Evaluating Relievers

One voter’s attempt to cut through the fog.

Roy Halladay, Mariano Rivera, and “Cannonball” Dick Redding elected - Hall of Merit Class of 2019

Congrats to the class of 2019, Roy Halladay, Mariano Rivera, and “Cannonball” Dick Redding!

Halladay and Rivera each garnered 9 of 27 first place votes, with Redding carrying 6 others. There was strong consensus this year - no other player received more than four top 3 votes. Halladay had 25, Rivera 19, and Redding 15. Todd Helton (5th), Jeff Kent (9th) and Jim McCormick (41st) also received first place votes.

Halladay was the only player named on all 27 ballots. Rivera was named on 26 and ...

Most Meritorious Player: 1949 Results

Congratulations to Jackie Robinson, our 1949 Most Meritorious Player!

Player Name	pts	ballots	1sts
Jackie Robinson	127	9	4
Ted Williams	126	9	3
Stan Musial	122	9	2
Mel Parnell	102	9	0
Ralph Kiner	94	9	0
Vern Stephens	78	9	0
Eddie Joost	57	6	0
Pee Wee Reese	50	6	0
Bob Lemon	38	5	0
Virgil Trucks	37	5	0
Don Newcombe	21	3	0
Howie Pollet	20	2	0
Enos Slaughter	17	2	0
Warren Spahn	15	2	0
Bobby Thomson	13	2	0
Roy Campanella	12	1	0
Connie Marrero	10	1	0
Bobby Doerr	6	1	0

Most Meritorious Player: 1912 Discussion

Tris Speaker and the Boston Red Sox defeated the New York Giants in the World Series. Pete Hill and the Chicago American Giants were the top black barnstorming team.

Vote for 10.

Player			SH WS		BBR WAR
Tris Speaker		51.7		10.1
Joe Jackson		37.1		9.5
Frank Baker		38.8		9.3
Ty Cobb			38.7		9.2
Eddie Collins		36.9		8.8
Honus Wagner		35.9		8.0
Heinie Zimmerman	34.6		7.1
Larry Gardner		28.6		5.8
Johnny Evers		27.3		6.0
Chief Meyers		22.0		4.6
Bill Sweeney		23.3		5.3
Napoleon ...

Re-Thinking Roy Campanella

progrockfan has done a project on Roy Campanella. So here’s a thread for him to present it and we can discuss it.

Most Meritorious Player: 1949 Ballot

For 1949 each voter should rank the top 10 players from all leagues combined.

Balloting is scheduled to close at 4pm EDT on 2 January 2019. Let me know if there is a conflict due to the holidays and I can extend.

Anyone can vote, even if you do not normally participate in Hall of Merit discussions. If you have never participated in an MMP election, just post a preliminary ballot in the discussion thread by 1 Jan 2019.

For detailed rules see one of our previous ballots.

2019 Hall of Merit Ballot

Welcome to the 2019 Hall of Merit Ballot thread. Balloting is open from now (December 10) through December 19January 7 9, 2019 at 8 p.m. EST.

I’ve posted this the last several of years, but as a reminder:

“This has been an issue in the past, so I’ll repeat it now for clarification . . . the posting of the ballot to the discussion thread for new voters is not just a formality. With the posting of the ballot you are expected to post a summary of what you take into account - basically, how ...

Mock 2019 Hall of Fame Election Results

BBTF would elect nine players if we were in charge of the Hall of Fame voting.

Player Name	Votes	Percent
Mike Mussina	50	96%
Barry Bonds	49	94%
Roger Clemens	49	94%
Roy Halladay	49	94%
Edgar Martinez	48	92%
Larry Walker	46	88%
Curt Schilling	45	87%
Scott Rolen	42	81%
Mariano Rivera	41	79%
Manny Ramirez	38	73%
Sammy Sosa	12	23%
Andruw Jones	11	21%
Todd Helton	8	15%
Gary Sheffield	7	13%
Lance Berkman	5	10%
Jeff Kent	4	8%
Fred McGriff	3	6%
Andy Pettitte	2	4%
Billy Wagner	2	4%
Omar ...

Mock Hall of Fame Ballot 2019

IMPORTANT: Please read:

This election should follow BBWAA rules, not Hall of Merit rules. However, we hope to see only players that each voter feels belong on their ballots. Leaving 1st-year candidates off your ballot is also frowned upon. IOW, we would like to see an absence of some of the silliness that permeates Hall of Fame voting by the writers.

The election will end on Monday, December 10, 2018 (1 PM EST). Results will be posted a short time later.

Please don’t post any vote tallies ...

