On January 9th of this year, the class of 2013 was announced to the Major League Baseball Hall of Fame, and for the first time since 1996, no player was elected. Some of the players on the list include, Barry Bonds, Roger Clemens, Sammy Sosa, Mark McGuire, Jack Morris, Jeff Bagwell, Craig Biggio, Curt Schilling, and former Met Mike Piazza. Back in 2008, after Piazza announced his retirement, our very own Mike Peters wrote an article stating that Piazza should be put in to the Hall. However Piazza fell well short of the 75% needed to gain entry with 57.8% of the vote, 93 votes short.

It appears that the main reason why Piazza was not elected is the suspicion of his steroid use. Unlike Bonds, McGuire, Sosa, and Clemens, there has been no concrete evidence ever linking Piazza to performance enhancing drugs. Piazza was not named by Jose Canseco, nor was his name listed in the Mitchell Report. The closest link between Piazza and steroids was the rumor of back acne. Piazza's numbers alone should have warranted election to the Hall of Fame, with 396 homeruns as a catcher out of 427, 1335 career RBI's, a .306 career batting average, .377 on base percentage, and .545 slugging percentage. Piazza beats out Johnny Bench, who is considered by many to be the greatest catcher ever, in every category but RBI's, in two seasons less than Bench. However, many writers simply have stated that they wish to see what Piazza's book (which comes out in February) has to say about his potential usage of steroids.


If there is no new revelations about Piazza and potential steroids in between now and next year's vote, then there should be no argument that Piazza should be voted in as a Hall of Famer. Thus leaving the only argument whether or not he goes in as a Dodger, or as a Met.

UPDATE:
For the second year in a row Piazza was not elected to the Baseball Hall of Fame, receiving 62.2% of the vote. Read More...

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One of the greatest players in Mets history officially announced his retirement today. Mike Piazza, the face of the franchise from 1998 to 2005 and the player who led the Mets to the World Series in 2000 has called it a career.

Piazza is a sure-fire first ballot hall of famer, the only question that lingers is will he go into the Hall of Fame as a Met or as a Dodger.

As a biased Mets fan there really is no question in my mind that he should go in as a met. Piazza himself has said that he would prefer to go in as a Met, and although the Hall no longer allows the players to decide what cap they wear, I find it almost ridiculous that anyone would even suggest he wear a dodgers hat.

First and foremost, he played longer in New York, that alone is usually the deciding factor for the hall. Piazza played 7 full seasons in New York from 1999-2005, and played most of 1998 with the Mets as well. He only played 5 full seasons in Los Angeles.

Second, his statistics show clearly that he had a better career in New York than Los Angeles.

Team	G	AB	R	H	HR	RBI	BA
Los Angeles	726	2707	443	896	177	563	.331
New York	972	3478	532	1028	220	655	.296

Third, He led the Mets to the NLCS in 1999 and to the World Series in 2000. He didn't play all that well in the two first round playoff sweeps the dodgers experienced in 1995 and 1996.

Fourth, Piazza was the unquestionably the leader of the Mets for 8 Seasons.

Fifth, he is probably the second best player in Mets history, whereas he's more like the 10th best player in Dodger's history.

Sixth, the Mets got robbed with the other great hitting catcher in their franchise's history when the hall decided to give Gary Carter an Expos hat because he had played more seasons in Montreal.

While all of these are good reasons for Piazza to go into the hall as a Met, the reason is far deeper than statistics or time played, or playoff achievements. Mike Piazza should go into the Hall of Fame as a Met because most people when they think of Mike Piazza, they think of him with the Mets, and when they think of the Mets of the late 90s early 2000s they think of Mike Piazza.

