Hall of Fame candidates from the Contemporary Baseball Era Committee, who were appointed by the Historical Overview Committee, will be determining who gets in the Baseball Hall of Fame from eight eligible candidates.
In order to be eligible. these players had most significant career impact was realized from 1980 to the present. Also, candidates include players who played in at least 10 major league seasons, who have been retired for at least 15 seasons and who are not on Major League Baseball’s ineligible list.
No matter who is on the allot and gets selected, it is bound to cause plenty of attention and consternation among the baseball historians.
Hall of Fame Candidates
The eight candidates for Contemporary Baseball Era consideration for the Class of 2023:
• Albert Belle
He was a three-time American League champion in the RBI category, Belle won the silver slugger award five times and also was an All Star five times.In the MVP voting, he finish second or third in three consecutive seasons (94-96). He remains the only player in history to post a 50 home run/50 double season, having done so in 1995. A hip injury cut his carer short after 12 seasons.
• Barry Bonds
In 22 seasons, Bonds garnered seven NL MVP awards and eight Gold Gloves. He is MLB’s all-time home run leader with 762, Bonds set single-season records for home runs (73 in 2001) and walks (232 in 2004). He led the NL in on-base percentage 10 times and paced the league in batting average twice. However, he has the steroid issue hanging over him if that matters to you.
• Roger Clemens
For 24 seasons. Clemens suited up for four teams. He was the 1986 AL MVP and won seven Cy Young awards. Clements was selected for the All-Star Game 11 times. He led his league in earned-run average seven times and was a five-time 20-game winner. Steroids also are a concern for Roger Clemens.
• Don Mattingly
For 14 seasons he played for the Ynakess and finished with a .307 batting average along with nine Gold Gloves and six All-Star selections. In 1985, he was named AL MVP and in 1984 he was the American League batting champion. Mattingly was named the 2020 National League Manager of the Year.
• Fred McGriff
He has eight 100 RBI seasons and smacked 493 home runs and finished in Top 10 of MVP voting six times.He led the Braves to a World Series championship in 1995.
• Dale Murphy
In 1982 and 1983 he was named NL MVP as a member of the Atlanta Braves. He also won five consecutive Gold Glove as a center fielder and was selected to the All-Star game seven times in 8 seasons. He garnered four Silver Slugger Awards.
• Rafael Palmeiro
In his 20 seasons, he hit 569 home runs, totaled 3020 hits and drove in 1835 runs along with four All-Star selections, three Gold Gloves and drove in 100 RBI’s ten times. Palmeiro added 30 home runs in 10 seasons am and hit 30 home runs ten times. He finished his career with more walks (1,353) than strikeouts (1,348).
• Curt Schilling
He has over 3000 strikeouts and fewer than 1000 walks in his career. He was MVP of the 2001 World Series and has a 2.23 ERA in the post-season.
He won 216 games in 20 seasons with four teams and was named to the All-Star game six times.
Since his retirement, he has become somewhat a social pariah.Have about you? Whom do you select? I will take McGriff, Belle, Palmeiro and Murphy in that order.
Any candidates elected will be inducted in Cooperstown on July 23, 2023, along with any electees who emerge from the 2023 Baseball Writers’ Association of America election, which will be announced on Jan. 24, 2023, exclusively on MLB Network.
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