Nolan Ryan vs. The White Sox You win some and you lose some

If you mention Nolan Ryan and the Chicago White Sox many people conjure  an image of  Arlington  Texas August 4 , 1993. As depicted in the video below White Sox 3rd baseman

 and future manager Robin Ventura took exception to  being beaned by Ryan to start the inning rushed the mound and preceded to get pounded by Ryan.

Until today I never saw footage  the incident.  I liven  in Russian from December 1992 to November 1994 and even though I heard about the altercation had not seen the footage until now.  The melee was near the end of a storied career by Nolan Ryan. The Hall of Famer threw a record 7 no hitters from May 15, 1973 to May 1, 1991.  He also took 5 other  potential no hitters into the 9th inning.

The first of these disappointments came against the White Sox on 8/7/1974 when Ryan was with the Angels.

Watching the last inning of this game was very nostalgic for me.  The 1972-1974 Dick Allen era White Sox represent the beginning of my almost 50 year obsession with the White Sox.  Listening to Harry Caray call the action years before he headed over to the north side, watching the likes of Allen, Jorge Orta, Ken Henderson and Bill Melton harkened me back to those early days.

This game  features  3 future hall of famers in prominent roles.  Frank Robinson homered in the 2nd to give the Angels a 1 run lead.  Jim Kaat pitched a 9 inning gem scattering 6 hits and only allowing 1 run on the Robinson smash. Through 8 innings Ryan was the star of the show until the 9th inning when should be hall of famer Dick Allen broke the no hitter by running flat out on a check swing.  Click here to read a great account of the game along with a historical perspective of the time in which it was played.  

Minoso, Kaat, Hodges and Oliva make Hall. Dick Allen snubbed again.

 On Sunday, December 5th of this year.  The Golden Days Era Committee voted on the 10 candidates up for the Hall of Fame.  Before they met I wrote my analysis here.  We had a busy day on Sunday celebrating my Daughter's 16th birthday a day early and picking out and decorating our Christmas Trees.  It wasn't until my daughter's actual birthday the next day, that I saw the results of the voting.  The Committee voted to put Minnie Minoso, Jim Kaat, Gil Hodges and Tony Oliva in the Hall.  In my opinion they are all worthy of induction.  I am especially happy about Minoso and Kaat's election. also the look on my Dad's face when he heard that Gil Hodges, who hit a home run at the first MLB game he ever attended was one of the biggest thrills of my life.  

However as much joy as I feel about who the committee did include pales in comparison to the misery I feel about the exclusion of Dick Allen who for the 2nd time missed the HOF by 1 vote,   Allen was my first White Sox hero and in my opinion more deserving than any of the aforementioned 4 of enshrinement.  

Some might say that I'm not objective, as I've already declared that He was my hero. The truth is he was my hero over 50 years ago and for years I accepted the story that he had not played long enough and was not a high character guy as legitimate reasons for him not being in Cooperstown.

Over the past 10 years as I have  learned more about the racism he encountered in Philadelphia from the fans and the Press and as the advanced stats that were not available until a few decades ago that have validated his career as one of the best players of his generation have made me realize that my first White Sox hero is probably the best baseball player not in the Hall of Fame. (

Here is one of many fine articles that articulate why he should be in the Hall.)

I guess it is possible to be  deeply disappointed and delighted at the same time.  I am delighted that Minnie Minoso long career has finally been validated, and at the same time,  I am deeply disappointed that Dick Allen's family could not celebrate along with Minoso's.  I am also hopeful that in 5 years time when the committee meets again that Dick Allen's HOF caliber career will finally be recognized. 

Jim Kaat HOF class of 2022

Minnie Minoso HOF class of 2022

Gil Hodges HOF class of 2022

Tony Oliva HOF Class of 2022

Dick Allen

Still Waiting???!!!???!!!

Golden Days Era Ballot

 On January 25, 2022 the attention of the baseball loving public turns once again  to Cooperstown, New York for the announcement of  those who will be inducted into the  2022 class of Baseball's Hall of Fame   

Each year the BBWAA (Base Ball Writer's Association of America) is tasked to pick among the most elite of the previous generation of ballplayers who will be placed with the rest of the legends of the sport.  

