Hall of Fame voting season usually evokes strong pro or con emotions. So why am I so conflicted about so many of the candidates on the 2025 ballot?
There’s only one easy call. Ichiro Suzuki had 3,089 hits, was a two-time batting champion, a seven-time hits leader, scores a 235 on the Bill James HOF meter where 100 is the dividing line, earned ten All Star appearances, and won AL Rookie of the Year.
If Suzuki isn’t a unanimous selection, he won’t miss that level of recognition by much.
Beyond Suzuki, however, is a virtual roster of candidates who are close calls. You can make a plausible case for — or against — any of them. That makes the 2025 ballot one of the most ambivalently fated votes in years.
Personally, I’d be comfortable if any of these guys get in… or get left out.
Alphabetically, here’s the lineup that will challenge HOF voters.
Carlos Beltran
The arguments for Beltran’s candidacy are impressive. He played 20 seasons, he was a nine-time All Star, a Rookie of the Year — notably — a Clemente Award winner. That designation goes to the player judged to have been most deserving for community service and being a role model ambassador for the game of baseball.
The arguments against Beltran are two-fold. Statistically, his .279 career batting average is nice but hardly overpowering. He never won a batting title, nor led the league in any offensive category for that matter. He only once finished higher than ninth in MVP voting, and the list of those ahead of his career .837 OPS includes eight guys on this year’s ballot.
The second issue — which is the elephant in the room — is his apparent leadership role in the 2017 Astros sign-stealing scandal.
Now in his third year on the ballot, Beltran got 57 percent last year.