Barry Bonds, Roger Clemens could have alternative path to Hall of Fame
At left, in a June 23, 2011, file photo, former San Francisco Giants baseball player Barry Bonds leaves federal court in San Francisco. At right, in a July 14, 2011 file photo, former Major League baseball pitcher Roger Clemens leaves federal court in Washington. Credit: AP/Uncredited
So what’s next for Barry Bonds and Roger Clemens now that they have not been elected to the Hall of Fame on their 10th and final year on the writers’ ballot?
Turns out the Hall is not done with the two steroid-scarred stars just yet.
Bonds and Clemens are still eligible to be considered by the Today’s Game Committee, which considers players who did not make it to Cooperstown on the Baseball Writers' Association of America ballot.
That era committee — one of four in use by the Hall to supplement (or ignore and overrule) the BBWAA selection process — will vote this December to potentially elect players and others as part of the Hall’s Class of 2023.
The Today’s Game Committee last voted in 2019, when the 16-member panel elected Harold Baines and Lee Smith to the Hall from a list of 10 candidates chosen by a different panel.
In 2019, the voters on the Today’s Game Committee were Hall of Famers Roberto Alomar, Bert Blyleven, Pat Gillick, Tony La Russa, Greg Maddux, Joe Morgan, John Schuerholz, Ozzie Smith and Joe Torre; executives Al Avila, Paul Beeston, Andy MacPhail and Jerry Reinsdorf; and media members/historians Steve Hirdt, Tim Kurkjian and Claire Smith.
As with the BBWAA ballot, era committee candidates must receive 75% of the vote — in this case, at least 12 votes. The Hall makes no distinction between Hall of Famers elected by the BBWAA or the committees. Once you’re in, you’re in.
Curt Schilling and Sammy Sosa are also eligible for consideration from the Today’s Game Committee after they failed to get in on their 10th year on the ballot. So are any players who fell off the BBWAA ballot because they received fewer than 5% of the vote, or, really, anyone who made "their greatest contributions" to the game from 1988 to today and isn’t already in the Hall.
The other committees, all of which vote on a rotating basis, are Modern Baseball (1970-87), Golden Days (1950-69) and Early Baseball (before 1950).
This past December, the Golden Days and Early Baseball committees elected six men (Bud Fowler, Gil Hodges, Jim Kaat, Minnie Minoso, Tony Oliva and Buck O’Neil) as part of the Class of 2022.
In case you’re wondering: Pete Rose is not eligible to get into the Hall by any method as he has been on baseball’s ineligible list since Aug. 24, 1989.
Anthony Rieber covers baseball, as well as the NFL, NBA and NHL. He has worked at Newsday since Aug. 31, 1998, and has been in his current position since July 5, 2004.
