The Pecan Park Eagle

(original oil-wax by Opie Otterstad, 2004)           Will Craig Biggio make it into the HOF his first year?

The following is the alphabetical list of those former players who are now eligible for 2013 induction into the Baseball Hall of Fame. All any of them has to do to get there is to receive 75% support from the 600 voters who represent the deciding deity as The Baseball Writers Association of America. (BBWAA).

The rules for judging candidates are not tied to specific statistical accomplishments. Voting baseball writers are instructed to judge each candidate on ability, integrity, sportsmanship, character, and contribution to the team or teams on which he played — as well as to baseball in general.

So, how are things stacking up this year, in Craig Biggio’s first eligible year on the ballot?

Well, most of these eligible names are on the ballot for the first time, but a few have sustained enough hanger-on votes over the years to be headed into their 13th to 15th seasons on the ballot. And, of course, there are several players with impeccably incredible stats that are only missing out because of their association with the steroids-enhanced era in recent MLB history. I’ve taken the liberty of bold-face typing the names of those so effected in my own mind. Your own steroids-era list may vary from mine – and that’s just one of the problems the actual voters face. Without convictions of offense, the worst-publicized players are drawing attention for lies and arrogance that could be keeping the spotlight away from others who have been better able to avoid the sear of the spotlight.

Here’s the list of 2013 eligible HOF candidates, with my list of steroids-smeared, not convicted, candidates shown in bold type:

Sandy Alomar, Jr, Jeff Bagwell, Craig Biggio, Barry Bonds, Jeff Cirillo, Royce Clayton, Roger Clemens, Jeff Conine, Steve Finley, Julio Franco, Shawn Green, Roberto Hernandez, Ryan Klesko, Kenny Lofton, Edgar Martinez, Don Mattingly, Fred McGriff, Mark McGwire, Jose Mesa, Jack Morris, Dale Murphy, Rafael Palmeiro, Mike Piazza, Tim Raines, Reggie Sanders, Curt Schilling, Aaron Sele, Lee Smith, Sammy Sosa, Mike Stanton, Alan Trammell, Larry Walker, Todd Walker, David Wells, Rondell White, Bernie Williams, and Woodie Williams.

If you were one of the “godlies” this year, who would you pick? – And who would you leave out, for cause?