On Wednesday, the Baseball Writers Association of America and the Hall of Fame will announce the results of the voting that decides which candidates will be enshrined in Cooperstown, N.Y., this year. It is one of the most significant Hall of Fame tabulations in recent memory.
Three major players associated with the steroid era — Roger Clemens, Barry Bonds, and Sammy Sosa — are among those who were on the ballot for the first time. Another was Mike Piazza, who had the greatest offensive numbers for a catcher but because he played in this era couldn’t escape the steroid rumors. Ditto for second-year eligible Jeff Bagwell.
Comments
Cafardo posted a list of the Yankee core players and thinks they'll be a strong team, and then asked, "What am I missing?" Here are the answers: 1) His list of core players did NOT include A-Rod. Of course, that's because A-Rod doesn't belong on such a list anymore. But he WILL nevertheless play, because his bloated salary will give the Yankees no choice. Will he drag down the Yankees? We'll see. 2) Can Jeter come back from that horrible Achilles' injury? Even if it costs him only a half-step, it COULD be the half-step that transforms him from an All-Star to a Triple-AAA level player. And Jeter is not young anymore. 3) The same kind of question applies to Mariano Rivera, who will be older than his Jackie Robinson uniform number. 4) Will Granderson stop striking out so much? 5) Will Teixeira avoid his all-too-frequent April cold starts?
This comment has been removed.
Jim Bouton asked in his landmark 1970 classic "Ball Four," "Are greenies fabulous? Yes." Greenies were as universally and easily as M&M's and popped by players as frequently. OF COURSE they were "performance enhancing." For that matter, so too IS CORTISONE, allowing an expensive player to recover a LOT faster from an injury than he has a right to. According to Jose Canseco -- and who would know better? -- Bonds only became involved in steroids after he already had HoF credentials. Prior -- and even subsequent to that -- he got to where he was by being a gym rat, in the words of another man who would know, his own godfather Willie Mays. And, Bonds had, BY FAR, the greatest sense of the strike zone and plate discipline of any player in history since Ted Williams. He could go through an entire game without swinging even ONE time, because he had such astounding self-control and wouldn't swing at anything other than HIS pitch. Hell YES he belongs in the HoF
What are you missing about the Yankees? Their age.