The baseball Hall of Fame has become an atrocity. The final inductee for the 2021 voting ceremony was chosen in the form of David Ortiz, a long time Red Sox first baseman, but one key player was left out. Barry Bonds, a long time San Francisco Giant, holds the record for the most home runs by a player with 762, but went through a performance enhancing drug (PED) scandal in 2011, effectively barring him from Cooperstown. Hall of Fame ballots have players for the first time ten years after they retire, and then they remain on the ballot for another ten years after that. 2022 was Barry Bonds’ last year eligible to make the Hall of Fame, and now that he has not been voted he is officially not allowed to be inducted into Cooperstown. Steroids have always been a touchy subject in baseball, and the MLB has done their best to severely crack down on PED usage which has been successful the past several seasons. However, with the barring of legendary players from the Hall, maybe it has gone too far.
Barry Bonds is often revered as the best baseball player of all time, above the likes of Babe Ruth and Ted Williams. Bonds first testified to using steroids in 1998 when he revealed he believed his trainer was giving him flaxseed oil and arthritis cream. He was later tried for perjury in 2004, proving he was not telling the truth about his steroid usage.
Bonds’ major league career began in 1986 with the Pittsburgh Pirates and ended in 2007 with the Giants. Taking the information of his steroid usage into account, we can eliminate his 1998-2007 seasons for PED use. From 1986-1998, Bonds still put up incredible numbers, numbers that would have gotten anyone else into the Hall of Fame. Bonds slugged 411 home runs and had 1,917 hits from 1986-1998. Only four other players posted a statline with 400+ home runs, 1,900 hits and at least a .290 average, and all four are enthroned in Cooperstown. In just those 12 years, Bonds put up Hall of Fame numbers and he hadn’t even finished his career yet. Those statistics alone should be enough to put Bonds into Cooperstown forever.
Many major league baseball players have voiced their disapproval with the voting for the Hall of Fame, saying they have lost all respect for the BBWAA (Baseball Writers Association of America).
Fans as well have been angry with the final voting, and upon asking junior baseball player Luke Blevins he clearly doesn’t agree with the final voting.
“He’s the best home run hitter of all time. He should definitely be in Cooperstown, there’s no reason he shouldn’t be.”
This same opinion has been reflected by hundreds of sports writers after the decision, and will be a controversial topic for years to come.
