service officers working at Toronto's international airport discovered steroids, syringes, and clenbuterol in an unmarked duffel bag during an airport search of luggage that had been unloaded from the Cleveland Indians flight from Kansas City.

Oh, and baseball’s most famous steroid user Jose Canseco implicated “Igor” in his 2005 best-seller “Juiced: Wild Times, Rampant 'Roids, Smash Hits and How Baseball Got Big”…saying he introduced the former outfielder to the culture.

Yikes.

Arguably baseball’s highest profile (alledged) steroid user is Barry Bonds. And while the seven-time MVP won’t be up for Hall of Fame consideration for a few more years, one of his (seemingly) partners in crime is on the ballot this year.

Benito Santiago was one of several players implicated in the BALCO investigation and the book "Game of Shadows" and according to the Mitchell Report, he was just as guilty as his former San Francisco Giants teammate.

At the end of the 2003 season, Mike Murphy, a Giants clubhouse attendant, was cleaning out Santiago's locker when he found a sealed package of syringes. Murphy brought the syringes to the training room, handed them to (Victor) Conte, and told Conte that he had found them in Santiago's locker. Conte responded that he "would take care of it".

Lastly, Kevin Brown.

According to the report, Brown called former Mets clubhouse employee-turned-Mitchell Report snitch Kirk Radomski after he got injured and asked for human growth hormones.

Radomski sent HGH to Brown and in return received a package containing $8,000 in cash. According to Radomski, over the next two or three years he sold performance enhancing substances to Brown five or six times. Radomski recalled that Brown usually purchased multiple kits of HGH, paying with cash. At one point, Brown asked Radomski for Deca-Durabolin to help with an ailing elbow, and Radomski sold it to him.

Any other year, Brown’s stellar winning percentage and reputation as a staff ace might get him a few more votes. This year, the fact that he was implicated will probably cost him a second year on the ballot.

Since the December 13, 2007, only five players not named Mark McGwire have appeared on both the Hall of Fame ballot and the “Mitchell Report”.

In 2008, David Justice and Chuck Knoblauch each appeared on one of the 543 ballots that were cast.

A year later, Mo Vaughn and Matt Williams faired much better, getting a combined 13 votes…a far cry from the 405 votes needed to get inducted.

And last year, admitted steroid user David Segui did as well as Justice and Knoblauch…equaling their one vote.

It’s hard to say if any of the vote totals in the last three elections were directly influenced by the “Mitchell Report” as none of the five really stood any chance of getting in to Cooperstown, but this year, guys like Rafael Palmeiro and Juan Gonzalez actually could have a shot…if it wasn’t for that pesky George Mitchell and his Report to the Commissioner of Baseball of an Independent Investigation into the Illegal Use of Steroids and Other Performance Enhancing Substances by Players in Major League Baseball

Breaking Down the 2011 Hall of Fame Ballot

On Monday, the Baseball Writers Association of America announced the 2011 Hall of Fame ballot.

All in all, there are 33 candidates (up from 26 last year)...19 newcomers and 14 holdovers. And while there are no shoe-ins...there are definitely some great storylines.

Last year, pitcher Bert Blyleven came five votes shy of induction. In this, his second-to-last time on the ballot, the Dutchman is looking to grow his 74.2% to the 75% necessary.

Also coming just short last year was Roberto Alomar. Along with Blyleven, he was one of two candidates that came within ten votes shy. With 397 votes (405 were needed), the second baseman received the most votes of any first-year candidate without being elected.

Two other players were named on more than half the ballots...pitcher Jack Morris (52.3%) and shortstop Barry Larkin (51.6%)

Other notable holdovers...Lee Smith (47.3%), Edgar Martinez (36.2%), Tim Raines (30.4%), Mark McGwire (23.7%), Alan Trammell (22.4%), Fred McGriff (21.5%), Don Mattingly (16.1%), Dale Murphy (11.7%) and Harold Baines (6.1%).

Dave Parker, who received 15.2% a year ago, will be appearing on his 15th and final ballot.

The most notable newcomer to this year's ballot is also, arguably, the most accomplished...Rafael Palmeiro.

Of course, the fact that Palmeiro is only one of four players with more than 3000 hits and 500 home runs (Hank Aaron, Willie Mays and Eddie Murray are the others) is overshadowed by that pesky steroid suspension that was handed down in August 2005.