This process now can take approximately 15 years as players are placed on the writer's ballot 5 years after retiring from the game and players are allowed to be on the ballot up to 10 years while trying to receive the 75% of the sportswriters votes  needed to be elected to the hall. 

This is not the only avenue available for players to be enshrined into Cooperstown.  There is a path for players not elected by the BBWAA as well as managers, umpires and executives to be included into the HOF.  This path formerly called the veteran's committee now has 4  individual committees  based on the era that the individuals were involved in the sport: The Today's Game Committee (1988 to Present) , Modern Baseball Committee (1970-1987), The Golden Days Era Committee (1950 to 1969) and the Early Baseball Era Committee (1871-1949).

At least one of the committees meets each year at the annual Baseball Winter Meetings . The Today's Game and Modern Baseball Committees meet twice every 5 years.  The Golden Days Era meets once every 5 years while the Early Baseball group meets once every 10 years.  On December  5th of this year the Golden Day's Era Committee and the Early Baseball era  Committee (each comprised of 16 members)will both vote on 10 people to be considered for Cooperstown.  Any one receiving 75% of the vote or more will be among those announced in the Hall of Fame on 1/25/2020 and inducted on Sunday, July 24th 2022. 

The remainder of this article is about the Golden Era Ballot.  

These are the  9 former players and 1 former manager who are under consideration on the Golden Era Ballot

Dick Allen  Years Played:  1963-1977 Teams: Philadelphia Phillies , Chicago White Sox , LA Dodgers, St. Louis Cardinals,   and Oakland Athletics 

Allen was the 1964 NL Rookie of the Year when playing for the Phillies and the 1972 AL MVP for the  White Sox as well as a 7 time all star.  Allen has been considered by the committee on 3 past occasions missing enshrinement by 1 vote in 2015. Dick Allen passed away on December 7, 2020 at the age of 78.

Ken Boyer Years Played: 1955-1969 Teams: St. Louis Cardinals, LA Dodgers, NY Mets, and Chicago White Sox.

While Dick Allen was earing his NL Rookie of the Year award in Philly, Boyer was the  NL MVP  for the 1964 World Champion Cardinals. He was also  an 11 time all star with 5 gold gloves at third base.  Boyer has also been considered by the committee on 3 past occasions.  Ken Boyer died on September 7. 1982 at the age of 51.

Gil Hodges Years Played:1943 - 1963 Teams: Brooklyn & LA Dodgers and New York Mets.

Hodges was an 8 time all star with 3 gold gloves,  He played for the World Series Champion 1955 Brooklyn Dodgers and 1959 WS Champ LA Dodgers.  He managed the 1969 Mets so he has caused a little misery to both Chicago teams over the years.  Hodges has been considered by 4 previous veteran's committees, the most recent being in 2015. Gil Hodges only  lived to the age of 47 dying on April 2, 1972. 

Fun Fact: Gil Hodges homered in the first baseball game my Dad ever saw on 6/28/1953 in County Stadium in Milwaukee.  Fellow Golden Era nominee Dick Allen homered in the first White Sox game I ever went to but I think I had been to a few Cubs games before that.

Jim Kaat Years Played 1959-1983 Teams Washington Senators and Minnesota Twins (same franchise), Philadelphia Phillies, St. Louis Cardinals, Chicago White Sox and New York Yankees. 

Kaat is a 3 time 20 game winner (twice in a row with my beloved White Sox), a 3 time all star and owner of a whopping 16 consecutive gold glove awards. Kaat pitched in the 1965 World Series for the Twins as they lost to the Dodgers and in 1982 pitched in the World Series as his Cardinals beat the Milwaukee Brewers. Kaat has been considered on 3 previous occasions missing enshrinement by only 2 votes in 2015. Jim Kaat is one of 3 living former players on the ballot and turned 83 earlier this month.

Roger Maris Years Played 1957-1968 Teams New York Yankees, Cleveland Indians. St. Louis Cardinals,  and Kansas City Athletics.  

