Will A-Rod have the Highest % of Votes First Ballot (1 Viewer)

[David Yudkin]

If A-Rod played long enough (I doubt he'll need the money), he could have 3500 hits, 800 HR, 2500 RBI, 400 SB, multiple MVPs (and probably no championships, but that we could discuss elsewhere).

Given that he could hold a ton of records, would he receive the highest percentage of votes on his first ballot? IIRC, Tom Seaver holds the record at 98.84%, being named on 425 of 430 ballots.

(For the sake of the poll, assume A-Rod is not linked to the steroids scandal and that he has no other major off field issues.)

 

[Michael Brown]

If A-Rod played long enough (I doubt he'll need the money), he could have 3500 hits, 800 HR, 2500 RBI, 400 SB, multiple MVPs (and probably no championships, but that we could discuss elsewhere).

Givven that he could hold a ton of records, would he be the first unanimous HOF inductee?

(For the sake of the poll, assume A-Rod is not linked to the steroids scandal and that he has no other major off field issues.)

Probably enough media already hate him enough to not vote for him. It only takes 1 to make it less than unanimous and you just know there's some pompous idiot out there that will want to "make a statement" about something.And if he does fail to win a championship, a bunch of writers will hold that against him.

 

[Bogart]

No one will ever go in with 100% of the vote. It's baseball writer shtick now. "If the Babe can't get every vote, noone will..."

You get more press by not voting a sure fire player in than voting him in.

 

[Oh Yes!]

"If the Babe can't get every vote, noone will..."

as it should be

 

[oso diablo]

why not Greg Maddux? If it's ever going to happen, it's going to be with a taint-free guy like him.

 

[Thunderlips]

Never. There is always some writer who wants to be bigger than the game,event or participant.

 

[David Yudkin]

Changed the poll to reflect "highest % of votes" vs "first ever unanimous" since most will think someone would leave A-Rod off.

 

[Thunderlips]

Changed the poll to reflect "highest % of votes" vs "first ever unanimous" since most will think someone would leave A-Rod off.

I don't even know about that. There's the whole choking in the playoffs thing. Plus, he himself is a lightning rod in regards to Yankee hate that has swept the nation. I think Maddux gets in with a higher percentage than him.

 

[whoknew]

Corky Simpson will hold out for the good of the Babe.

 

[whoknew]

"If the Babe can't get every vote, noone will..."

as it should be

Why?

 

[Oh Yes!]

"If the Babe can't get every vote, noone will..."

as it should be

Why?

hes the best baseball players ever.

 

[whoknew]

"If the Babe can't get every vote, noone will..."

as it should be

Why?

hes the best baseball players ever.

Agreed.So why shouldn't ARod or Maddux be unanimous?

 

[oso diablo]

"If the Babe can't get every vote, noone will..."

as it should be

Why?

hes the best baseball players ever.

Ruth didn't even get the most votes the year he was on the ballot. Ty Cobb eclipsed him.Nevertheless, the Ruth/Unanimous thing is silly. Ruth was on the very first HOF ballot, when about 60 years of players were up for consideration. It's no surprise that a few voters picked other players to fill up their ballots, confident that Ruth would get elected anyway.

 

[Michael Brown]

"If the Babe can't get every vote, noone will..."

as it should be

Why?

hes the best baseball players ever.

Ruth didn't even get the most votes the year he was on the ballot. Ty Cobb eclipsed him.Nevertheless, the Ruth/Unanimous thing is silly. Ruth was on the very first HOF ballot, when about 60 years of players were up for consideration. It's no surprise that a few voters picked other players to fill up their ballots, confident that Ruth would get elected anyway.

Guys like Jimmie Foxx, Rogers Hornsby, etc, didn't even get in til their 5th try in some cases. There was a backlog of great players waiting to get in and they did it a handful at a time. It's why DiMaggio even had to wait a couple years so other old-timers could get in ahead of him.

 

[Giantseasonticketholder]

How about Mariano Rivera? No one has been better and he has been his best on the biggest stage.

 

[David Yudkin]

How about Mariano Rivera? No one has been better and he has been his best on the biggest stage.

I think that there will be people turned off by the fact that he is a reliever. He's still a HOFer, but noteveryone is in love with putting them in the Hall.

 

[whoknew]

How about Mariano Rivera? No one has been better and he has been his best on the biggest stage.

He's a closer.

 

[DropKick]

Seaver's is a pretty big number. I'm sure his stats will merit that neighborhood but the ballot appears to have too much of a popularity component for Alex to get much.

 

[Tom Servo]

How about Mariano Rivera? No one has been better and he has been his best on the biggest stage.

He's a closer.

Closer = punter in HOF voting.

 

[Tau837]

I think Maddux gets in with a higher percentage than him.

 

[Doctor Detroit]

Someone will forget to vote so no. If Rickey Henderson didn't get 100 percent, neither will A-Rod.

 

[David Yudkin]

Someone will forget to vote so no. If Rickey Henderson didn't get 100 percent, neither will A-Rod.

IIRC, forgeting to vote doesn't matter. They take a percentage based on the submitted ballots, not the total number of ballots sent out. That's why some voters return blank ballots, because those actually count. Someone that doesn't return a ballot doesn't factor in at all.

 

[PatsWillWin]

 

[Koya]

Magic 8 ball says: Not likely... oh wait, still turning.... NO.

 

[Tremendous Upside]

It's sad too, b/c if there was ever someone who you would think had NO need for performance enhancements, it was Rodriguez

Really speaks to the way that steroids permeated the entirety of baseball by that point

 

[Linus Scrimmage]

 

[Koya]

It's sad too, b/c if there was ever someone who you would think had NO need for performance enhancements, it was Rodriguez

No PHYSICAL need. But with the strong weaknesses in Arods character, the insecurity, the rampant need and desire for public acclaim, acceptance, records and recognition, it doesnt surprise me at all.It's a shame, but not at all surprising. Alex DID need it, because others were getting records and recognition "at his expense" and he needed to level the playing field so he could get what he psychologically needed.Going to be curious in spring training between the Torre book and this, coming off the non playoff season, going into a new stadium (which apparantly is amazing - but you also have the public funding issue during a recession / depression). The Post must be salivating.

 

[snitwitch]

I guarantee the dude is taking HGH right now, as are many active players.

 

[Pip's Invitation]

Needless to say, the answer is now a definitive "no."

Even before the news, I'd have said that Maddux and Jeter will have higher percentages.

 

[Michael Brown]

Even before the news, I'd have said that Maddux

and Jeter will have higher percentages.

 

[PIK95]

I guarantee the dude is taking HGH right now, as are many active players.

 

[cheese]

Not sure how anyone could not vote for Maddux.

He dominated guys that were using banned substances for multiple decades. Besides, with almost all of the homerun hitters/ Clemens tainted by steroids, voters are going to be looking for someone clean to get behind.

 

[Michael Brown]

Not sure how anyone could not vote for Maddux. He dominated guys that were using banned substances for multiple decades. Besides, with almost all of the homerun hitters/ Clemens tainted by steroids, voters are going to be looking for someone clean to get behind.

When we look back on this era, despite all of the home run totals, the most amazing careers we'll be discussing will be those of Maddux, Pedro, and Randy Johnson. Simply unreal what they did in this environment.