Greg Maddux, Tom Glavine and Frank Thomas were the only former players voted into the Baseball Hall of Fame, with Craig Biggio falling just short of the number of votes needed from members of the Baseball Writers Association of America.
Two steroid-era players weren’t even close in balloting. Roger Clemens received 35.4 percent of the votes and Barry Bonds 34.7, with numbers declining for both in their second year of eligibility.
They’ll join former managers Bobby Cox (who managed Glavine and Maddux), Tony La Russa and Joe Torre, who were earlier selected for enshrinement.
It was a tough year in which, in addition to the rule of 10, the process was called into question more than ever. Writers grappled publicly and agonizingly with how to deal with players from the steroids era and one, in an effort to pull back the curtain on the process, gave his ballot to Deadspin. That was Dan Le Batard of ESPN and the Miami Herald, who, among other reasons, writes that he likes “a little anarchy in the cathedral of sports.” Le Batard writes:
Baseball is always reticent to change, but our flawed voting process needs remodeling in a new media world. Besides, every year the power is abused the way I’m going to be alleged to abuse it here. There’s never been a unanimous first-ballot guy? Seriously?
In 2014, these matters are complicated, unlike a simpler time when chicks dug the long ball.
Related: Tom Boswell on Greg Maddux
H/T For the Win