2006 Baseball Hall of Fame ballot

If I were doing it, here's how I would've done it:

(apologies to the Yahoo BBallgroup on which I originally posted this)

Yes, but for whom are you voting, Aaron?

I advocate making the serious choices, but also engaging one's emotional whims.

Here are my picks:
Gwynn
Ripken
Blyleven
L Smith
Gossage
J Morris
Mattingly
Concepcion
E Davis
Strat-O-Matic

The last does require some explanation. I'm looking at the game box for the Strat-O-Matic set my mother got my 10-year-old in a yard sale awhile ago. It says on it, "The Game that Belongs in the Hall of Fame."

I'm convinced. Until Strat is in, it gets my vote over Pete Rose.

Will Jose Canseco make the 5% to stay on the ballot? Surveysays...no. (appropriate sound effect)

Additional comments--

I think that "God gave you ten picks, you should use them."

I avoid picking borderline candidates unless I'm advocating a change in direction in Hall membership, and I give votes to lower-probability candidates who "deserve" my vote. This I test out in avery simple way: if I voted for him before, did it feel right? If not, I don't continue.

The same principle--it's just human nature, no?--applies to McGwire, and to the other future "Steroids Alleged" cases. One thinks--and should think--"I feel free to withhold my vote this year." But then, one must think back and ask oneself, 'Does this feel right?'

I'm going to try omitting mac and see how it feels, though I will say he's all the ballplayer Harmon Killebrew was (4th ballot) except a shorter career. I predict it will end up feeling bad if one tries this approach with Sammy Sosa, and this feeling of regret,multiplied by a sufficient number of folks, will lead to his selection on a low number of ballot tries. But that doesn't mean heshould be elected on the first ballot--"heaven forbid"!

Anyway, I think this line of thinking leads me to my assessment ofthe problem with the Hall standard of 75%: it assumes people areactually using their votes, when for the most part, they don't.

And my final one (for the Hall suggestion box?): they really shouldset up a Committee to make sure that the thing that happened withBuck O'Neil doesn't happen again. I've got it: the VeteransCommittee!