Baseball elects nobody….again

This is starting to become a habit. The MLB has decided nobody was worthy of induction into their Hall of Fame for 2021, a hall in which has produced only one unanimous inductee (Mariano Rivera). I am starting to think the voters are complete snobs as if to say "nobody is worthy of this crown". Before we jump to conclusions on why nobody was nominated, let's look at an article from The Mothership in 2013. According to ESPN (2013), "Since 1961, the only years the writers didn't elect a candidate were when Yogi Berra topped the 1971 vote by appearing on 67 percent of the ballots cast and when Phil Niekro headed the 1996 ballot at 68 percent. Both were chosen the following years when they achieved the 75 percent necessary for election. The other BBWAA elections without a candidate earning election: 1945, 1946, 1950, 1958, and 1960" (para 16). Of course, 2013 was the last year but is not mentioned in ESPN's quote because that was the topic of their article at the time.

I know what you are thinking, must be a steroid thing, right? Perhaps, but would that not be one of the reasons MLB got so popular in the '80s? Many attest that the MLB purposely turned a blind eye to the 'roids because, well..." chicks dig the long ball". How do Barry and Roger not get in? If the goal is to shun all that juiced, there will be plenty more years to come with no inductees. What about when those who got snubbed start arguing that players that did not get caught still juiced? The MLB has a debacle on their hands. Hey, maybe they do not care. The Hall of Fame for many leagues is arbitrary anyway, left to writers which is a goofy idea on the surface, to begin with.

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And was Curt Schilling denied because of political beliefs? That is just speculation, but if true, how is that even remotely a requirement? The MLB really is not that self-aware. Even with limited crowds, other sports are still drawing more people to the park. It is bad enough that fans do not have 4 hours to dedicate to a Tuesday night game, now your Hall of Fame process is becoming a laughingstock. Why even have a Hall of Fame? According to The Philadelphia Inquirer (2021), "Schilling, a right-handed ace who won three World Series titles, finished 16 votes short of the 75% threshold necessary for enshrinement. He got 71.1% percent this time after coming up 20 votes shy at 70% last year" (para 3). Obviously, a few writers have a problem with something off the field, the same for the other snubs.

Schilling would later announce that he no longer wants to be considered, since next year is his last opportunity anyway, and I am sure he sees this as something other than his playing career. What is the emoji for "good grief"?