Roberto Alomar was the only player elected by the Internet Baseball Writers Association of America (IBWAA) in their second annual Hall of Fame election. Here is the press release:
Los Angeles – The Internet Baseball Writers Association of America (IBWAA) has selected second baseman Roberto Alomar in its second annual Hall of Fame election.
Alomar, an even .300 lifetime hitter, who played for seven teams in a 17-year major league career, was named on 75% of IBWAA ballots, and was the only player to receive three-quarters of the vote, the same threshold required by the Base Ball Writers’ Association of America (BBWAA), in the election which determines the actual inductees.
With the exception of Bert Blyleven, who the IBWAA selected last year, ballots listed the same 31 nominees as did the traditional writers association, with a December 30, 2010 deadline for votes to be valid, and no rounding up of percentages permitted for selection (i.e., a 74.85 count would not suffice).
Alomar, who began his career with the San Diego Padres in 1988, made 10,400 plate appearances total, recorded 2724 hits, with 504 doubles, 210 home runs, 1134 RBIs, and a lifetime on base percentage of .371.
He won ten Gold Glove awards, the most by a second baseman, played in 12 All-Star Games, won an All-Star Game Most Valuable Player Award in 1998, and an American League Championship Series MVP in 1992.
Alomar excelled in October baseball, finishing with a .313/.381/.448 line, with 17 doubles, four homers and 33 RBIs in 11 postseason series. He was a vital contributor to two Toronto Blue Jays World Championship clubs, batting .423 in the 1992 ALCS versus the Oakland A’s and .480 in the 1993 World Series against the Philadelphia Phillies.
After a much-debated trade from San Diego to Toronto in 1990, which also sent Joe Carter to Canada in exchange for Tony Fernandez and Fred McGriff, Alomar spent five years with the Jays. He played in Baltimore for four seasons, after signing as a free agent with the Orioles in 1996, spent three years with the Cleveland Indians, two with the New York Mets, two with the Arizona Diamondbacks, and three with the Chicago White Sox.
Complete 2010 voting results are as follows:
Roberto Alomar 75%
Jeff Bagwell 70%
Lee Smith 65%
Jack Morris 55%
Barry Larkin 50%
Edgar Martinez 50%
Tim Raines 50%
Larry Walker 45%
Mark McGwire 40%
Fred McGriff 40%
Dale Murphy 40%
Rafael Palmeiro 40%
Alan Trammell 35%
Dave Parker 25%
Don Mattingly 20%
John Franco 20%
Harold Baines 10%
Kevin Brown 5%
Lenny Harris 5%
Al Leiter 5%
John Olerud 5%
I’m glad Jeff Bagwell did so well.
Surprised Bagwell didn’t pull 75%.
Stunned, and more than a little dismayed, that Raines only polled 50%. Less than Jack Morris — really? Expected better of what I assumed would be a more sabrmetrically savvy group of voters.
There’s a posting on the Hall of Fame “fanfare” on the website, rotoimbeciles.com coming on tomorrow which makes a good read. Alomar is absolutely, along with Blyleven, a Hall of Famer. I’m on the fence about Jack Morris. I feel that Blyleven should get in the “real” Hall of Fame first as he did have a more prolific career than Morris. I worry about the steroid allegations of Palmeiro and Bagwell and would like to wait on those 2. I’d rather be sure that I’m right then to be unsure. By any traditional measure, Palmeiro is a Hall of Famer garnering over 500 HR and 3000 H. Bagwell played his whole career in Houston and knocked out 449 HR and had 1517 R and 1529 RBI. He even stole 202 SB. He’s an eventual Hall member, I would say, but let the facts bare themselves out. Give it a read.
Don’t be so surprised…this is, as the statisticians say, an extremely low sample size. The fact that every single vote total is a multiple of 5% all but guarantees that just 20 voters made up the “survey.” I’ve seen more accurate results from a Revlon ad.
I hope people come to their senses & stop voting for Todd Jones, I mean Lee Smith.
Whoever voted for Lenny Harris should be asked to leave his post. Guys in that positon and I’m talking about the voter, should take their job a little more seriously. If the voter honestly thinks that Lenny Harris is a HOFer, he doesn’t know baseball and should be put out to pasture. Unless they’re planning a special wing for pinch hitters along with Jerry Lynch, Matt Stairs and Manny Mota! I’ve been blogging baseball for the last 11 years and haven’t seen much worse than that vote. And, I’ve seen everything!
Mark, could’ve been 20 or 200 or more, the math works with all of them. What matters is that these voters we’re able to recognize the merits of Blyleven in their first induction while the “real” hall still hasn’t gotten that one right. I must add that Lee Smith’s omission must be considered absurd by anyone who really understands this game. compare those stats to those of fingers and gossage, not even comparable.