The beginning of the new year means it is time for the annual debate about who is and is not a Hall of Famer. Ultimately only the opinions of Hall of Fame voters matter. They decide who goes to Cooperstown. The BBWAA is the sole voting body for the National Baseball Hall of Fame. Voters must be a member of the BBWAA and meet the following eligibility requirements.

Hall of Fame Voter Eligibility 

1. Any member of the Baseball Writers Association of America (BBWAA) who has been an active member for ten years.
2. The BBWAA is limited to writers for newspapers only, including some internet newspapers. 

The BBWAA sets the following rules for how eligible voters can vote. 

1. Vote for no more than 10 players.
2. A player is eligible for election to the Baseball Hall of Fame if they meet the following criteria:
   1. They competed in ten seasons. A single game counts as a season played.
   2. The player has been retired for at least five seasons. The clock restarts if the player returns and plays in the Major Leagues.
   3. The player is not on the ineligible list; banned from baseball. 
3. The player must receive 5% of the vote to remain on the ballot.
4. The player is elected if they receive at least 75% of all ballots cast. 

In addition to the official voting rules for the Baseball Hall of Fame set forth by the BBWAA, The Winning Run has an additional rule for its ballot. 

1. Known PED users are ineligible.

Every player dreams of reaching the Major Leagues and playing their way to Cooperstown. However, this dream is a reality for only 1% of Major Leaguers. Thousands of players begin their professional careers dreaming of the Hall of Fame and never spend a single day in the Major Leagues. Reaching the Major Leagues is extremely difficult. Appearing on the Hall of Fame ballot, even for a single year, is reserved for baseball’s elites. Making the ballot is an honor, even if the candidate does not receive a single vote.

The 2024 Hall of Fame ballot has 26 candidates. There are 14 returning candidates and 12 new candidates. The 14 returning candidates are:

1. Todd Helton- 6th year (72.2%)
2. Billy Wagner- 9th year (68.1%)
3. Andruw Jones- 7th year (58.1%)
4. Gary Sheffield- 10th year (55.0%)
5. Carlos Beltran- 2nd year (46.5%)
6. Alex Rodriguez- 3rd year (35.7%)
7. Manny Ramirez- 8th year (33.2%)
8. Omar Vizquel- 7th year (19.5%)
9. Andy Pettitte- 6th year (17.0%)
10. Bobby Abreu- 5th year (15.4%)
11. Jimmy Rollins- 3rd year (12.9%)
12. Mark Buehrle- 4th year (10.8%)
13. Francisco Rodriguez- 2nd year (10.8%)
14. Torii Hunter- 4th year (6.9%)

The 12 first time candidates are:

1. Adrian Beltre
2. Joe Mauer
3. Chase Utley
4. David Wright
5. Bartolo Colon
6. Matt Holliday
7. Adrian Gonzalez
8. Jose Bautista
9. Jose Reyes
10. Victor Martinez
11. James Shields
12. Brandon Phillips

Following our own rule, 5 of the 26 candidates were removed from consideration due to their connections with PEDs. 

1. Gary Sheffield
2. Alex Rodriguez
3. Manny Ramirez
4. Andy Pettitte
5. Bartolo Colon

The sad part of our PED rule is every one of these players posted the necessary numbers to be seriously considered for the Hall of Fame. Their decision to use PEDs has hampered their own election to Cooperstown and left them on the ballot for additional years. These extra years have siphoned votes away from other worthy candidates, harming their Hall of Fame chances through no fault of their own. 

Two players we voted for in 2023 were removed from the ballot. Scott Rolen was elected to the Hall of Fame. Jeff Kent failed to be elected in his 10th and final year of eligibility. This means our 2024 ballot has two open spots. None of the candidates we voted for last year received less than 5%, so the other eight candidates have returned. After much research and debate we arrived at our 10 candidates. 

Adrian Beltre could do it all on a baseball field. The Third Baseman played 21 seasons with 4 teams: Los Angeles Dodgers (1998-2004), Seattle Mariners (2005-2009), Boston Red Sox (2010), and Texas Rangers (2011-2018). He played in 2,933 Games, scored 1,524 Runs, collected 3,166 Hits, including 636 Double, 38 Triples, 477 Home Runs, 1,707 RBI, 121 Stolen Bases, drawing 848 Walks, with 1,732 Strikeouts, posting a .286 BA, .339 OBP, .480 SLG, .819 OPS, 116 OPS+, and 5,309 Total Bases. Beltre won five Gold Gloves, four Silver Sluggers, and was a four time All Star. If elected, Beltre will rank first among Hall of Fame Third Basemen in RBI. He will be second in Hits, Doubles, and RBI. Beltre will have the third most Home Runs. He is a clear cut Hall of Famer. Just make sure you do not touch his head. 

Joe Mauer never left Minnesota. The hometown boy made good. Mauer Caught 15 seasons with the Minnesota Twins (2004-2018). He played in 1,858 Games, scored 1,018 Runs, collected 2,123 Hits, including 428 Doubles, 30 Triples, 143 Home Runs, 923 RBI, 52 Stolen Bases, drawing 939 Walks, with 1,034 Strikeouts, posting a .306 BA, .388 OBP, .439 SLG, .827 OPS, 124 OPS+, and 3,040 Total Bases. He was a six time All Star, won five Silver Sluggers, three Gold Gloves, and three Batting Titles. Mauer was named the 2009 American League MVP. If elected, Mauer will have the most Walks among Hall of Fame Catchers. He will be third in Doubles, fourth in OBP, sixth in Hits, and seventh in BA. Mauer should easily reach Cooperstown. 

Chase Utley put together an outstanding career. He was one of the leaders for the great Phillies teams, including their 2008 World Series championship. The Second Baseman played for two teams in 16 seasons: Philadelphia Phillies (2003-2015) and Los Angeles Dodgers (2015-2018). He played in 1,937 Games, scored 1,103 Runs, collected 1,885 Hits, including 411 Doubles, 58 Triples, 259 Home Runs, 1,025 RBI, 154 Stolen Bases, drawing 724 Walks, with 1,193 Strikeouts, posting a .275 BA, .358 OBP, .465 SLG, .823 OPS, 117 OPS+, and 3,189 Total Bases. Utley was a six time All Star and won four Silver Sluggers. If elected, Utley would rank fifth among Hall of Fame Second Basemen in Home Runs and seventh in SLG and OPS. 

Our ballot has three additions this year. We filled our two open slots with Adrian Beltre and Joe Mauer. We had one player, Jimmy Rollins, replaced by a former teammate, Chase Utley. The choice of Utley over Rollins is extremely close, but Utley is a more deserving candidate. The real issue is both Rollins and Utley are deserving candidates, but the idiotic Rule of 10 once again costs a deserving Hall of Fame candidate votes. If the Rule of 10 was not in place, we would also include Omar Vizquel, Jimmy Rollins, and Torii Hunter on our ballot. Now we wait for the official results for the Hall of Fame class of 2024. Who is heading to Cooperstown in July?

DJ