While his 1835 RBI is spectacular and his 5,388 total bases rank him tenth all-time, there isn’t a snowball’s chance that a guy who pointed his finger to Congress and proclaimed “I have never used steroids, period” gets in a mere six years after being found guilty of doing the opposite.

Another player under the "did he" or "didn't he" cloud of suspicion is two-time American League MVP Juan Gonzalez. With a lifetime .295 batting average, 434 home runs and 1404 RBI...he would fit in well in Cooperstown. The fact that it is unknown if he was clean or not will make him lucky to see his name pop up on a quarter of the ballots.

A guy that stands to get a bunch of love is Astros legend Jeff Bagwell. "Bagpipes" played the game right compiling 449 home runs, 1517 runs scored, 1529 RBI and a .297 batting average before calling it quits in 2005.

Seven-time Gold Glove winner Larry Walker is also on the ballot for the first time. With a career .313 batting average, 383 home runs and 1311 RBI, the 1997 National League MVP is looking to become only the second Canadian-born player in the Hall of Fame.

Reliever John Franco compiled a huge number of saves over his 21 year career. His 424 saves rank him fourth all-time behind Trevor Hoffman, Mariano Rivera and Lee Smith. But until Smith gets the call...Franco won't get anywhere near Cooperstown.

Also on the ballot for the first time...Carlos Baerga, Bret Boone, Kevin Brown, Marquis Grissom, Lenny Harris, Bobby Higginson, Charles Johnson, Al Leiter, Tino Martinez, 1994 National League Rookie of the Year Raul Mondesi, John Olerud, Kirk Reuter, 1987 National League Rookie of the Year Benito Santiago, and B.J. Surhoff.

Players receiving votes on 75 percent of the ballots will garner an invite to the enshrinement ceremony July 24th in Cooperstown. Results of the vote will be announced January 5th and each day until then, The Hall of Very Good will be breaking now one of the 33 candidates.

Alright, so let's jump back to the beginning...there are no shoe-ins this year, but Bert Blyleven and Roberto Alomar look to be the two guys with the best chance of enshrinement. Rafael Palmeiro would have been looking at being named on nine out of ten ballots if not for the failed steroid test. But unfortuantely, he won't be seeing the inside walls of the Hall of Fame without first buying a ticket.

So who do you think will make it this year? Let your voice be heard in the comments section!

The Hall of Fame Class of 2011

This weekend, the Hall of Fame opens its doors to some new members...Andre Dawson, Whitey Herzog and Doug Harvey.

Of course, its the inclusion of Dawson (and omission of Bert Blyleven and Roberto Alomar) that has everyone buzzing.

After nine years on the ballot, "The Hawk" got his mandatory 75% (77.9% to be exact) last January...and Sunday, he'll be up on the podium addressing his supporters.

One has to wonder what next year will bring. Now, I’ve been saying this for a few years and I’ll say it again…the BBWAA are poised to have their hands full.

Not only will two very popular holdovers (Blyleven received 74.2% and Alomar came in at 73.7%) be on the ballot, but also in the mix will be one guy who was found guilty of taking performance enhancing drugs and another that just about everyone and their mother thinks did.

Add to that combo a few of “good guys”, a prick or two and you’ve got the recipe for a great vote.

Buckle up.

IN.

John Franco.
Why not start with one of the “good guys”? Here’s the rub with Franco, while I believe he is most certainly Hall-worthy…I can’t put him in until Lee Smith gets his number punched. Franco compiled a huge number of saves over his 21 year career. His 424 saves rank him fourth all-time behind Trevor Hoffman, Mariano Rivera and, you guessed it…Smith. He is third in games finished behind, again, Hoffman and Smith. Franco was a four time All-Star and twice brought home the Rolaids Relief Man Award. A quiet closer, he compiled a 90-87 record (decent considering his role…Hoffman’s career mark is 61-72) and a 2.89 ERA.

