Steroids and Pete Rose: What lies ahead for the Baseball Hall of Fame

To elect or not to elect?

In a day where baseball writers seem to be growing warmer about voting in known steroid-users, it makes no sense to refuse to consider reversing the decision about Pete Rose. If a player who scientifically gave themselves an edge over their peers can get close to the 75% threshold, why not throw Pete Rose’s name on the ballot and see how the experts feel about it?

I believe that if Pete Rose were allowed his 10 years on the ballot as everyone else gets, he would eventually be elected and take his place among the history and memories of the game.

A new wing

There will never be a perfect answer about how to properly handle the steroid era and its impact on baseball. However, it is my belief that there should be a separate wing of the Hall of Fame dedicated to the steroid era. This could contain pieces of context, videos, and artifacts for those who did not live to see it and also provide a home for the plaques of those who were known cheaters but gain the necessary 75% to be there.

This way, baseball shows the history of the iconic 1990s decade of PEDs without suggesting that players like Bonds and Clemens deserve to be enshrined next to players who had clean Hall of Fame caliber careers.

Time to decide

Before we know it, players who found another way to violate baseball rules will appear on the ballot. I’m looking ahead to the future where members of the 2017 Astros may be up for consideration. If the higher-ups of baseball do not shore up their plans and policies soon, it can only get messier as time goes by.

Without record-holders and the steroid era accurately represented in Cooperstown, is the Baseball Hall of Fame truly preserving baseball’s history… or are they simply camouflaging it?