Would you vote Barry Bonds into the baseball Hall of Fame?
How about Roger Clemens?
The National Baseball Writer's Association of American released today its 2013 Hall of Fame ballot and Bonds and Clemens are among this year's new candidates. Among the many names, new and leftover candidates, joining the scandal-plagued duo are Aaron Sele, Rondell White and Todd Walker.
Seriously!
Nothing against those guys. They each had stellar careers, but not what I would consider Hall of Fame worthy.
I'm not a big Hall of Fame guy, but when considering whom I might vote for, if I had a vote, I like employing the wife test. It's a good indicator, but definitely not the exclusive, end-all text. If my wife doesn't know a player, that's a strike against them.
My wife has no idea who Todd Walker is. I barely remember him.
But she does know Barry Bonds and Roger Clemens.
Those guys, despite the alleged performance enhancing drug use, belong in Cooperstown.
I know it’s a tired argument to say they both had HOF numbers before they turned, we suppose, to PEDs, but it's true.
And, yes, you can say they cheated the game, particularly Bonds and his destroying the all-time home run record.
But the truth Bonds and Clemens were outstanding, all-world baseball players. They both dominated in their sport.
Say what you will about the ethics of the performance enhancing drug use. Should that be considered in the voting? On some level, I guess it should.
However, Bonds and Clemens, PED use or not, where great ballplayers who deserve to be recognized with baseball's highest honor.
