The Gates Close: No 2021 Baseball Hall of Fame Class

Announcement just came down.

Schilling the closest at 71.1%, 16 votes short.

Bonds and Clemens at about 61 1/2%.

And next year:  A-Rod and Ortiz, and the last year of all three of the above.

I'm saying it now:  You will see a mass push, led by ESPN and the other Bonds/Clemens supporters, to go through the list and find one or more who should be removed, on steroids or otherwise, for "integrity and sportsmanship" grounds.

If they cannot prove a Hall of Famer is already in the Hall who was on the gas, and then, in addition, the BBWAA throwing said player out directly or putting a mechanism together to throw that player out (not unlike The Wrestling Observer did for Chris Benoit -- after the double-murder/suicide, the person behind the Hall of Fame, Dave Meltzer, put a one-time ballot up, yes/no, 60% threshold to remove.  Benoit remains in the Observer Hall of Fame by a narrow margin.), Barry Bonds and Roger Clemens will never be in Cooperstown.

Which then really does lead to the question which may have to be asked:  Are we going to start seeing long stretches of no inductees?  I could easily see a retaliation two years down the road -- that if Bonds and Clemens are out, not even some of the slam dunks get in...

But, roidies, it's over.  You're not getting in, barring a sting of someone already in the Hall by the end of this baseball season.

And Schilling, this is because you are a fucking MAGAt who won't shut his fucking mouth.  Especially given one of the weakest ballots in decades and that you already had 70% inclusion, that usually is a rubber-stamp that you'll get in if no one else does.

Schilling's political views are what keeps him out of Cooperstown.  He's right only in that regard.  He can shut the fuck up otherwise.

(AND TO NOTE:  That in the title is fact.  There is no 2021 class of any kind whatsoever.  No main vote, no Veteran's Committee, no other side committees.  As of now, they are scheduling a 2021 ceremony for last year's Derek Jeter-led class.)

To speak to similar to several media situations already, I'm going to mirror ESPN's analysis thing and answer the questions they asked:

Biggest Winner:  The "Integrity and Sportsmanship" Clause, and the anti-roidies.  This year basically ended the candidacy of Bonds and Clemens, and neither stands a very good chance of getting in through a Veteran's Committee who has already tossed McGwire out.

A lot of people are saying Rolen on his raise on his fourth year, but be careful:  He's probably not getting in next year -- and, after that, there could be a very real backlash against the Hall by the pro-Bonds/Clemens/Schilling voters, even and especially if Schilling also fails in his final year.  I could see an easy 30% block say "If they're not in, NO ONE IS IN." -- and we get 5-6 straight YEARS of no one getting in.

(Which will probably mean the paring of another 100 or so voters, putting the number of voters in about 3 years at about 300.  My anonymous friend noted that the Hall pared the voting rolls for voters who didn't care and the like from 549 in 2015 to 396 this year.  And we all know, if this happens, it will not be subtle and it will be VERY public.)

Biggest Loser:  ESPN, Deadspin, and all the Bonds apologists.  This has ended the legitimate candidacy of Barry Bonds and Roger Clemens for the Hall of Fame.  They're NOT GETTING IN unless someone hoodwinked the Hall previously.

What No One Getting In Means:  I think it's clear that the entire Steroid Era, barring that shock clean player (which is more and more a shock to a lot of people) is getting a clean rejection from at least 30-40% of the ballots -- which, as I said below in the other post, might mean baseball may someday have to consider wiping the books of the entire era (at least on a statistical sense) for those players not proven clean.

I think it also means Curt Schilling is a MAGAt Asshole, and he basically just threw in the towel himself and threw himself to the Veteran's Committee in a vitriolic tweet this afternoon.  In fact, I'd have to verify:  He may have just told the BBWAA not to bother to include him next year.

Which vote total is most surprising:  I think, more, that the complete lack of candidates meant we got a lot more of the 35-50% crowd this year.  2020 had the two winners, Schilling Bonds and Clemens, and one player above 35%.  People better start preparing, though, for what's probably going to go down in two years when Bonds and Clemens fail, and Schilling might go with them.

Eventually, this might force a Commissioner with integrity (meaning a new one) to actually throw the roidies out of the sport for life (and beyond).

Underrated the most:  Many are saying Jeff Kent, but he was probably as dirty as Bonds!!!  I can't really see an "underrated" name here, guys.

Next Year:  If Schilling is on the ballot, he's about the only real shot.  If the Hall is not putting in Bonds and Clemens, they won't put in ARod or Ortiz (positive in 2003).  Rolen is probably the next good shot, but I see next year as another zero, barring a discovery and a lack of removal.