Posted on 03/02/2005 1:27:02 PM PST by nypokerface
TAMPA, Fla. - Gil Hodges, Ron Santo and everyone else on the ballot fell short Wednesday as once again the baseball Veterans Committee failed to elect anyone to the Hall of Fame.
Hodges and Santo came the closest with 65 percent — 75 percent was needed for induction — each falling eight votes shy. Tony Oliva and Jim Kaat were the only other players to be picked on more than half of the 80 ballots.
In 2003, the redesigned committee also pitched a shutout. There will not be another election until 2007, when managers, umpires and executives are due to be considered.
The current 83-member committee includes the 60 living Hall of Famers plus eight members of the writers' wing, 14 members of the broadcasters' wing and one member of the old Veterans Committee. All but three turned in their paper ballots this year.
Hodges, the former Brooklyn first baseman and New York Mets manager, fell 11 votes short in 2003, when 61 votes were needed for election. Santo was 15 votes shy that year.
Minnesota hitting star Tony Oliva was third among the 25 players on the ballot this year with 45 votes, a drop of three. Jim Kaat, on the Veterans ballot for the first time, got 43 votes. New York Yankees manager Joe Torre, a former NL MVP, was fifth with 36 votes, an increase of seven.
Maury Wills was next with 26, followed by Vada Pinson (23), Luis Tiant (20) and Roger Maris (19).
Thurman Munson and old-time pitcher Smoky Joe Wood each received only two votes.
The old Veterans Committee, which met annually, had 15 members in most years and was criticized for cronyism. The Hall changed the system after Bill Mazeroski, a career .260 hitter with a great glove, was elected in 2003.
I was disappointed over that, too. If Santo had made it, I definitely would be making my first-ever pilgrimage to Cooperstown for the induction ceremony, especially with Ryne Sandberg also going in.
Santo definitely deserves it, being one of the top five or six of all time at the most under-represented position in the Hall, playing in the lowest offensive era (1960-75) since the Dead Ball days.
I think they need to tweak this Veterans system a bit--make it every year, not every two years.
Right you are. He should be in.
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.