Major League Baseball’s Lockout Intensifies 2022 Hall Of Fame Election Frustrations

Major League Baseball’s lockout has reached two months in length and even after multiple negotiating sessions over the past week, a significant divide still exists on key economic issues. It is inevitable that ball players won’t be reporting to spring training on-time in two weeks and delays will adversely affect scheduling well beyond Cactus and Grapefruit League ball games. While there has been a willingness by both parties to make minimal concessions, the issues are still vast and complex in scope where Major League Baseball has asked for federal mediation.

Instead of eagerly anticipating the arrival of pitchers and catchers in spring training or critiquing winners and losers of the “Hot Stove” season, frustrated fans are still expressing their displeasure over the recent National Baseball Hall of Fame and Museum election conducted by the Baseball Writers’ Association of America (BBWAA). The failure to elect Barry Bonds and Rogers Clemens in their tenth and final year of eligibility on the BBWAA ballot has hit a nerve with many who have already begun to feel disconnected from the sport. Some have even gone as far as to question the Baseball Hall of Fame’s relevance if Bonds and Clemens aren’t enshrined in the venerable institution.     

The performance enhancing substances epidemic was grossly mishandled amid great acrimony between Major League Baseball and the Major League Baseball Players Association (MLBPA). After years of ugliness and a costly $280 million collusion settlement in 1990, Major League Baseball was hellbent on doing all they could to break the MLBPA. These actions partly contributed to the 1994-1995 strike which lasted 232 days and led to the cancellation of the World Series. Mammoth home runs hit by ball players who resembled Mr. Olympia contestants became the blueprint for Major League Baseball’s post-strike economic recovery. Both parties were equally culpable as reluctance and ignorance led to the unethical assault on baseball’s cherished record books by pharmaceutically enhanced ball players.

As 2004 signified the beginning of mandatory testing for performance enhancing substances in Major League Baseball, BBWAA voters have been unfairly challenged to assess the purity of a candidate’s statistical achievements with minimal guidance. Rumors, speculation, and even back acne have factored heavily into the decision-making process in the absence of a failed test. According to Jay Jaffe’s book, The Cooperstown Casebook, the sportsmanship, integrity, and character rule was first implemented in 1944 by Baseball Hall of Fame founder Stephen Clark and Commissioner Kenesaw Mountain Landis. Bonds and Clemens’ candidacies have been intensely scrutinized by voters adhering to this rule even as both had received support on at least 50 percent of the ballots cast in six consecutive BBWAA elections (2017-2022) while falling short of the required 75 percent for enshrinement. 

People genuinely care about the Baseball Hall of Fame. The non-profit might be classified as an independent educational institution, but it is an important window into the history of America with baseball serving as a tour guide. The view can be breathtaking and magnificent but equally disturbing especially when it comes to failures regarding race relations and integration. Even though there is an emphasis on preservation and celebrating excellence, the museum has a business component to it as well. It relies on donations, admissions, merchandise sales, and prosperous Induction Weekends driven by popular inductees.

It is wise to remember the Baseball Hall of Fame is not a house of the holy for only the most righteous of ball players. Most of the inductees are not cut from the same cloth as Henry Aaron, Roberto Clemente, Lou Gehrig, Stan Musial, and Jackie Robinson. Flawed individuals who have suffered from moral bankruptcy are still honored without a scarlet letter affixed to their bronze plaques signifying their indiscretions. Adulterers, bigots, cheaters, and racists still call Cooperstown their home for baseball immortality. So why the animus towards Bonds and Clemens?

In truth, Bonds and Clemens broke our hearts. Both were transcendent talents who should have never had to take a vitamin. Arrogant and cantankerous personalities aside, Bonds and Clemens were captivating due to their unequaled dominance and other worldly abilities. The discovery that a portion of their statistical achievements might have been compromised by performance enhancing substances was devastating but forgivable to some given baseball’s unregulated landscape for several years. Disappointments aside, the greatest losses suffered by Bonds and Clemens were the respect and trust of those who genuinely believed in the authenticity of their vast accomplishments.

An important question has been raised regarding the Baseball Hall of Fame’s relevance and engaging with a younger generation of fans. Major League Baseball is already experiencing serious concerns regarding labor strife, length of play, marketability, gambling, and overall relevance in a rapidly changing sports landscape. Fans have always been the lifeblood of baseball, but they also have little patience for prolonged labor negotiations. Their value and importance are overlooked while being bombarded with incessant emails to purchase spring training or regular season tickets amid a lockout. Ironically, one of the special event ticket promotions being offered by the New York Yankees is Union Night on July 29^th versus the Kansas City Royals.           

The BBWAA and various Era Committees determine who is worthy of enshrinement, but sometimes the decisions might be in stark contrast with who the fans want to see in the hallowed halls of Cooperstown. The Baseball Hall of Fame promotes deep and meaningful connections across generations, but a disconnect is obvious while walking through the plaque gallery. Out of the 340 elected members, 268 are former major league ball players with only 48 inductees who had appeared in a ball game since the 1990 season. To take it a step further, only 29 inductees enshrined as ball players had appeared in a ball game in the 21^st century. 

We don’t know for certain if any member of the Baseball Hall of Fame had ever used performance enhancing substances, but the suspicions will continue to amplify in volume amid the omissions of Bonds and Clemens. As their names will likely appear on the December ballot for consideration by the Today’s Game Era Committee, the 16 individuals charged with reviewing their candidacies will have a tremendous responsibility thrust upon them. Do they uphold the results of the past ten BBWAA elections, or chart an entirely new course for evaluation?

One must wonder what enshrinement truly means to both Barry Bonds and Roger Clemens given what has occurred over the past decade. It could be a moment of vindication or an opportunity to demonstrate remorse given that Bonds and Clemens willfully soiled the integrity of baseball. Most importantly, is their inclusion in the National Baseball Hall of Fame and Museum in the best interests of the sport? Does it further enhance the educational objectives of a non-profit institution dependent upon public support? Until resolution is finally achieved, fans would warmly welcome an enjoyable distraction such as the end of the lockout and resumption of baseball activities.