| Name | Votes | Pct. | Yrs on ballot |
Pos | Yrs active | BTP | BT rank |
BT pos rank |
|
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Curt Schilling | 285 | 71.1 | 9 | pi sp | 1988‑2007 | 194.1 | 9 | 8 |
| 2 | Barry Bonds | 248 | 61.8 | 9 | lf | 1986‑2007 | 152.2 | 24 | 2 |
| 3 | Roger Clemens | 247 | 61.6 | 9 | pi sp | 1984‑2007 | 164.8 | 17 | 14 |
| 4 | Scott Rolen | 212 | 52.9 | 4 | 3b | 1996‑2012 | 97.6 | 90 | 5 |
| 5 | Omar Vizquel | 197 | 49.1 | 4 | ss | 1989‑2012 | 42.2 | 462 | 11 |
| 6 | Billy Wagner | 186 | 46.4 | 6 | pi cp | 1995‑2010 | 108.7 | 62 | 3 |
| 7 | Todd Helton | 180 | 44.9 | 3 | 1b | 1997‑2013 | 116.4 | 50 | 5 |
| 8 | Gary Sheffield | 163 | 40.6 | 7 | lf | 1988‑2009 | 124.1 | 44 | 4 |
| 9 | Andruw Jones | 136 | 33.9 | 4 | cf | 1996‑2012 | 96.5 | 92 | 14 |
| 10 | Jeff Kent | 130 | 32.4 | 8 | 2b | 1992‑2008 | 110.2 | 60 | 1 |
| 11 | Manny Ramirez | 113 | 28.2 | 5 | lf | 1993‑2011 | 166.2 | 16 | 1 |
| 12 | Sammy Sosa | 68 | 17.0 | 9 | rf | 1989‑2007 | 113.2 | 57 | 6 |
| 13 | Andy Pettitte | 55 | 13.7 | 3 | pi sp | 1995‑2013 | 138.5 | 31 | 23 |
| 14 | Mark Buehrle | 44 | 11.0 | 1 | pi sp | 2000‑2015 | 116.7 | 49 | 34 |
| 15 | Torii Hunter | 38 | 9.5 | 1 | cf | 1997‑2015 | 115.9 | 51 | 5 |
| 16 | Bobby Abreu | 35 | 8.7 | 2 | rf | 1996‑2014 | 95.5 | 93 | 15 |
| 17 | Tim Hudson | 21 | 5.2 | 1 | pi sp | 1999‑2015 | 157.0 | 19 | 16 |
| 18 | †Aramis Ramirez | 4 | 1.0 | 1 | 3b | 1998‑2015 | 105.8 | 71 | 4 |
| 19 | †LaTroy Hawkins | 2 | 0.5 | 1 | pi cp | 1995‑2015 | 32.7 | 662 | 51 |
| 20 | †Barry Zito | 1 | 0.2 | 1 | pi sp | 2000‑2015 | 117.4 | 47 | 33 |
| 21 | †A.J. Burnett | 0 | 0.0 | 1 | pi sp | 1999‑2015 | 127.8 | 39 | 28 |
| 21 | †Dan Haren | 0 | 0.0 | 1 | pi sp | 2003‑2015 | 113.2 | 56 | 39 |
| 21 | †Michael Cuddyer | 0 | 0.0 | 1 | rf | 2001‑2015 | 60.7 | 264 | 54 |
| 21 | †Nick Swisher | 0 | 0.0 | 1 | rf | 2004‑2015 | 51.2 | 353 | 72 |
| 21 | †Shane Victorino | 0 | 0.0 | 1 | rf | 2003‑2015 | 48.2 | 389 | 78 |
† Player to be removed the Hall of Fame ballot in 2022 because he did not receive 5 percent of the vote to remain on subsequent year's ballots. Note: Some Hall eligible candidates (eight of the 25) had careers that, in part, preceded the era of Box-Toppers player tracking, which began in 1995. However, 17 of the 25 players listed here began their career in 1995 or later, so their entire career was tracked by Box-Toppers.
No candidates gain induction in 2021 voting, though Schilling comes close in penultimate eligibility year
No players were voted for induction to the National Baseball Hall of Fame Tuesday.
None of the 25 players eligible received the necessary 75 percent of the vote from members of the Baseball Writers’ Association of America. It’s the first time since 2013 that no players received the votes necessary for induction in the annual election.
