Curt Schilling snubbed by Baseball Hall of Fame; Trump Tweets His Support

“Curt Schilling deserves to be in the Baseball Hall of Fame,” President Trump tweeted Sunday evening. “Great record, especially when under pressure and when it mattered most. Do what everyone in Baseball knows is right!”

Curt Shilling didn’t get into Cooperstown this year but maybe next year or someday. Perhaps his improved voting numbers are due to the Trump effect. Or his support for Trump has made him persona non grata in baseball circles.

He wasn’t selected but, Mariano Rivera, the greatest reliever in history, was on the ballot for the first time and received 100% of the writers’ votes, a first in Cooperstown history. Not even Babe Ruth, Willie Mays or Mickey Mantle were checked on every ballot.

Schilling wasn’t selected but Roy Halliday, a pitcher who won over 200 games, had a winning percentage of .659, spun a playoff no-hitter and perfect game, and was awarded two Cy Youngs for best pitcher in baseball, was also elected in his first year on the ballot. His was awarded posthumously as he was killed in a plane crash in November, 2017. Perhaps this tragedy weighed on minds of the voters. Maybe, they thought it would be a classy move (and it was) to select Halliday to make the lives of his wife and his two boys a little more bearable, and a little more understandable.

Shilling didn’t make it but Edgar Martinez, one of the best designated hitters in MLB history, was also given the thumbs up for entrance into the Hall.

Even Mike Mussina, whose stats come closest to Shilling’s, finally made it.

To be fair, Shilling’s percentage increased by nine percentage points which could bode well maybe not next year but the following.

I think he will eventually get in when more and more pitchers retire and it starts to become apparent that a 200-win starting pitcher today is comparable to a 300-win pitcher from 25+ years ago.

I don't put a lot of weight in post-season stats for one big reason: With wild card teams and multiple playoff rounds, there are simply a lot more post-season opportunities now than there were before the 1990s.

You could argue that in today’s game that middle relievers are very important to the overall pitching staff. They get you to the closer and preserve young pitching arms amoung the starters. They also stretch the careers of the veteran starters. Problem that they have is that the traditional baseball states don’t adequately measure their contribution. I have to agree with you on DH’s though. They are 1-dimensional players.

This started with Pete Rose.

He was indisputably famous in Major-League Baseball.

If he broke the law, charge him and punish him.

But do not pretend that he does not rate the Hall of Fame.

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