Jones, Thome, Guerrero, Hoffman elected to Baseball Hall of Fame

Jones and Thome were elected in their first years of eligibility; Hoffman was on his third ballot, and Guerrero got in on his second try. Jim Mone, AP Jack Morris played on four World Series Championship teams (1984 Tigers, 1991 Twins, and 1992-1993 Blue Jays).

The results of the voting were announced Monday night.

While every player inducted today was more than deserving of the honor, how does Fred McGriff keep getting overlooked? Robert Hanashiro, USA TODAY Jim Thome finished his career with 612 home runs.

I thought Thome would get in but maybe by sneaking in with 75 to 80 percent. The top vote percentage in history was posted by Ken Griffey Jr.

Guerrero, a second year selection, will forever be known as one of the most unsafe sluggers to ever grace the batter’s box for the Expos and Angels. It appears that some voters did have a first-ballot bias against him.

Hoffman came within one percentage point of election a year ago but faced some skepticism because closers like him typically pitch about one-third of the innings of top starters. Since then, the BBWAA has given its stamp of approval to 16 greats, including 13 over the last four years, the largest number ever in such a span.

Clemens received 57.3 percent of the 422 votes this year, and Bonds was right behind at 56.4 percent.

Hoffman, a product of Anaheim’s Savannah High and Cypress College, is perhaps second only to Tony Gwynn among the all-time Padres greats. It looks like he’ll squeak in and become the sixth reliever elected. He was at 58.6 percent a year ago but now stands at 77.1 percent. Now I believe that some cheaters already are in The Hall. Will Martinez get in? So do Clemens and Bonds.

There was no big bump this year for Barry Bonds and Roger Clemens, only an incremental tick upward as another year passed in their narrow bids to earn election to baseball’s Hall of Fame.

Former Yankee Mike Mussina was on the Hall of Fame ballot for the fifth time and he is gradually inching closer to induction. “Im a little biased but these are Hall of Fame numbers in my book, especially when he did it as consistently as he did”. With a slew of eligible players who warranted serious consideration, this was one of the more intriguing ballots in recent years. He returned to the Phillies in 2012 but played just 30 games and was traded to Baltimore before retiring at the end of the year. A Bunyanesque figure with a boyish grin and a blue-collar personality, Thome made an easy connection with media and fans alike, even in a demanding city like Philadelphia.

Which newcomers will remain on the ballot?

Needing 5% to stay on for 2019 and beyond means first timers Omar Vizquel (37%), Scott Rolen (10.2%), and Andruw Jones (7.3%) will continue on. He also owns the third-best success rate in save opportunities (among closers with at least 300 saves), converting 88.8 percent of chances.

The best player and the best pitcher of their generation belong.

Who needs a big increase?

Coming into the announcement, Thome was polling at 93.4% of the approximately 250 ballots made public.

And it’s also too bad Johan Santana lasted just one year.