Three of the top 20 players in MLB history, according to Baseball Reference's WAR metric, are on the 2022 ballot for induction into the Baseball Hall of Fame. But there's a very real possibility that we don't see a single player become immortalized with a plaque in Cooperstown's famous gallery by the time the voting process is over.
Related
According to longtime baseball writer Jayson Stark, who was awarded at the Hall of Fame with the BBWAA's J.G. Taylor Spink Award in 2019 for "meritorious contributions to baseball writing," it's not only a possibility but could even be a likelihood.
In 2021, no one was elected to the Hall of Fame from the BBWAA ballot for the first time since 1960, and the two biggest names that join the remaining contenders — Alex Rodriguez and David Ortiz — have the same flags that has kept names like Barry Bonds and Roger Clemens out of the Hall. And for that reason, Stark says that when he looks through the list of candidates who "theoretically might have the best chance" and asks himself if they'll get the 75 percent required for induction, he's "having trouble seeing" any of them get in.
But first, the list of main candidates — and I selectively excluded those who I feel have no chance at all (bolded names are first-time candidates):
— Barry Bonds
— Mark Buehrle
— Roger Clemens
— Todd Helton
— Andruw Jones
— Jeff Kent
— Tim Lincecum
— David Ortiz
— Andy Pettitte
— Manny Ramirez
— Alex Rodriguez
— Scott Rolen
— Jimmy Rollins
— Curt Schilling
— Gary Sheffield
— Sammy Sosa
— Omar Vizquel
— Billy Wagner
The closest to getting the nod last year was Curt Schilling, who appears (much to his chagrin) on the ballot for the final year after receiving a 71.1 percent share of the vote last time around. Bonds (61.8 percent) and Clemens (61.6 percent) were next up, and they too enter their final years of eligibility. Stark argues that how Schilling has behaved, especially given the current state of our country and what the dominant pitcher said about voters recently, makes it hard to envision 16 more votes added to his count for 2022.
Listen to sports talk now on Audacy and shop the latest MLB team gear
As for the new guys, Stark feels that Ortiz has the higher chance of getting inducted than A-Rod or any other first-timers because of the "great pains" that Rob Manfred has taken to improve Ortiz's reputation and to move him out of the same group as other PED users, like Rodriguez, Bonds and more. Still, he doesn't seem overly optimistic that Big Papi will get the call while others have been denied time and time again due to their steroid usage.
Last year, Scott Rolen, Omar Vizquel and Todd Helton all surpassed the 40 percent threshold in fewer than five years of eligibility. Two of them seem to be trending the right way — a story published about domestic violence allegations against Vizquel has pushed him in the other direction — but it would be a massive leap for Rolen (52.9 percent) or Helton (44.9 percent) to get up to 75 percent in just one year.
Luckily, the possibilities for induction don't stop at the BBWAA ballot. The Hall of Fame's Era Committees — this time around, the Early Baseball Era (pre-1950) and the Golden Days Era (1950-1969) — are both featured in 2022, with some recognizable names up for induction. The names that jump out most to me are Buck O'Neil and Allie Reynolds from the first of those two eras, and practically everyone from the second era's ballot:
— Dick Allen
— Ken Boyer
— Gil Hodges
— Jim Kaat
— Roger Maris
— Minnie Miñoso
— Danny Murtaugh
— Tony Oliva
— Billy Pierce
— Maury Wills
If Bill Mazeroski and Harold Baines are Hall of Famers, it really feels like the majority of the names above could (and probably should) be there as well. If I were a betting man, I'd say that it's about time that Roger Maris gets into the Hall of Fame. His legacy as the 61-HR kid, if not his overall production, just kind of has that Hall of Fame air to it, doesn't it?
LISTEN on the Audacy App
Sign Up and Follow Audacy Sports
Facebook | Twitter | Instagram