Box-Toppers Hall of Fame ballot
Here are Box-Toppers' ballot selections for the Internet Baseball Writers Association of America (IBWAA) 2021 Hall of Fame selections. The ballot requires voters to pick as many as 12 candidates—Box-Toppers chose seven. (In the "official" vote by the Baseball Writers Association of America—BBWAA—voters can pick as many as 10 candidates.) There are 25 candidates on the BBWAA ballot but only 23 on the IBWAA ballot because internet writers already "inducted" two players passed over by the BBWAA—Barry Bonds and Roger Clemens.Shown first in alphabetical order by last name are the seven players Box-Toppers is voting for Hall induction, along with their career Box-Toppers point total and the number of years each player has been on the ballot. A brief Box-Toppers-focused biographical synopsis is shown beneath each player.
That is followed by the list of player Box-Toppers is not voting for Hall induction, also in alphabetical order by last name.
Finally, there is the list of two players the IBWAA has already voted for induction.
| YES: Players Box-Toppers is voting for Hall of Fame | ||
|---|---|---|
| Player | Career BTP | Year on ballot |
| Todd Helton | 116.4 | 3 |
| • 5th among 1B in career BTPs since 1995. • Top NL batter in 2000 (15.2), 2001 (17.0). • Top NL 1B 4 times from 1999-2002. |
||
| Tim Hudson | 157.0 | 1 |
| • Ranks 19th overall in career BTPs since 1995. • Ranks 16th among pitchers in career BTPs since 1995. • Top AL pitcher 2001 (18.8). • Top 10 overall player three times. |
||
| Torii Hunter | 115.9 | 1 |
| • Ranks fifth among OFs in career BTPs since 1995. • Led AL OFs 2008 (12.4). • Top 10 AL batter four times. • Top 10 AL OF nine times. |
||
| Jeff Kent | 110.2* | 8 |
| • Top-ranked 2B in career points since 1995. • Top NL 2B 6 times: 1997 (11.2), 1998 (10.0), 2000 (12.9), 2001 (9.2), 2002 (10.9), 2004 (7.5). • Top 5 NL 2B 11 times. • Top 10 NL batters twice. |
||
| Aramis Ramirez | 105.8 | 1 |
| • Ranks fourth among 3Bs in career points since 1995. • Top NL 3B twice: 2008 (12.0), 2014 (5.0). • Top 5 NL 3B nine times. • Top 10 NL batters three times. |
||
| Curt Schilling | 194.1* | 9 |
| • Ranked 9th among all players since 1995. • Five-time top 5 in season BTPs. • Nine-time top 10 pitcher in league in BTPs. |
||
| Billy Wagner | 108.7 | 6 |
| • Ranked 3rd among all closing pitchers since 1995. • Top NL closer three times: 1998 (12.0), 1999 (15.0), 2010 (13.0). • Seven times top 5 NL closer. • Top 10 NL pitcher twice. |
||
| NO: Players Box-Toppers is not voting for Hall of Fame | ||
| Player | Career BTP | Year on ballot |
| Bobby Abreu | 95.5 | 2 |
| • Ranks 15th in career BTPs among all OFs since 1995. • Top 10 AL batter 2008. • Top 10 AL OF 3 times. • Top 10 NL OF twice. |
||
| Mark Buehrle | 116.7 | 1 |
| • Ranks 36th in career BTPs among all pitchers since 1995. • Top 10 overall 2005. • Top 10 AL pitcher twice. | ||
| A.J. Burnett | 127.8 | 1 |
| • Ranks 29th in career BTPs among all pitchers since 1995. • Top 10 NL pitcher twice. • Top 10 AL pitcher 2009. | ||
| Michael Cuddyer | 60.7 | 1 |
| • Ranks 54th in career BTPs among all OFs since 1995. • Top NL OF 2013 (11.5). • Top 10 NL batter 2013. • Top 5 AL 2B 2010. | ||
| Dan Haren | 113.2 | 1 |
| • Ranks 41st in career BTPs among all pitchers since 1995. • Top 10 AL pitcher twice. • Top 10 NL pitcher 2009. | ||
| LaTroy Hawkins | 32.7 | 1 |
| • Ranks 51st in career BTPs among all closing pitchers since 1995. • Top 5 NL middle reliever 2013. | ||
| Andruw Jones | 96.5 | 4 |
| • Top 10 NL batter twice. • Top 10 NL OF 6 times. |
||
| Andy Pettitte | 138.5 | 3 |
| • 23rd in career BTPs among all pitchers since 1995. • Top 10 AL pitcher 4 times, never higher than 8th. |
||
| Manny Ramirez | 166.2* | 5 |
| • Steroids. • 16th in career BTPs among all players since 1995, 3rd among all batters. • Top 10 players twice, 1998 & 1999. • Top AL batter 1999 (19.9). • Top 10 AL batter 7 times. • Top 10 NL batter once. • Top AL OF three times 1999 (19.9), 2000 (13.2), 2005 (14.0). • Top AL OF 9 times. • Top 5 AL DH three times. • Top NL OF 2008 (13.9). |
||