Most Meritorious Player: 2018 Results

Congratulations to our 2018 Most Meritorious Player - Mookie Betts!

Player Name	pts	ballots	1sts
Mookie Betts	117	8	5
Mike Trout	110	8	2
Jacob deGrom	79	6	1
Alex Bregman	79	8	0
Chrs Yelich	74	8	0
Jose Ramirez	67	7	0
Frn Lindor	65	7	0
Matt Chapman	55	8	0
Max Scherzer	51	7	0
Aaron Nola	50	7	0
J.D. Martinez	48	7	0
Blake Snell	36	7	0
Kyle Freeland	22	3	0
Manny Machado	19	4	0
Chris Sale	15	3	0
Mitch Haniger	11	2	0
Matt Carpenter	11	2	0
Javier Baez	10	3	0
Trevor Bauer	9	3	0
J.T. ...

Most Meritorious Player: 1949 Discussion

The Yankees took the pennant from the Red Sox and beat the Dodgers in the World Series.

Vote for 10.

Player			SH WS		BBR WAR
Stan Musial		40.7		9.2
Ted Williams		39.8		9.1
Jackie Robinson		37.2		9.6
Eddie Joost		35.3		6.9
Ralph Kiner		36.6		8.1
Vern Stephens		31.9		6.9
Pee Wee Reese		32.4		7.0
Enos Slaughter		30.1		6.2
Bob Elliott		23.4		5.2
Bobby Thomson		25.6		6.2
Bobby Doerr		24.9		5.4
Cass Michaels		22.5		5.3
Roy Campanella		23.2		4.4
George Kell		24.6		4.8
Andy ...

Most Meritorious Player: 2018 Ballot

Here are the specific rules for this election:

Candidate Eligibility: Any North American professional baseball player is eligible for the Most Meritorious Player (MMP) award including players on independent teams. Voters should consider the player’s on-field contribution to Major League Baseball (MLB) team(s) in that season only. If part of the season was spent outside MLB, that value may be considered as well. However, the player’s on-field contribution should be judged in relation to the ...

Mock 2019 Today’s Game Hall of Fame Election Results

BBTF does not recommend anyone for election for the 2019 Today’s Game committee election. Orel Hershiser received the most votes but fell well short of 75% needed for election.

Candidate		Percent	TOTALS
Orel Hershiser		30%	14
Will Clark		22%	10
Davey Johnson		22%	10
George Steinbrenner		22%	10
Lou Piniella		17%	8
Lee Smith		9%	4
Albert Belle		7%	3
Harold Baines		2%	1
Joe Carter		2%	1
Charlie Manuel		0%	0
Number of Voters			46

Mock 2019 Today’s Game Hall of Fame Ballot

Candidates

Harold Baines
Albert Belle
Joe Carter
Will Clark
Orel Hershiser
Davey Johnson
Charlie Manuel
Lou Piniella
Lee Smith
George Steinbrenner

See full descriptions here

Vote for zero to four candidates

Voting will end Friday 11/16/2017 at 1pm EST

Most Meritorious Player: 1948 Ballot

For 1948 each voter should rank the top 10 players from all leagues combined.

Balloting is scheduled to close at 4pm EDT on 7 November 2018.

Anyone can vote, even if you do not normally participate in Hall of Merit discussions. If you have never participated in an MMP election, just post a preliminary ballot in the discussion thread by 6 Nov 2018.

For detailed rules see one of our previous ballots.

Most Meritorious Player: 2018 Discussion

The election will take place after the postseason is completed and end 5, December 2018. Vote for 15.

Player			WS	bWAR
Mookie Betts		38.8	10.9
Mike Trout		38.2	10.2
Matt Chapman		25.6	8.2
Francisco Lindor	31.6	7.9
Jose Ramirez		29.8	7.9
Christian Yelich	34.5	7.6
Lorenzo Cain		24.9	6.9
Alex Bregman		35.5	6.9
J.D. Martinez		31.9	6.4
Javier Baez		26.1	6.3
Andrelton Simmons	20.5	6.2
Mitch Haniger		29.5	6.1
Freddie Freeman		26.6	6.1
Manny Machado		27.5	5.7
Nolan Arenado		28.2	5.6
Trevor ...

Most Meritorious Player: 1947 Results

Congratulations to Ted Williams, the unanimous Most Meritorious Player of 1947!