Jeff Bagwell.
Here’s the deal with me and Bagwell…I always ADMIRED Bagwell, but was never a huge Bagwell guy until AFTER he hung up his spikes. I respect the Hell out of the man for leaving the game after only 15 seasons. He could have very well hung around to pad some numbers to his already bloated 449 home run and 1529 RBI totals. But he chose not to. He could have left Houston a number of times. But he chose not to. His .948 OPS is 23rd all-time and the only Hall eligible player that is higher on that list and NOT enshrined is Mark McGwire. Bagwell was the National League Rookie of the Year in 1991 and followed it up three seasons later with the National League MVP award. A career .297 hitter, Bagwell also appeared in four All-Star Games and was twice (yes, TWICE) a 30-30 man. And...he had a bitchin' goatee.

OUT (in random order).

Kevin Brown.
Brown’s 211-144 record isn’t as impressive as the .594 winning percentage it carries with it. Of course, that is only the tip of the iceberg for the hot and cold hurler. A 3.28 career ERA, 2397 Ks and 13 seasons with ten or more victories makes Brown a hard choice to NOT put on the bubble. One ring, six All-Star Games and seven Gold Gloves…sorry Brown. If David Cone can’t sniff the halls of Cooperstown…you can’t either.

John Olerud.
The College Baseball Hall of Famer and two-time World Champion isn’t going to get much love from Cooperstown. While his .295 career average and 2239 hits is impressive…he was WAY overshadowed by other great first basemen throughout his career. Here’s a fun fact…Olerud is one of only TWO players to hit for the cycle in both leagues. Can you name the other?

Tino Martinez.
Another overshadowed first baseman (and probably rightfully so), Martinez is only mentioned here because there are some out there (I’m looking your way Yankees fans) that think guys like Tino, Bernie Williams and Paul O’Neill deserve a spot up on the wall. But here’s the thing…none of them hold a candle to Don Mattingly, and last year, “Donnie Baseball” couldn’t muster more than 11.9%.

BJ Surhoff, Marquis Grissom, Bret Boone, Al Leiter, 1987 National League Rookie of the Year Benito Santiago, Carlos Baerga, 1994 National League Rookie of the Year Raul Mondesi, Bobby Higginson, Wilson Alvarez, Rey Sanchez, Charles Johnson, Jose Offerman, Ugueth “currently serving a 14-year prison sentence” Urbina, Ismael Valdez, Dan Wilson, Paul Quantrill, Cal Eldred, Kirk Rueter and Steve Reed.

ON THE BUBBLE.

Larry Walker.
Good friend of The HOVG, David Allan is going to KILL me for putting Walker “on the bubble” and Bagwell in the Hall of Fame, so here’s the deal…read what he had to say about Walker back in January and make up your own mind.

Juan Gonzalez.
Possibly the hardest player to characterize on this list is Gonzalez. I’m a fan, through and through. I always bought into the “Juan Gone” hype, the two MVP awards and the monster long balls. His 1996-1999 stretch is, arguably, one of the best of the 90s and in any other era…he’s in. But was the dude clean? Are his numbers going to go the way of McGwire and be pushed to the side in favor of steroid allegations considering some of his teammates?

Which brings me to…

Rafael Palmeiro.
Beautiful mustache or no...it’s hard to look at Palmeiro’s numbers and not get pissed off. 3020 hits, 569 home runs, 1835 RBI…all spectacular, albeit wasted, numbers. His 5388 total bases ranks him tenth all-time and the afore mentioned hits and home runs total makes him one of only FOUR players to have 3000 hits and 500 dongs. That being said, there isn’t a snowball’s chance that a guy who pointed his finger to Congress and proclaimed “I have never used steroids, period” gets in a mere six years after being found guilty of doing the opposite.

All this week, come back for a re-hash of 2012, 2013 and 2014. Also on the horizon...an all new breakdown of the 2015 ballot.

The Hall of Fame Class of 2011

I’ve been saying this for a few years and I’ll say it again…the BBWAA will have their hands full when it comes to the 2011 election.

In the mix will be one guy who was found guilty of taking performance enhancing drugs and another that just about everyone and their mother thinks did. Add to that combo a few of “good guys”, a prick or two and you’ve got the recipe for a great vote.

Buckle up.

IN.