Maris won back to back AL MVP awards in 1960 and 1961  for the Yankees  In 1961 Maris broke Babe Ruth's home run record with 61. Maris was in 7 all star games , 7 World Series (winning with the Yankees in '61 and in '62 and with the Cardinals in '67. Maris has been on the veteran's ballot 1 previous time in 2007. Roger Maris lived until 1985 dying at the age of 51.

Minnie Minoso Years Played: (1946-1980) *includes his time in the negro leagues and his return to baseball in 1976 and 1980* Teams: Chicago White Sox, Cleveland Indians, New York Cubans, Washington Senators, St. Louis Cardinals.

Minoso had a life time batting average of .298 and was 37 hits shy of 2000.  A 9 time American League All Star (4 time all star with the negro leagues). Minnie had 4 gold gloves and his only post season play was when the New York Cubans won the Negro League World Series in 1947. Minoso was the first black player to play for the White Sox.  Minoso has been on 4 previous Veterans committee ballots, in 2015 he received 8 of 16 possible votes.  Minnie Minoso died in 2015 less than 9 months before he would have turned 90.  

Danny Murtaugh Years Managed (1957-1976) Team Pittsburgh Pirates

Murtaugh is the only person on this years Golden Days Era Ballot that I had not previously heard of. Murtaugh played  second base for the Philadelphia Phillies, Boston Braves, and Pittsburgh Pirates from 1941 to 1951 in between serving in WW II.  As a manager, Murtaugh led the Pirates to two World Series championships in 1960 and 1971 and managed 3 all star games..  Murtaugh has been twice considered by veterans committees previously in 2008 & 2010. Danny Murtaugh died at the age of 59 on December 2, 1976 just 2 months after retiring as the Bucs manager.  

Tony Oliva Years Played (1962-1976) Team Minnesota Twins

Oliva like Murtaugh did as a manager, retired from playing baseball after the 1976 season.  In the American League( like Dick Allen in the NL)  was  the 1964 Rookie of the Year. Oliva won back to back AL batting crowns in 64&65 and a third in 1971 and was an all star for 8 consecutive years beginning in his sensational '64 campaign. Olivia received as much as 47.3% of the BBWAA votes in his 15 years on their ballot.  This is his 5th time being considered by committees and like Allen he missed enshrinement by only 1 vote  in 2015.  Unlike Allen, Tony Oliva who turned 83 earlier this year may still be alive if Cooperstown does finally come calling.  

Billy Pierce Years Played 1945-1964) Teams Chicago White Sox, San Francisco Giants, Detroit Tigers, 

Pierce is among  5 former White Sox players being considered for the HOF by the committee this year.  While he neither began or finished his illustrious career with the Sox, he hurled 13 seasons for the pale hose and had his # 19  was retired by the club back in 1987. Pierce was a 7 time all star and was the AL pitcher of the Year in 1955 with an  era of 1.97.  Pierce was on the veterans ballot for the first time in 2015.  Billy Pierce died in 2015 at the age of 88.  

Maury Wills Years Played:1959:1972 Teams Los Angeles Dodgers, Pittsburgh Pirates, Montreal Expos.

Wills was a 7 time all star with back to back gold gloves at shortstop in 1961 and 1962. In 1962 Wills was the NL MVP as well as the All Star MVP.  He played in 4 World Series for the Dodgers winning the championship 3 times. This is Wills 4th time being considered by the veterans committee  receiving 9 of the minimum 12 votes needed for enshrinement back in 2015.  Maury Wills turned 89 this past October.  

Fun Fact: Wills, Pierce and Hodges all played in the 1959,  World Series.  This does not include Minnie Minoso  who  played for the White Sox   in all but 2 seasons between 1950 and 1961.  Alas, one of those season was 1959, otherwise 4 of the 10 players on this years ballot would have been in that  series.  

Analysis:

This is a very deserving class and itis more than a little mind numbing that some of these players were not enshrined long ago.  I have a well earned reputation as a Sox homer so it should not be surprising that I think I can make a good argument for inclusion into the HOF for 4 of these former southsiders. That being said, I think the two most logical candidates for enshrinement this time out are the two players (Dick Allen and Tony Oliva) who missed it by one vote in 2015.  This would allow for my first  White Sox hero to achieve in death what I think he most certainly earned in life and to have Oliva avoid the same speedbump on his eventual road to Cooperstown. 