Player Name	pts	ballots	1sts
Ted Williams	120	8	8
Ralph Kiner	106	8	0
Warren Spahn	100	8	0
Johnny Mize	83	8	0
Ewell Blackwell	79	7	0
Lou Boudreau	74	7	0
Bob Elliott	57	6	0
Joe Gordon	46	6	0
Joe DiMaggio	35	4	0
Hal Newhouser	32	4	0
Pee Wee Reese	23	3	0
Dutch Leonard	14	2	0
Bob Feller	12	1	0
Augie Galan	10	1	0
Harry Walker	10	1	0
Tommy Henrich	8	1	0
Whitey Kurowski	7	1	0
Vern Stephens	6	1	0
Don Newcombe	6	1	0
George ...

Most Meritorious Player: 1948 Results

Congratulations to our 1948 Most Meritorious Player Stan Musial!

Player Name	pts	ballots	1sts
Stan Musial	118	8	6
Lou Boudreau	111	8	1
Ted Williams	105	8	1
Harry Brecheen	87	8	0
Joe DiMaggio	78	8	0
Johnny Sain	71	7	0
Johnny Mize	55	6	0
Bob Elliott	42	5	0
Ken Keltner	29	3	0
Ralph Kiner	28	4	0
Hal Newhouser	24	3	0
Joe Gordon	23	3	0
Luke Easter	20	2	0
Tommy Henrich	20	3	0
Bob Lemon	14	2	0
Richie Ashburn	9	1	0
Gene Bearden	6	1	0

Most Meritorious Player: 1948 Discussion

The Cleveland Indians beat the Boston Braves in the World Series. The Negro American League folded.

Vote for 10.

Player			SH WS		BBR WAR
Stan Musial		46.2		11.1
Lou Boudreau		34.5		10.4
Ted Williams		38.7		8.5
Johnny Mize		29.6		6.6
Ralph Kiner		29.5		6.1
Bob Elliott		27.4		6.5
Joe DiMaggio		34.1		6.9
Ken Keltner		25.0		6.1
Andy Pafko		22.3		6.0
Jackie Robinson		25.3		5.4
Bobby Doerr		26.2		5.2
Tommy Henrich		29.0		5.4
Jeff Heath		20.4		4.8
Joe Gordon		24.2		6.6
Ed Joost		26.2		4.9
Pee Wee ...

Most Meritorious Player: 1947 Ballot

For 1947 each voter should rank the top 10 players from all leagues combined.

Balloting is scheduled to close at 4pm EDT on 3 October 2018.

Anyone can vote, even if you do not normally participate in Hall of Merit discussions. If you have never participated in an MMP election, just post a preliminary ballot in the discussion thread by 2 Oct 2018.

For detailed rules see one of our previous ballots.

Most Meritorious Player: 1947 Discussion

Baseball finally begins to integrate. The Yankees beat Brooklyn in the World Series.

The NY Cubans beat the Cleveland Buckeyes soundly in the Negro World Series.

Vote for 10.

Player			SH WS		BBR WAR
Ted Williams		45.2		9.9
Ralph Kiner		29.5		8.3
Bob Elliott		29.1		6.7
Lou Boudreau		27.5		7.5
Johnny Mize		31.6		7.1
Vern Stephens		22.6		4.3
Harry Walker		24.3		6.1
Phil Rizzuto		25.5		4.1
Pee Wee Reese		26.6		6.2
Tommy Henrich		26.4		4.6
George McQuinn		24.0		4.4
Walker Cooper		23.1		5.3
Joe ...

Most Meritorious Player: 1946 Results

Congratulations to Ted Williams, the unanimous MMP of 1946!

Player Name	pts	ballots	1sts
Ted Williams	105	7	7
Stan Musial	94	7	0
Hal Newhouser	88	7	0
Bob Feller	76	6	0
Hank Greenberg	68	7	0
Johnny Pesky	37	4	0
Dizzy Trout	33	4	0
Howie Pollet	32	4	0
Charlie Keller	32	4	0
Josh Gibson	25	2	0
Johnny Mize	25	3	0
Monte Irvin	22	2	0
Johnny Sain	17	2	0
Bobby Doerr	14	2	0
Mickey Vernon	14	2	0
Willard Brown	9	1	0
Eddie Stanky	8	1	0
Jackie Robinson	8	1	0
Pee Wee Reese	8	1	0
Leon Day	8	1	0
Spud ...

Most Meritorious Player: 1946 Ballot

For 1946 each voter should rank the top 10 players from all leagues combined.

Balloting is scheduled to close at 4pm EDT on 5 September 2018.

Anyone can vote, even if you do not normally participate in Hall of Merit discussions. If you have never participated in an MMP election, just post a preliminary ballot in the discussion thread by 4 Sept 2018.

For detailed rules see one of our previous ballots.

Most Meritorious Player: 1945 Results

Congratulations to Hal Newhouser, the unanimous MMP in 1945.

