McGriff, Rolen join fading Hall of Fame

By David Mullen

On Sunday, July 23, the National Baseball Hall of Fame and Museum in Cooperstown, N.Y. will open the doors to new members Fred McGriff and Scott Rolen. More than four dozen Hall of Famers are expected to attend the festivities honoring the Class of 2023.

The annual induction ceremonies are a pilgrimage for baseball fans, and Cooperstown is the ideal hamlet for honoring a game steeped in tradition. Cooperstown not only represents baseball, but it is also a microcosm of Americana. 

Main Street in Cooperstown is to baseball what Genesee Street in Bedford Falls is to Christmas. It is a retrospective of the past. For one glorious weekend, the streets teem with people of all ilk sharing one peaceable passion: baseball. Even Yankees and Red Sox fans coexist.

Prior to the ceremony, there is a downtown parade. Local merchants dust off their wares and display anything and everything baseball. Stars from baseball’s past set up temporary tables and offer autographs or sign books. On a small hill facing a large stage, baseball fans fancying teams from Seattle to South Beach gather to take in the day and watch the inductions for free. 

Less than 2,000 people live full-time in Cooperstown, but millions of baseball memories call the village home. Of all of the museums and Hall of Fames dedicated to sports, there is no place like Cooperstown. 

The Museum has a stunning collection of baseball memorabilia that improves over time as more achievements are chronicled and records are broken. It is well worth a visit, although getting there is as challenging as hitting a Nolan Ryan fastball. 

Once reserved for entry to only the absolute best ever to play or represent baseball, the Baseball Hall of Fame is becoming a mere shadow of its once stately being. It no longer represents the best players. It represents players that sports writers liked the best.

Since 1936, the Baseball Writers’ Association of America (BBWAA) has held the exclusive voting privilege for the National Baseball Hall of Fame. 

Annually, the BBWAA members vote, and at least 75 percent of votes are required for a former player or contributor to earn a plaque in the Hall of Fame. Players not voted in can also gain entry later via the Veterans Committee.

As noted on the Baseball Hall of Fame website, “In the 75-plus years of voting … the process has evolved to reflect updated rules, most notably changes to the eligibility criteria and qualifications for earning election. The electorate has remained with the BBWAA since the beginning.” The BBWAA bias against —and favoritism for — certain players is clear.

Four of the greatest players during the last 40 years — Barry Bonds, Alex Rodriquez, Roger Clemens and Pete Rose — are not in the Hall of Fame and probably never will be. Despite unrivaled stats, Bonds, Rodriquez and Clemens are the poster boys for the performance enhancing drug (PED) era.

PED use was legal in baseball until 1991, and testing did not begin until the 2003 season. Bonds and Clemens were branded as users, but they never failed a league sanctioned drug test. And Rose broke a rule for gambling on baseball as a manager. Whether the four players should be put in the Hall — at least with a caveat — are a debate for another time. But all four players were universally disliked by the baseball media and have found little support for inclusion.   

It should be noted that baseball commissioner Bud Selig and manager Tony LaRussa were in positions of responsibility during the Steroid Era, yet were elected to the Hall of Fame. LaRussa managed known PED users Jose Canseco and Mark McGwire. MLB, once vehemently opposed to sports gambling, now  welcomes online gaming sites DraftKings and FanDuel as official sports betting partners.

Since 2016, catcher Mike Piazza, shortstop Alan Trammell, pitcher Mike Mussina, designated hitter Harold Baines, closer Lee Smith, outfielder Larry Walker, catcher Ted Simmons, designated hitter David Ortiz and now McGriff and Rolen have gained entrance into the hallowed Hall. A strong case can be made that none of those players measure up to the once lofty standards.

In 19 seasons with six teams, McGriff never finished higher than sixth in MVP voting. He finished with 492 home runs, below the revered 500 mark. Baseball-Reference.com groups McGriff with Hall of Famers Willie McCovey, Willie Stargell and Frank Thomas and players of his era like Paul Konerko, Carlos Delgado and Jason Giambi. He fits better in the latter group.

Rolen was an excellent fielder, winning eight Gold Gloves at third base and was the 1997 NL Rookie of the Year. But he placed in the Top 10 in MVP voting just once and never led a statistical category in hitting in his 17-year career. Both McGriff and Rolen were popular with the media.

Not media darlings, sluggers Dick Allen and Dave Parker are not in the Hall of Fame, yet Baines, Walker, Simmons, McGriff and Rolen are and were not nearly as talented. Parker is also the face of another blemished era in baseball when cocaine use was rampant.

Executive Marvin Miller was inducted into the Hall in 2020 for his contribution to building a player’s union, but player Curt Flood, an outstanding centerfielder in the 1960s, sacrificed his career for player rights and was snubbed. There was no Miller without Flood, who was considered surly and aloof by the baseball media.  

The Hall of Fame’s mission is “to preserve the sport’s history, honor excellence within the game and make a connection between the generations of people who enjoy baseball.” They do a wonderful job of “preserving the sport’s history.”

In keeping with the mission to “honor excellence within the game and make a connection between the generations of people who enjoy baseball,” the Hall has most recently fallen short. Baseball’s Hall of Fame wing, honoring the best players, should live up to the same values of a small town in Upstate New York that the Hall calls home.