Baseball Hall of Fame: Class of 2011

Next Wednesday, the 5th, is the announcement for the 2011 class for the Baseball Hall of Fame. Last year I did some speculation about how I thought the vote would go, and I was pretty far off. My outlook at the Hall has changed pretty greatly since last year, so I wont bother linking my old thoughts. This year I'll once again talk about how I think the vote will go. I'll speculate how I think the writers will vote, and also how I'd handle it if I had a vote. You need 75% of the vote to be inducted.

Returning Players (Last year's vote %)

• Bert Blyleven (74.2%)
  Writers vote: Yes
  Personal vote: Yes
• Roberto Alomar (73.7%)
  Writers vote: Yes
  Personal vote: Yes
• Harold Baines (6.1%)
  Writers vote: No
  Personal vote: No-Baines had very good numbers for his career. However, he is where I draw the line. Basically a player with his numbers isn't quite good enough, but a player who is superior should. That being said, I'd have no issue if he one day did make it.
• Jack Morris (52.3%)
  Writers votes: No
  Personal vote: No
• Barry Larkin (51.6%)
  Writers vote: Not this year, but eventually
  Personal vote: Yes
• Lee Smith (47.3%)
  Writers vote: Not this year, but eventually
  Personal vote: Yes
• Edgar Martinez (36.2%)
  Writers vote: Not this year, but eventually
  Personal vote: Yes-Edgar Martinez is my favorite baseball player of all time. Yes he was mostly a DH, but name one team in either league that wouldn't have wanted him there from the late 80's-04. His numbers would be even more impressive if he was batting 3rd in front of Griffey instead of the other way around.
• Tim Raines (30.4%)
  Writers vote: No
  Personal vote: Yes-If i had a ballot of over 10, Raines would be the one bumped. If he didn't spend the last third of his career as a bench player he'd be in easily, but that does hurt him
• Mark McGwire (23.7%)
  Writers vote: No
  Personal vote: No-Those drugs enhanced him to put up hall of fame numbers, he wouldn't have done it on his own like others I believe would have. Shame, I liked him too.
• Alan Trammell (22.4%)
  Writers vote: No
  Personal vote: No-Another one who just doesn't quite make it.
• Fred McGriff (21.5%)
  Writers vote: Not this year, possibly in the future
  Personal vote: Yes-Crime Dog has the numbers in an era of suspicion. And he should be in for "not hot dogging it". Google that phrase. Actually don't, just look at the glossary on FireJoeMorgan.com
• Don Mattingly (16.1%)
  Writers vote: No
  Personal vote: No
• Dave Parker (15.2%)
  Writers vote: No
  Personal vote: No
• Dale Murphy (11.7%)
  Writers vote: No
  Personal vote: No

Players new to the ballot

• Raphael Palmeiro
  Writers vote: No
  Personal vote: No-Another steroid guy who isn't deserving. 4 players have 500 homers AND 3000 hits. One won't make the Hall of Fame
• Jeff Bagwell
  Writers vote: Not this year but eventually
  Personal vote: No-STEROIDS, STEROIDS, STEROIDS, you have to be blind to not thing that. His career cashed at the end and he didn't put up those numbers without enhancement.
• Larry Walker
  Writers vote: Maybe, but probably not
  Personal vote: No-fantastic numbers in an era when everyone had fantastic numbers.
• John Franco
  Writers vote: No
  Personal vote: No-I could be persuaded otherwise, but I don't think he'll get it.
• Juan Gonzalez
  Writers vote: No
  Personal vote: No-2 MVPs on steroids in a career that crashed and burned quickly.
• The other players on the ballot aren't really worth going into, they don't have much of a chance of even returning to the ballot next year.

So here is my hypothetical ballot:

1. Blyleven
2. Alomar
3. Larkin
4. Smith
5. Martinez
6. Raines
7. McGriff