Player Name	pts	ballots	1sts
Hal Newhouser	90	6	6
Snuffy Stirnweiss	82	6	0
Tommy Holmes	71	6	0
Stan Hack	57	5	0
Roy Campanella	54	5	0
Phil Cavaretta	52	5	0
Eddie Lake	49	5	0
Jackie Robinson	32	4	0
Nels Potter	30	4	0
Roy Cullenbine	29	3	0
Vern Stephens	16	2	0
Dixie Walker	13	2	0
Steve Gromek	11	1	0
Wally Moses	9	1	0
Josh Gibson	8	1	0
Augie Galan	7	1	0
Hank Wyse	7	1	0
Goody Rosen	7	1	0
Roger Wolff	6	1	0

Most Meritorious Player: 1946 Discussion

The war is over and Jackie Robinson tears up AAA.

The Cardinals defeated the Red Sox in Ted Williams’ only World Series.

The Newark Eagles with Monte Irvin and Larry Doby starring beat the Kansas City Monarchs in the Negro World Series.

Vote for 10.

Player			SH WS		BBR WAR
Ted Williams		50.6		10.9
Stan Musial		45.2		8.6
Johnny Pesky		35.6		6.5
Hank Greenberg		31.0		6.5
Eddie Stanky		27.3		5.8
Bobby Doerr		28.4		5.6
Charlie Keller		30.5		6.1
Pee Wee Reese		26.3		6.0
Luke ...

Most Meritorious Player: 1945 Ballot

For 1945 each voter should rank the top 10 players from all leagues combined.

Balloting is scheduled to close at 4pm EDT on 1 August 2018.

Anyone can vote, even if you do not normally participate in Hall of Merit discussions. If you have never participated in an MMP election, just post a preliminary ballot in the discussion thread by 31 July 2018.

For detailed rules see one of our previous ballots.

Most Meritorious Player: 1944 Results

Congratulations to Dizzy Trout, our 1944 Most Meritorious Player!

Player Name	pts	ballots	1sts
Dizzy Trout	103	7	6
Stan Musial	96	7	0
Snuffy Stirnweiss	86	7	1
Hal Newhouser	82	7	0
Lou Boudreau	62	6	0
Satchel Paige	41	4	0
Bob Johnson	39	5	0
Stan Spence	34	4	0
Bucky Walters	32	4	0
Vern Stephens	29	4	0
Bobby Doerr	26	3	0
Josh Gibson	24	2	0
Dixie Walker	16	2	0
Frank McCormick	11	1	0
Rip Sewell	10	1	0
Bill Nicholson	9	1	0
Buck Leonard	8	1	0
Ray Brown	8	1	0
Johnny Hopp	7	1	0
Augie Galan	6	1	0
Mort ...

Most Meritorious Player: 1945 Discussion

Last year of wartime baseball, some players like Greenberg have found their way back to the majors.

The Tigers beat the Cubs in 7 games in the World Series.

The Cleveland Buckeyes swept the Homestead Grays in the Negro World Series.

Vote for 10.

Player			SH WS		BBR WAR
Snuffy Stirnweiss	34.7		8.7
Stan Hack		33.4		6.0
Tommy Holmes		31.3		8.0
Eddie Lake		26.8		6.8
Phil Cavarretta		29.5		6.0
Roy Cullenbine		30.4		5.5
Vern Stephens		29.1		5.4
Eddie Stanky		26.1		5.0
Whitey ...

Most Meritorious Player: 1944 Ballot

For 1944 each voter should rank the top 10 players from all leagues combined.

Balloting is scheduled to close at 4pm EDT on 3 July 2018. - Note the early close due to July 4 holiday

Anyone can vote, even if you do not normally participate in Hall of Merit discussions. If you have never participated in an MMP election, just post a preliminary ballot in the discussion thread by 2 July 2018.

For detailed rules see one of our previous ballots.

Most Meritorious Player: 1943 Results

Congratulations to Stan Musial, our unanimous pick for the 1943 Most Meritorious Player!

Player Name	pts	ballots	1sts
Stan Musial	105	7	7
Josh Gibson	86	7	0
Luke Appling	83	7	0
Spud Chandler	80	7	0
Charlie Keller	74	7	0
Lou Boudreau	70	7	0
Bill Nicholson	69	7	0
Joe Gordon	38	4	0
Mort Cooper	31	4	0
Augie Galan	25	3	0
Rudy  York	25	3	0
Johnny Wright	14	2	0
Arky Vaughan	13	2	0
Lou    Klein	12	2	0
Max Lanier	10	1	0