Source: MediaNews Group/Bay Area News via Getty Images / Getty
Arguably MLB’s best hitter Barry Bonds fell short of getting the required votes needed to be enshrined in Cooperstown on his 10th and final
Hall of Fame ballot. Bonds ended up with 66% of the votes, his highest showing yet, but it was not enough. The Baseball Hall of Fame announced that Boston Red Sox slugger David Ortiz was the only player on the ballot to earn more than 75% support from the Baseball Writers’ Association of America electorate on the 2022 ballot.
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Ortiz’s first-ballot selection is being met with some criticism because there is some
stench of PEDs still lingering on him. PEDs also happen to be the issue keeping Bonds, Roger Clemens, and
Alex Rodriguez out of the Hall of Fame. Bonds being denied again has the spotlight on the writers who seem to have a lifetime grudge against the San Franciso Giants slugger for his use of performance-enhancing drugs and his tumultuous relationship with the press.
The Baseball Writers’ Association of America is now looking quite hypocritical. In 2009, multiple publications, including the
New York Times, reported Ortiz was one of the many players to test positive for a band substance during a 2003 testing survey conducted by the league that was supposed to remain anonymous. Current Major League Baseball commissioner Rob Manfred wasn’t too concerned with reports and questioned them. Manfred even doubted the legitimacy of the reports saying that Ortiz could have tested positive for a supplement and not a band substance. “I think it’s really unfortunate that anybody’s name was ever released publicly,” Manfred said in 2016.
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While speaking with the press after the announcement, David Ortiz heard the cries and even put on his cape for Bonds. “I know there are a lot of things going on, but to me, the guy was a Hall-of- Famer way before everything, all the talk, all the things. This is a guy who played the game at a whole different level. Not having (Bonds and Clemens) join me at this time is something that’s hard to believe, to be honest with you. Those guys did it all. It is what it is, and there’s nothing I personally can do about it.”
Bonds himself did not comment on missing out on the Hall of Fame again but did congratulate Ortiz on his induction in an Instagram post writing, “
CONGRATULATIONS Big Papi on your induction into the Hall of Fame! Well deserved…I love you my brother.”
Roger Clemens did put out a statement pretty much shunning the Hall-of-Fame, claiming that was never his main goal. “My family and I put the HOF in the rearview mirror ten years ago,” Clemens said. “I didn’t play baseball to get into the HOF. I played to make a generational difference in the lives of my family. Then focus on winning championships while giving back to my community and the fans as well. It was my passion. I gave it all I had, the right way, for my family and for the fans who supported me. I am grateful for that support.”
The reactions on social media to the Bonds and Clemens being snubbed are pretty much on their side with everyone agreeing the two retired players deserve to be in Cooperstown, whether you liked them or not.
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https://twitter.com/jtylerconway/status/1485984442590060556?s=20
We see no lies in the tweets. You can peep more reactions in the gallery below.
Photo: MediaNews Group/Bay Area News via Getty Images / Getty
