Day 284: Cooperstown Class of 2014

First, I would like to say how much I think the voting process for the Baseball Hall of Fame is a crock of shit. The BBWAA (or Baseball Writer's Association of America) is responsible for submitting a ballot that can list as many as 10 players or even none—if they think no one is worthy of a trip to Cooperstown. Some of these voters might write down their hometown favorites, or leave deserving others off for ridiculous reasons. It's just stupid.

In an age where many players now eligible for the Hall are held in suspicion of using performance enhancing drugs, fewer players are being voted through. Look at Roger Clemens. Arguably one of the best pitches of my lifetime with seven Cy Young awards to his name. But just the suggestion of PEDs keeps his vote total low—just over 35% in his second year. Same with Barry Bonds. Personally, I don't think cheaters should be rewarded with an accolade of this caliber. It's setting a bad example.

In order to be eligible for the Baseball Hall of Fame, a player must have played at least 10 years and have been out of the game for at least five years. They must also receive at least 75% of the votes to be inducted—and if a player gets less than 5% of the votes, he's disqualified from future ballots. There were 36 players who qualified for this year's ballot—only three made it in. Fifteen players received the dreaded sub-5% and will no longer be eligible. And then there's Jack Morris who was on his 15th and final ballot and received just 61.5% of the votes—sadly not enough to get him to Cooperstown.

This is the first time that three first-ballot nominees were elected since Nolan Ryan, George Brett and Robin Yount in 1999. Without further ado, I introduce you to the very small Cooperstown Class of 2014:

GREG MADDOX, PitcherMaddox was the leading vote getter with 555 of the 571 ballots for 97.2%. He pitched 23 years in the majors averaging a .610 career winning percentage. He won four Cy Youngs and 18 Gold Glove awards. He played in three World Series earning one ring when the Atlanta Braves beat the Cleveland Indians in 1995. 

TOM GLAVINE, PitcherGlavine received 525 votes (91.9%). A Massachusetts native, Glavine also pitched in the majors for over 20 years and finished with an average winning percentage of .600. He won two Cy Youngs and played in five World Series, winning only once as a teammate of Greg Maddox in 1995.  

FRANK THOMAS, Designated HitterThomas received 478 votes (83.7%) in his first year of eligibility. The first baseman/designated hitter spent a good portion of his 19-year career with the Chicago White Sox where he was nicknamed The Big Hurt and won back-to-back MVPs in 1993 and 1994.

Houston Astros' Craig Biggio really got the shaft when he missed being inducted in his second year by .2%. And former Red Sox playoff hero Curt Schilling got just over 29% of the votes to keep him out for the second straight year. So the bloody sock makes it to Cooperstown but Schill will need to wait...