John Franco.
Why not start with one of the “good guys”? Here’s the rub with Franco, while I believe he is most certainly Hall-worthy…I can’t put him in until Lee Smith gets his number punched. Franco compiled a huge number of saves over his 21 year career. His 424 saves rank him fourth all-time behind Trevor Hoffman, Mariano Rivera and, you guessed it…Smith. He is third in games finished behind, again, Hoffman and Smith. Franco was a four time All-Star and twice brought home the Rolaids Relief Man Award. A quiet closer, he compiled a 90-87 record (decent considering his role…Hoffman’s career mark is 57-67) and a 2.89 ERA.

Jeff Bagwell.
Here’s the deal with me and Bagwell…I always ADMIRED Bagwell, but was never a huge Bagwell guy until AFTER he hung up his spikes. I respect the Hell out of the man for leaving the game after only 15 seasons. He could have very well hung around to pad some numbers to his already bloated 449 home run and 1529 RBI totals. But he chose not to. He could have left Houston a number of times. But he chose not to. His .948 OPS is 23rd all-time and the only Hall eligible player that is higher on that list and NOT enshrined is Mark McGwire. Bagwell was the National League Rookie of the Year in 1991 and followed it up three seasons later with the National League MVP award. A career .297 hitter, Bagwell also appeared in four All-Star Games and was twice (yes, TWICE) a 30-30 man. And...he had a bitchin' goatee.

OUT (in random order).

Kevin Brown.
Brown’s 211-144 record isn’t as impressive as the .594 winning percentage it carries with it. Of course, that is only the tip of the iceberg for the hot and cold hurler. A 3.28 career ERA, 2397 Ks and 13 seasons with ten or more victories makes Brown a hard choice to NOT put on the bubble. One ring, six All-Star Games and seven Gold Gloves…sorry Brown. If David Cone can’t sniff the halls of Cooperstown…you can’t either.

John Olerud.
The College Baseball Hall of Famer and two-time World Champion isn’t going to get much love from Cooperstown. While his .295 career average and 2239 hits is impressive…he was WAY overshadowed by other great first basemen throughout his career. Here’s a fun fact…Olerud is one of only TWO players to hit for the cycle in both leagues. Can you name the other?

Tino Martinez.
Another overshadowed first baseman (and probably rightfully so), Martinez is only mentioned here because there are some out there (I’m looking your way Yankees fans) that think guys like Tino, Bernie Williams and Paul O’Neill deserve a spot up on the wall. But here’s the thing…none of them hold a candle to Don Mattingly, and last year, “Donnie Baseball” couldn’t muster more than 11.9%.

BJ Surhoff, Marquis Grissom, Bret Boone, Al Leiter, 1987 National League Rookie of the Year Benito Santiago, Carlos Baerga, 1994 National League Rookie of the Year Raul Mondesi, Bobby Higginson, Wilson Alvarez, Rey Sanchez, Charles Johnson, Jose Offerman, Ugueth “currently serving a 14-year prison sentence” Urbina, Ismael Valdez, Dan Wilson, Paul Quantrill, Cal Eldred, Kirk Rueter and Steve Reed.

ON THE BUBBLE.

Larry Walker.
Good friend of The HOVG, David Allan is going to KILL me for putting Walker “on the bubble” and Bagwell in the Hall of Fame, so here’s the deal…read what he had to say about Walker back in January and make up your own mind.

Juan Gonzalez.
Possibly the hardest player to characterize on this list is Gonzalez. I’m a fan, through and through. I always bought into the “Juan Gone” hype, the two MVP awards and the monster long balls. His 1996-1999 stretch is, arguably, one of the best of the 90s and in any other era…he’s in. But was the dude clean? Are his numbers going to go the way of McGwire and be pushed to the side in favor of steroid allegations considering some of his teammates?

Which brings me to…

Rafael Palmeiro.
Beautiful mustache or no...it’s hard to look at Palmeiro’s numbers and not get pissed off. 3020 hits, 569 home runs, 1835 RBI…all spectacular, albeit wasted, numbers. His 5388 total bases ranks him tenth all-time and the afore mentioned hits and home runs total makes him one of only FOUR players to have 3000 hits and 500 dongs. That being said, there isn’t a snowball’s chance that a guy who pointed his finger to Congress and proclaimed “I have never used steroids, period” gets in a mere six years after being found guilty of doing the opposite.

Yesterday, I looked at the 2010 ballot and in the next couple of days…2012, 2013 and 2014 will be chronicled.