For Some Players, Not Reaching the Hall Just Brings More Fame

Baseball has kept certain players at arm’s length because of scandals and accusations, but that often has bolstered the players’ popularity.

“It’s the law of unintended consequences,” John Thorn, the official M.L.B. historian, said in an interview, “that if you want to remove or restrict a man’s eligibility for official fame, you may accord him an unofficial fame that’s even greater.”