If there are more than these 2 enshrined look to Kaat, Wills and Minoso as the logical candidates. The rest of the field are also quite deserving and have 1 two time MVP in Maris and 1 MVP in Boyer not to take anything away from Pierce, Hodges or Murtaugh.  I guess we will have to wait until December 5th to find out if any of these fine baseballers are Cooperstown bound.  We've been waiting  so long for some of them, what's another 10 days?

Hall of Fame Voting Results 2021

 The 2021 BBWAA voting for the Hall of Fame was announced on January 26th.  For the 3rd time since 1996 no one received the 75% of the vote needed for enshrinement this year.  

Here is a quick list of the voting results with years on ballot this years % & last years percentage (where applicable) and where they appeared on my unofficial ballot(Those ranking 4th or higher would have been on my official ballot if I had one). Ranked in descending order of vote received.

Curt Schilling 9th year on ballot 71.1 % in 2021 70% in 2020 Schilling was 4th on my 2021 ballot.

Barry Bonds 9th year on ballot 61.8% in 2021 60.7% in 2020 I did not vote for Bonds.

Roger Clemens 9th year on ballot 61.6% in 2021 61% in 2020 I did not vote for Clemens

Scott Rolen 4th year on ballot  52.9% in 2021 35.3% in 2020 Rolen was 7th on my 2021 ballot.

Omar Vizquel 4th year on ballot 49.1% in 2021 52.6% in 2mmy021 Vizquel was 2nd on my 2021 ballot.

Billy Wagner 6th year on ballot 46.4% in 2021 31.7% in 2020. I did not vote for Wagner in 2021.

Todd Helton 3rd year on ballot 44.9% in 2021 29.2 in 2020. Helton was 3rd on my ballot in 2021.

Gary Sheffield 7th year on ballot 40.6% in 2021 30.5% in 2020.  Sheffield  would have appeared 11th on my 2021 ballot. (official ballots can only have as many as 10 players on them)

Andruw Jones 4th year on ballot 33.9% in 2021 and 19.4% in 2020. Andruw was 8th on my ballot in 2021. 

Jeff Kent 8th year on ballot 32.4% in 2021 27.5% in 2020. Kent was 6th on my ballot in 2021.

Manny Ramirez 5th year on ballot 28.2% in 2021 and 2020. I did not vote for Ramirez.

Sammy Sosa 9th year on ballot. 17% in 2021 13.9% in 2020. I did not vote for Sosa.

Andy Pettitte 3rd year on ballot. 13.7% in 2021 11.3% in 2020. I did not vote for Pettitte in 2021.

Mark Buehrle 1st year on ballot received 11% this year  and was 1st on my ballot.

Torii Hunter 1st year on ballot received 9.5% this year and was 9th on my ballot.

Bobby Abreu 2nd year on ballot received 8.7% in 2021 5.5% in 2020 Bobby was 10th on my ballot in 2021 

Tim Hudson 1st year on ballot received 5.2% in 2020 and I did not vote for Hudson this year.

These 17 players are eligible to return to the ballot on 2022

Other 1st year playes receiving votes were Aramis Ramirez (who would have been 13th on my ballot) LaTroy Hawkins and Barry Zito.  5 players (AJ Burnett, Shane Victorino, Dan Haren, Michael Cuddyer and Nick Swisher) failed to receive any votes.  

This years vote was the first time since 2013 that no one was voted in by the members of the BBWAA a look back at the 2013 ballot should give the players shutout on this years a vote a reason for hope. 17 players from the 2013 ballot returned to the 2014 ballot. These 13 did not include Dale Murphy who was in his last year of eligibility.     4 of those players were on the ballot for the first time are still on the ballot (Schilling, Bonds, Clemens & Sosa). 9 Of the 13 remaining have since been inducted to Cooperstown. 

Here is a list of those 9 in descending order of votes received in 2013

Craig Biggio was in his 1st of year  eligibility and received 68.2 % of the vote in 2013.  He increased his % to 74.8% of the vote in 2014 (just missing the 75% threshhold for enshrinement) and then in 2015 in his third year on the ballot was inducted with 82.7% of the ballot.  

