The Hall of Fame has announced the ballot for the 2005 BBWAA voting for new Hall of Fame members.
For those with clickaphobia, the eligible players (in alphabetical order) are Jim Abbott, Bert Blyleven, Wade Boggs, Tom Candiotti, Dave Concepcion, Chili Davis, Andre Dawson, Steve Garvey, Goose Gossage, Tommy John, Mark Langston, Don Mattingly, Jack McDowell, Willie McGee, Jeff Montgomery, Jack Morris, Dale Murphy, Otis Nixon, Dave Parker, Tony Phillips, Jim Rice, Ryne Sandberg, Lee Smith, Terry Steinbach, Darryl Strawberry, Bruce Sutter, and Alan Trammell.
We will hold our own ballot in a few weeks. For now, I thought it might be nice to hold a straw poll and see what others think of candidates, both the new guys and the holdovers.
Personally, the only new name on my ballot this year will be (naturally) Wade Boggs. Darryl Strawberry was a great, great player, but he wasn't great enough for long enough to go in the Hall. Chili Davis had a nice career, but ultimately stands a fair distance behind guys like Rice, Parker and Dawson who can't get in themselves. Mark Langston was a very good pitcher who falls short of even my generous definition of greatness, and Tom Candiotti is a further step behind Langston. The other guys are making up numbers, in my view.
My ballot so far is nine guys, with two very close to off and another three very close to on, so it could be between seven and ten guys depending on how my thinking evolves. From last year's ballot of nine, I lost Paul Molitor and Eck who were both elected. So my holdovers are Blyleven, Dawson, Gossage, John, Parker, Sandberg, and Trammell. I'm comfortable with all these guys, except for the Goose, who I still might reconsider. Boggs is a sure thing for me. Currently, I am thinking of adding Concepcion, who I've unfairly maligned. Jim Rice, I currently have "out" but I am having a hard time defending his exclusion. I am also giving strong consideration to Sutter and Morris. That's twelve in all (Garvey, Mattingly and Smith are clearly out for me) for me to choose from and my mock ballot will be drawn from those guys.
https://www.battersbox.ca/article.php?story=20041129064512999