| Scott Rolen | 97.6 | 4 |
| • 5th in career BTPs among all 3Bs since 1995. • Top 10 NL batters three times. • Top NL 3B three times 2002 (10.0), 2004 (13.5), 2010 (12.0). • Top 5 NL 3B 6 times. |
||
| Gary Sheffield | 124.1* | 7 |
| • Steroids. • 11th among batters in career BTPs since 1995. • Would have about 155 BTP if career from 1988 were tracked. • Top 10 overall in 2004. • Top AL batter in 2004 (16.2). • Top 10 AL batter twice. • Top 10 NL batter four times. • Top AL OF in 2004 (16.2). • Top 10 AL OF twice. • Top 5 AL DH once. • Top NL OF in 2000 (14.2). • Top 10 NL OF four times. |
||
| Sammy Sosa | 113.2* | 9 |
| • Steroids. • 16th among batters in career BTPs since 1995. • Would have 134 BTP if career from 1989 were tracked. • Top 10 overall 1995. • Top NL batter twice 1995 (15.9), 1998 (15.5). • Top 10 NL batter three times. • Top 5 AL DH once. • Top NL OF three times 1995 (15.9), 1998 (15.5), 2001 (16.0). • Top 10 NL OF 7 times. |
||
| Nick Swisher | 51.2 | 1 |
| • 72nd among OFs in career BTPs since 1995. • Led AL OFs and 1Bs in 2006(13.7). • Top 10 AL batter 2006. • Top 5 AL 1B twice. • Top 10 AL OF twice. |
||
| Shane Victorino | 48.2 | 1 |
| • 78th among OFs in career BTPs since 1995. • Top 10 NL batter 2009. • Top 10 NL OF 2009. |
||
| Omar Vizquel | 42.2* | 4 |
| • 11th in career BTPs among SSs since 1995. • Top 5 AL SS twice. • Top 5 NL SS once. |
||
| Barry Zito | 117.4 | 1 |
| • 35th in career BTPs among pitchers since 1995. • Top 10 overall twice. • Top 10 AL pitcher three times. |
||
| ALREADY IN: Players IBWAA voters have already voted to Hall of Fame | ||
| Player | Career BTP | Year on ballot |
| Barry Bonds | 152.2* | 9 |
| • Steroids. • 5th among all batters in career BTPs since 1995. • Would have 230 BTP if career rom 1986 were tracked. • Top 10 overall player three times. • Top NL batter twice, 1999 (15.2), 2002 (20.7). • Top 10 NL batter 10 times. • Top 10 NL OF 10 times. |
||
| Roger Clemens | 164.8* | 9 |
| • Steroids. • 14th among all pitchers in career BTPs since 1995. • Would have 320 BTP if career from 1984 were tracked. • Top player 1997 (27.4). • Top 10 overall player three times. • Top AL pitcher twice—1997 (27.4), 1998 (25.8). • Top 10 AL pitcher seven times. • Top 10 NL pitcher once. |
||
Pitcher Curt Schilling came the closest to reaching 75 percent—he received 285 of the 401 ballots cast (71.1 percent), falling 16 votes short of the 301 needed to reach the 75-percent induction threshold.
Box-Toppers supported the candidacies of seven players, including Schilling, with its vote in the separate internet writers ballot via the Internet Baseball Writers Association of America (IBWAA). The IBWAA also announced that no players achieved the necessary 75 percent for induction in its vote—Schilling received the highest vote,108 of 167 votes cast or 64.7 percent.
Box-Toppers also supported the candidacies of these six players:
Todd Helton, who received 44.9 percent in the official vote and 61.7 percent in the IBWAA internet writers vote.
Tim Hudson, who received 5.2 percent in the official vote and 11.4 percent from internet writers.
Torii Hunter, who received 9.5 percent in the official vote and 18.6 percent from internet writers.
Jeff Kent, who received 32.4 percent in the official vote and 47.9 percent from internet writers.
Aramis Ramirez, who received 1.0 percent in the official vote and 2.4 percent from internet writers (me and three others).
Billy Wagner, who received 46.4 percent in the official vote and 61.6 percent from internet writers.
Of the seven players Box-Toppers supported for the hall, all but one will return to the ballot for 2022. Aramis Ramirez, in his first year of eligibility, did not receive the necessary 5 percent of the vote to remain on subsequent year’s ballots.
The old-school baseball writers, in their official Hall ballot also continued to exclude the usual suspects associated with performing enhancing drugs, including Barry Bonds, Roger Clemens, Gary Sheffield, Manny Ramirez and Sammy Sosa. All five of those players received the necessary 5 percent of the vote to remain eligible for next year’s ballot.
