The system that is currently in place is that members of the Baseball Writers’ Association of America (BBWAA) vote for up to ten players who are eligible that they deem worthy of the Hall of Fame through a variety of criteria determined by the Hall, namely "the player's record, playing ability, integrity, sportsmanship, character, and contributions to the team(s) on which the player played." Players are eligible for the first time five years after their retirement and can be on the ballot up to ten years. If the player receives at least 75% of the total votes cast, they’re in. If the player receives less than the 75% needed, they will not be elected, but will remain on the ballot for the next year as long as they received at least 5% of the vote or it wasn't their tenth year of eligibility. If the player receives less than 5% of the vote or have been on the ballot for more than ten years, they will be removed from the ballot and will be ineligible for election. Seems simple enough, right? If only it were that easy…
Arguably the greatest hitter and the greatest pitcher in the HISTORY OF THE GAME were both on the ballot this year. Barry Bonds and Roger Clemens. Neither was even close to making the 75% needed (Clemens received 37.5% of the vote, Bonds 36.8%). Look, you can hate the two of them from now until Kingdom come because they “cheated” and “put a black mark on the game” and for this, that, and a third. But you cannot convince me that they don’t belong in the Hall of Fame. The Steroid Era is just another chapter in baseball’s history. An unfortunate chapter, but a chapter nonetheless. Trying to block out Bonds, McGwire, Sosa, Clemens, etc. because they played in a certain era would be like trying to tell the first voters to not vote in Walter Johnson or Christy Mathewson because they played in the Dead Ball Era. Extreme comparison? Maybe. But in my mind, the concept is the same. The voters will, in all likelihood, not change their mind regarding any player that is even somewhat-kind of-possibly-remotely linked to steroid usage until the Hall clarifies how the vote for these players should be handled, but in order to restore credibility to the Hall, the Hall of Fame needs to swallow its pride and allow the voters to vote the players that deserve to be in in. Put an asterisk next to their plaque. Put an asterisk where the team logo would go on their cap. Do whatever you need to do to justify it in your mind. But until that wrong is made right, and the players are voted in based on the merits of their career, the Hall will not be nearly the illustrious group that it believes it is.
I love baseball. Always have (no matter how bad the Phillies are. Who’s up for 200 innings of Aaron Harang this year?!?). But it’s things like the vote for the Hall of Fame each and every year that just make me so angry with the game. The Hall of Fame is pretending an era of the game didn’t exist. They’re constraining the voters by forcing them to choose only ten candidates, and not clarifying how the voters should vote. Forcing the voters to choose if they don’t recognize it in their “hallowed” Hall, then it’ll just go away. The voters of BBWAA aren't completely blameless, but the system in place needs to change before the writers can really institute the change to the Hall through the voting process that is necessary. The Hall needs to re-evaluate how they determine who’s worthy of the Hall of Fame. If a player like Barry Bonds isn’t worthy, then no one is. He is the best hitter I have ever seen, steroids or not, and it's not even close. He may very well be the best hitter I will ever see. The Baseball Hall of Fame is broken and has lost most, if not all, of its credibility. It’s a beautiful place to visit. I could literally spend days in there, but until the Hall fixes its clearly flawed voting system, it will just be a joke to me. By remaining silent and allowing blame to be deflected to the BBWAA, the Hall of Fame has tarnished the game more than the “cheating” players ever could.