My Hall of Fame Ballot

Like most people, I don't have a Baseball Hall of Fame ballot.  Mr. Jim is the only person I know who actually does.  (Which probably means I know one more Hall of Fame voter than most other people.)  But that doesn't stop me from knowing who I think belongs in Cooperstown.  They won't announce the new inductees until January 5, but Mr. Jim and the other voters have to postmark their ballots by New Year's Eve.  There are 34 players on the ballot, of which voters can vote for a maximum of 10.  I believe that if you get 10 votes, you should use them all (especially since only one our two guys is going to reach the 75 percent needed for election anyway).  With that being said, here is my 2011 Hall of Fame ballot:

Bert Blyleven-This will be the year he finally gets in.  The fact that he isn't yet is a travesty, and his induction will be long overdue.  Blyleven retired after the 1992 season, meaning this is his 14th year on the ballot.  He almost got in last year, but fell five votes short.  Anyway, he finished with 287 career wins and 3,701 strikeouts in 23 seasons.  He also had 60 shutouts, a number not heard of in this day and age.  He's the only eligible member of the 3,000-strikeout club not in the Hall of Fame.

Roberto Alomar-He didn't get in last year, his first year on the ballot, mainly because some writers make a distinction between "Hall of Famer" and "first-ballot Hall of Famer."  I'm fine with that, since I can see their point.  Alomar's definitely a Hall of Famer, though.  I don't think anybody would dispute that.  Alomar may have been the greatest second baseman in history, winning 10 Gold Gloves and four Silver Slugger Awards.  A 12-time All-Star (in 12 consecutive years), he hit over .300 nine times and finished with a career batting average of .300 on the nose.  He was also an integral piece on every team he played for, including the 1992-93 Blue Jays teams that won the World Series.

Jack Morris-The best pitcher of the 1980s, I don't know why Jack Morris doesn't get more support.  He won more games in the 80s than anybody and finished with 254 career victories.  The ace of every team he ever pitched for, Morris started on Opening Day in 14 straight seasons, and he led three teams (1984 Tigers, 1991 Twins, 1992-93 Blue Jays) to four World Series championships.  Not to mention, the 10-inning 1-0 masterpiece against the Braves in Game 7 of the 1991 World Series for the Twins.  If that game was still going on, he'd still be mowing down Braves.

Mark McGwire-If not for the steroid allegations, he'd be in already.  I know I'm in the minority here, but I don't think it's fair to make us judge and jury for the "Steroid Era" players 10 years after the fact when nothing was being done to stop it while it was happening.  With that being said, his numbers have to be judged against others in his era, and McGwire was one of the most dominant players in the game during his prime.  The 1987 AL Rookie of the Year, he hit 49 home runs for the A's that season.  And of course, there was the amazing 70 in 1998.  Overall, a pure power hitter, he finished with 583 career bombs, which is currently ninth all-time and more than anybody else who's eligible that isn't in the Hall of Fame.  Seeing as his vote total has remained pretty much the same throughout his eligible years, he's not going to get in.  I know that.  Doesn't change the fact I think he should.

Jeff Bagwell-He's not going to get in this year, but I think he will eventually.  As everybody knows, he spent his entire 15-year career with the Astros after being traded by the Red Sux for Larry Andersen in 1990.  The 1991 NL Rookie of the Year and 1994 NL MVP, he's easily the greatest player in Astros history.  He's Houston's all-time leader in home runs (449) and RBIs (1,529), and both of those numbers would've been higher had he not been injured for the last five years of his career.  Craig Biggio's going to get in.  It would be nice if they go in together like Greg Maddux and Tom Glavine will.

That's my top five.  The rest of my ballot is:
Barry Larkin-A guy who I never considered a Hall of Famer, but was convinced he's a borderline candidate by all the writers who said they were going to vote for him last year.
Tim Raines-He's not Rickey Henderson, but he's pretty damn close.  Possibly the second-best leadoff hitter in history, he's definitely one of the best base stealers in history, finishing with 880.  I'm not sure if he'll ever get in, but if he does, he'll be the last person ever to be inducted as a Montreal Expo (and, for the sake of that franchise not being forgotten, I hope he gets in eventually).
Edgar Martinez-The greatest DH in history.  It's a position, people.  Deal with it.  It's not his fault his knees prevented him from playing the field.  And you can't dispute his offensive numbers.  He's one of eight players in history with 300 homers, 500 doubles (didn't it seem like he got a double every time he was up?), a career .300 average, a .400 on-base percentage and a .500 slugging percentage.  Plus, his double in Game 5 of the 1995 AL Division Series saved a franchise for its city.
Larry Walker-I'm curious to see how he'll do in his first year on the ballot.  Walker was a great player for a lot of years, but his prime was spent playing for the Colorado Rockies.  His home/road splits were incredible, so some might think his stats were a product of Coors Field, which would be fair.  But I can't ingore the .313/383/1,311 career line, and I think enough voters won't either.
Don Mattingly-He's never going to get in, but I reserve the right to save a vote for a personal favorite from my childhood.  Regardless of the era, being the face of the New York Yankees means something.  And he was consistently one of the best players in the American League throughout the '80s, so this vote isn't completely without merit.

There are other deserving guys (and Rafael Palmeiro), but that's the 10 I would vote for.  We'll see how the vote actually turns out on Jan. 5.  Merry Christmas to all!