Jack Morris was in his 14th year of eligibility in 2013. This was back when  candidates were on the ballot for a maximum of 15 years rather than 10.  He received 67.7% in 2013 61.5% in 2014  on his last chance for enshrinement through the BBWAA.  In 2018 Morris was elected to the Hall of Fame through the veterans committee. 

Jeff Bagwell was in his 3rd year on the ballot in 2013 where he received 59.6 % of the vote.  In 2014 he went down to 54.3 and up to 55.7% in 2015. His percentage increase by more than 15% in each of the next 2 years culminating with his election to Cooperstown in 2017

Like Schilling, Bonds, Clemens, Sosa, & Biggio, Mike Piazza was on the BBWAA ballot for the first time in 2013.  Piazza received over 55% of the vote in 2013 and increased into the 60's the next 2 elections until garnering 83% in 2016 on his way to Cooperstown.  

Tim Raines was in his 6th year on the ballot in 2013 where he received 52 % of the vote.  In 2014 his votes went down to 46.4% due to the election of Frank Thomas, of 7 Maddux and Tom Glavine in their first year of eligibility.  In 2015 received 55% of the votes and then went up to 69.8%  in 2016 and over 80% in 2017 achieving the Hall of Fame. 

Lee Smith was in his 11th year on the ballot in 2013 where he received 47.8 % of the vote. In 2014 after receiving between 35 & 51 % of the vote in first 11 years of the ballot Smith saw his numbers drop.  He went from 47.8 % in 2013 to 29.8 % in 2014.  His numbers increased a little in each of his last 3 years on the ballot and his final BBWAA % was 34.2% in 2017. 2 years later in 1019 the Veteran's committee came calling and he was inducted into Cooperstown.

Edgar Martinez was in his 4th year of eligibility when he received 35.4% of the vote in the 2013 ballot.  His % decreased to the 20's the following 2 years due mainly  to the influx of 7 1st year hall of famers on those ballots and the 10 player limit imposed on the writers.  In 2016 Martinez rose to 43.4% and increased by about 15% each year until 2019 where he received 85.4% of the vote in his last year of eligibility.

Alan Trammell received 33.6 % of the vote in 2013 on his 12th year on the ballot. This percentage dropped to 20.8 in 2013 increased to 25.1 in 2015 and went up again to 40.9% in 2016 on his final year on the writer's ballot.  The Veteran's Committe elected him to Cooperstown in 2018.

Larry Walker was in his 3rd year on the ballot in 2013 when he received 21.6% of the vote. Walkers votes went down in 2014 and 2015 and slowly climbed back up year after year until reaching 76.6% of the vote last year.  

Fred McGriff, Mark McGwire, Don Mattingly and Rafael Palmeiro returned to the 2014 ballot and have all since been eliminated from election by the BBWAA.  They could still make it to Cooperstown by means of the Veteran's Committee.

Of the 9 Hall of Famers (so far) from the 2013 ballot 6 were elected on the writer's ballot and 3 by the veteran's committee. 

In 1996 there were also no players receiving the need 75% of votes on the writer's ballot needed for induction to Cooperstown. Since then 7 players from that ballot have been inducted Although Joe Torre was inducted in 2014 as a manager and not a player.  .  The other 6 are Phil Niekro (1997 BBWAA), Tony Perez 2000, BBWAA), Don Sutton (1998 BBWAA),  Ron Santo (2012 Veteran's Committee), Jim Rice (2009 BBWAA) & Bruce Sutter (2006 BBWAA).  There are several players from that ballot including Dick Allen who may someday join the other 7 inductees via the Veteran's Committee.  

While the tales of the players from the 1996 & 2013 ballots may encourage the players from the 2021 ballot about their future in the hall their immediate inclusion seems less likely.  No players are aging off the ballot this year and players  like David Ortiz and Alex Rodriguez are being added to the 2022 ballot.  Curt Schillings seems to have the next chance for Cooperstown in 2022 as he has 4% of voters to gain.  He recently asked to be removed from the ballot and while that doesn't seem likely this may not increase his chances on maintainig his votes let alone garnering new support.