One inductee over three years – will this time add to the tally?
Previous SnakePit Hall of Fame Inductees
- 2015 – Randy Johnson, Pedro Martinez
- 2016 – Ken Griffey Jr.
- 2017 – Jeff Bagwell, Craig Biggio, Vladimir Guerrero, Mike Piazza, Curt Schilling, John Smoltz
- 2018 – Chipper Jones, Ivan Rodriguez, Edgar Martinez
- 2019 – Mariano Rivera, Trevor Hoffman, Jim Thome
- 2020 – Roy Halladay, Derek Jeter
- 2021 – No inductees
- 2022 – No inductees
- 2023 – David Ortiz
- 2024 – Adrian Beltre, Joe Mauer
The rules
We began with the same ballot as the Hall of Fame in 2015, and have proceeded from there on. The same 75% super-majority is required for election, and players are removed from the future ballot on election here, regardless of whether or not they made it into the “real” Hall of Fame. So far, the SnakePit electorate has been in fairly close agreement with the BBWAA, with timing the main variation. I think the three current differences are Mike Mussina, was not elected here, but went into Cooperstown in 2019, while Scott Rolen amd Todd Helton are also not enshrined in SnakePit Towers. Conversely, Curt Schilling was inducted by us as part of the class of 2017, but was rejected by the BBWAA.
Off the SnakePit ballot from last year goes Gary Sheffield under the 10-year rule. Failing to get over 5% and so also being removed are Roy Oswalt, Prince Fielder, Joe Nathan, Tim Lincecum, Victor Martinez, Brandon Phillips, Jose Reyes and James Shields. This year’s list has been adjusted for the non-electees mentioned above, along with adding the following new arrivals.
- Ichiro Suzuki
- CC Sabathia
- Dustin Pedroia
- Ian Kinsler
- Félix Hernández
- Troy Tulowitzki
- Ben Zobrist
- Curtis Granderson
- Hanley Ramírez
- Russell Martin
- Adam Jones
- Brian McCann
- Carlos González
- Fernando Rodney
Andruw Jones (8th season, 65%), Todd Helton (7th, 65%) and Rolen (8th, 50%) are the returning names mentioned on half or more of the ballots in 2023. We’ll see if any of these end up getting closer to induction into SnakePit Towers! Billy Wagner (45%) will be drinking at the last chance saloon on the 2025 ballot. There’s one very obvious name, whom I fully expected to make into the 2025 SnakePit Hall of Fame induction ceremony (bring your own booze – sausage rolls will be provided). But be interesting to see if anyone else makes the cut, and who simply avoid being taken off the ballot for next year.
To prevent potential ballot-box stuffing, voting is open only to registered AZ SnakePit users – forms without a valid username filled in will be rejected [however, since you can join by clicking on a link and filling in a form, it’s not exactly an onerous requirement!]. I reserve the right to publish your ballot, with or without your name attached, depending on how amusing it is. However, feel free to announce your ballot and explain it in the comments. You can select as many candidates as you want: there’s no “10 maximum” as on the real thing. Voting is open through Jan 20: the BBWAA will announce their results the following day, and we’ll follow suit shortly thereafter. I will filter out multiple votes too, so you know!
The form is below, and the eligible names are randomized for each submission: here’s a link if you’re on mobile or are otherwise finding the form griefsome.