If Mike Piazza ends up going into the Hall of Fame wearing a Dodgers cap, it will be an atrocity for Mets fans, whereas if he goes in as a Met, it wont be that big of a deal for Dodger fans because they should expect that.
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Former Yankees and Padres relief pitcher Goose Gossage was elected to the Baseball Hall of Fame today after appearing on 466 of the 543 ballots for 85.8% of the vote. A player must appear of 75% of the ballots to be elected. Gossage was the only player to garner enough votes from the Baseball Writers Association of America and will be the sole player inducted in 2008. Former Red Sox OF Jim Rice was second with 72.2% of the vote finishing 16 votes short.

Congrats to the Goose, all I can say to the hall of fame committee is "anyone but the Yankees". And to the Veteran's Committee, put Gil Hodges in Cooperstown where he belongs.
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This weekend, a huge event in North American professional sports occurred in a small village in Upstate New York. The event was largely overshadowed by the negative events going on in the sports world. In a time where we have to worry about overrated NFL quarterbacks mass murdering dogs, an asterisk next to a home run record, and the MAFIA fixing NBA games through referees, a lot of Americans overlooked what should have been one of the greatest days of the summer; the induction of Tony Gwynn, and Cal Ripken Jr. into the National Baseball Hall Of Fame. The two of them today would be considered a rare breed. While the two men were loyal to baseball, they were also loyal to their respective teams, and respective fans, and would never dream of leaving their respective cities. So since the national media didn’t give them the honor and recognition that they deserve, they are going to get it right here.

Ripken was a player of the likes that we might never see again in Major League Baseball. Ripken was called up to the Baltimore Orioles in 1981, and by 1982 Ripken was Baltimore’s everyday shortstop. From May 30, 1982 until September 19, 1998 Ripken never took a break, amassing an astounding streak of playing in 2,632 consecutive games. Ripken’s accomplishments along the way solidified his Hall Of Fame status. Two MVP Awards, two Gold Glove Awards, eight Silver Slugger Awards, the 1982 AL Rookie Of The Year, 19 All Star Game selections (including two MVP Awards), and being named to the MLB All Century Team. Not to mention Ripken did it all with his beloved hometown Baltimore Orioles, with whom he led to the 1983 World Series title. After 2,632 consecutive games Ripken took himself out of the starting lineup in the Orioles last home game of the 1998 season against the Yankees. In 2000 Ripken collected his 3,000th hit, and during the 2001 season he announced he would be retiring at season’s end. What followed was a farewell tour, the likes that I have never seen in my whole life. Opposing ballparks would sell out when the Orioles came to town, just to see Ripken one last time. Ripken is still involved with not only the Orioles organization, but also the whole state of Maryland.

Equally as great as Ripekn, Gwynn brought as much joy to San Diego for 20 seasons as Ripekn did to Baltimore. Gwynn made his name as one of the best pure hitters in Major League Baseball winning eight National League Batting Titles, and seven Silver Slugger Awards. Gwynn was also an expert in right field winning five Gold Glove Awards. Along the way Gwynn was selected to 15 All Star Games, led the league in hits seven times, en route to becoming a member of the 3,000 hit club. By the end of his career Gwynn was regarded as the best pure hitter in the game since Ted Williams. In the strike shortened 1994 season Gwynn finished with a batting average of .394; the closest anyone has gotten to .400 since Teddy Ballgame. Gwynn also led his Padres to two National League Pennants (1984, 1999). By the end of his career Gwynn had a career batting average of .338 and had amassed 3,141 hits. In an era where power and home runs overshadowed the game, Gwynn still managed to make a name for himself as one of the greatest to ever play the game. Gwynn is still involved with baseball in San Diego, as he is the manager of the San Diego State baseball squad, and is still active around all of Southern California.

In a time where sports are ripe with scandal, it is great to see two men who exemplify what it is to be not just a great athlete, but also a great human being. Men who help in the community, who stay out of trouble, who are ambassadors to the game, and men who are loved by baseball fans all over the world. It’s time for some of the athletes and sports figures of today to take a look back at guys like Ripken and Gwynn, and take a look at how not so much to be a great ballplayer, but how to be a great human being. Congratulations Tony and Cal, your accomplishments, and contributions to the game were not forgotten.
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