Defrock the Vote!
So far this week we've seen two members of the BBWAA's Toronto chapter publicly announce that they did not cast the infamous Todd Stottlemyre Hall of Fame vote. Surprisingly, Steve Simmons was the first to shout "not it" in his Sunday Brainsqueeze:
... Okay, fess up, which Toronto homer voted for Todd Stottlemyre on their Hall of Fame ballot? And should that man or woman be allowed to vote any more? ...
Now, the only reason that we're sure a different Steve Simmons didn't actually cast a ballot for Todd Stottlemyre is that none of the Steve Simmonses are actually eligible to vote. While Simmons is a member of the BBWAA, he has not accumulated the ten years of membership required to cast a Hall of Fame vote. We'll have to wait until 2012 before he is allowed to mark a ballot. Which should be a treat, and means that Josh Towers might get a vote if he ever becomes eligible for the Hall.
Less surprisingly, Jeff Blair took himself out if the running in his Globe Blog on Monday:
And, as an aside to the person on coxbloc who wanted to know if I voted for Todd Stottlemyre ....
So, two down, 15 to go. The following is a list of the members of the BBWAA Toronto chapter who were eligible to vote for this year's class:
Pierre Ladouceur La Presse
Serge Touchette Journal de Montreal
Bob Elliott Toronto Sun
Allan Ryan Toronto Star
Ken Fidlin Toronto Sun
Dave Perkins Toronto Star
Steve Milton Hamilton Spectator
Jeff Blair Globe and Mail
Bill Lankhof Toronto Sun
Stephen Brunt Globe and Mail
Mike Rutsey Toronto Sun
Jack Todd Montreal Gazette
Richard Griffin Toronto Star
Mark Zwolinski Toronto Star
Wayne Scanlan Ottawa Citizen
We can probably eliminate the three Montreal writers, since the "homerism" that likely resulted in the Stottlemyre vote isn't at play. The Ottawa writers stay in the mix because, well, they're from Ottawa, where disrespecting the voting process is a way of life. Blair has already pleaded not guilty, and if Brunt cast that vote, well then my name isn't Kim Jorn.
So, that leaves ten possibilities:
Bob Elliott Toronto Sun
Allan Ryan Toronto Star
Ken Fidlin Toronto Sun
Dave Perkins Toronto Star
Steve Milton Hamilton Spectator
Bill Lankhof Toronto Sun
Mike Rutsey Toronto Sun
Richard Griffin Toronto Star
Mark Zwolinski Toronto Star
Wayne Scanlan Ottawa Citizen
(There is a slight possibility that it may have been someone outside of Toronto. Maybe George King thought he was voting for Mel Stottlemyre. Maybe a writer in one of the other cities where Stottlemyre pitched decided to throw him a bone. Turns out I don't write for a blog that chronicles the foibles of the Phoenix sports media, so I'm sticking with the local boys.)
Some of you may wonder why I keep harping on this subject. So what if some writer gave Todd a vote because he seems like a great guy who worked hard? It isn't like he'll actually get in the Hall? Well, I say, what if 400 other BBWAA writers decided to cast a "nice guy" vote for Todd. He'd be heading to Cooperstown. Impossible? Uh-uh. That's how Bob Rae became Premier of Ontario. And look how that worked out.
This is important stuff. We need to find out who did this and publicly shame them. And we need to do it quick. Rosie DiManno gets a Hall of Fame vote in 2017 and we have to make sure that she knows this type of crazines will not be tolerated when it comes to enshrining people in the only Hall of Fame that matters.
... Okay, fess up, which Toronto homer voted for Todd Stottlemyre on their Hall of Fame ballot? And should that man or woman be allowed to vote any more? ...
Now, the only reason that we're sure a different Steve Simmons didn't actually cast a ballot for Todd Stottlemyre is that none of the Steve Simmonses are actually eligible to vote. While Simmons is a member of the BBWAA, he has not accumulated the ten years of membership required to cast a Hall of Fame vote. We'll have to wait until 2012 before he is allowed to mark a ballot. Which should be a treat, and means that Josh Towers might get a vote if he ever becomes eligible for the Hall.
Less surprisingly, Jeff Blair took himself out if the running in his Globe Blog on Monday:
And, as an aside to the person on coxbloc who wanted to know if I voted for Todd Stottlemyre ....
GIVE ME A FRIGGIN' BREAK!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!~!
No hard feelings Jeff. We never really believed it was you.So, two down, 15 to go. The following is a list of the members of the BBWAA Toronto chapter who were eligible to vote for this year's class:
Pierre Ladouceur La Presse
Serge Touchette Journal de Montreal
Bob Elliott Toronto Sun
Allan Ryan Toronto Star
Ken Fidlin Toronto Sun
Dave Perkins Toronto Star
Steve Milton Hamilton Spectator
Jeff Blair Globe and Mail
Bill Lankhof Toronto Sun
Stephen Brunt Globe and Mail
Mike Rutsey Toronto Sun
Jack Todd Montreal Gazette
Richard Griffin Toronto Star
Mark Zwolinski Toronto Star
Wayne Scanlan Ottawa Citizen
We can probably eliminate the three Montreal writers, since the "homerism" that likely resulted in the Stottlemyre vote isn't at play. The Ottawa writers stay in the mix because, well, they're from Ottawa, where disrespecting the voting process is a way of life. Blair has already pleaded not guilty, and if Brunt cast that vote, well then my name isn't Kim Jorn.
So, that leaves ten possibilities:
Bob Elliott Toronto Sun
Allan Ryan Toronto Star
Ken Fidlin Toronto Sun
Dave Perkins Toronto Star
Steve Milton Hamilton Spectator
Bill Lankhof Toronto Sun
Mike Rutsey Toronto Sun
Richard Griffin Toronto Star
Mark Zwolinski Toronto Star
Wayne Scanlan Ottawa Citizen
(There is a slight possibility that it may have been someone outside of Toronto. Maybe George King thought he was voting for Mel Stottlemyre. Maybe a writer in one of the other cities where Stottlemyre pitched decided to throw him a bone. Turns out I don't write for a blog that chronicles the foibles of the Phoenix sports media, so I'm sticking with the local boys.)
Some of you may wonder why I keep harping on this subject. So what if some writer gave Todd a vote because he seems like a great guy who worked hard? It isn't like he'll actually get in the Hall? Well, I say, what if 400 other BBWAA writers decided to cast a "nice guy" vote for Todd. He'd be heading to Cooperstown. Impossible? Uh-uh. That's how Bob Rae became Premier of Ontario. And look how that worked out.
This is important stuff. We need to find out who did this and publicly shame them. And we need to do it quick. Rosie DiManno gets a Hall of Fame vote in 2017 and we have to make sure that she knows this type of crazines will not be tolerated when it comes to enshrining people in the only Hall of Fame that matters.
Well, we know it wasn't Stephen Brunt:
http://www.baseballthinkfactory.org/files/newsstand/discussion/oolf_brunts_rebuff_to_cooperstown_from_the_man_himself/
How did you figure out that DiManno gets a vote in 2017? Is there a list of members of the BBWAA and service time somewhere? That made me want to cry and curious as to who else is going to be coming out of Toronto in the next decade...
Hey Jonathan,
There is a list here of all the members of the BBWAA:
http://www.bizofbaseball.com/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=1765&Itemid=111
They are listed by the year that they became members.