Here’s a look at key players in this week’s Hall of Fame voting:
Curt Schilling
In his ninth year of eligibility, Schilling received 71.1 percent of the vote, gaining from the 70.0 percent he received in 2020. Schilling played from 1988 to 2007 primarily for the Phillies, Diamondbacks and Red Sox and had 194.1 Box-Toppers points since 1995, ranked ninth on the “all-time” list (eighth among all pitchers).
He is Box-Toppers’ highest-ranked Hall-eligible player not to be elected to the Hall of Fame. Two players ahead of him in Box-Toppers rankings are Hall-of-Famers—pitchers Randy Johnson (282.5 Box-Toppers points) and Pedro Martinez (244.8).
Schilling has one year of eligibility remaining, but after Tuesday’s vote said in a Facebook post he wanted to be removed from next year’s ballot by baseball writers and take his chances of being voted in the hall in the future by players’ committees.
Jeff Kent
In his eighth year of eligibility, Kent received 32.4 percent of the vote, up from the 27.5 percent he had last year.
The second baseman who played from 1992 to 2008 for the Mets, Giants, Astros and Dodgers has 110.2 career Box-Toppers points since 1995, when Box-Toppers tracking began, which is most among all second basemen in that span. Kent’s career started in 1992, before the advent of Box-Toppers tracking, and estimates put his actual career total at 125 points. Still, given his career points since 1995, he ranks 17th among all batters.
Kent didn’t just lead all second basemen in Box-Toppers points during his career, he dominated them. And a decade after his retirement, no other second baseman has come close—Robinson Cano, now of the Mets, ranks second among all second basemen in Box-Toppers points since 1995 with 85.4, 24.3 points behind Kent.
Todd Helton
In his third year of eligibility, Helton received 44.9 percent of the vote, up from the 29.2 percent he received in 2020.
The first baseman who played from 1997 to 2013 for the Rockies has 116.4 career Box-Toppers points, 14th among all batters since 1995 and fifth among all first basemen since 1995.
He led NL batters in Box-Toppers points in two different seasons—2000 (15.2) and 2001 (17.0). He led NL first basemen in points four straight seasons from 1999 to 2002.
He was among the top 10 overall players in 2001 (ranking eighth with 17.0 points) and was among the top 10 NL batters in five seasons and a top five NL first basemen six times.
Billy Wagner
In his sixth year of eligibility, Wagner received 46.4 percent of the vote, up from the 31.7 percent he received in 2020.
The closing pitcher played from 1995 to 2010 primarily for the Astros, Mets, Phillies and Braves and has 108.7 career Box-Toppers points, third among all closing pitchers since 1995, behind Trevor Hoffman (128.4) and Mariano Rivera (126.4), both Hall of Famers.
He led NL closing pitchers in Box-Toppers points three times, 1998 (12.0) and 1999 (15.0) with the Astros and in 2010 (13.0) with the Braves. He was among the top five NL closers seven times and was among the top 10 overall NL pitchers twice.
Tim Hudson
In his first year of eligibility, Hudson received 5.2 percent of the vote.
The pitcher who played from 1999 to 2015 for the Braves, Athletics and Giants has 157.0 career Box-Toppers points, 19th among all players since 1995 and 16th among pitchers in that span.
Hudson led all AL pitchers in 2001 with the Athletics when he had 18.8 points. He was a top 10 overall player in Box-Toppers points three times—2000 (16.1), 2001 (18.8) and 2003 (17.7), all with the Athletics.
Torii Hunter
In his first year of eligibility, Hunter received 9.5 percent of the vote.
The outfielder who played from 1997 to 2015 for the Twins, Angels and Tigers has 115.9 career Box-Toppers points, 15th among all batters since 1995, fifth among all outfielders in that span.
Hunter led all AL outfielders in 2008 with 12.4 points with the Angels. He was a top 10 AL batter four times—2002 (11.5, ranked seventh) and 2007 (9.5, ranked 10th) with the Twins and 2008 (12.4, ranked second) and 2010 (8.5, ranked 10th) with the Angels. He was among the top 10 AL outfielders in Box-Toppers points nine times.
Aramis Ramirez
In his first year of eligibility, Ramirez received 1.0 percent of the vote, which does not meet the 5 percent threshold for him to return to the ballot in 2022.
However, Box-Toppers voted for the third baseman who played from 1998 to 2015 for the Cubs, Pirates and Brewers. He has 105.8 career Box-Toppers points, 21st among all batters since 1995 and fourth among all third basemen in that span.
Ramirez led NL third basemen in Box-Toppers points in two seasons—2008 (12.0) with the Cubs and 2014 (5.0) with the Brewers. He was a top five NL third basemen in Box-Toppers points nine times and was among the top 10 NL batters three times—2004 (11.0, ranked sixth), 2005 (11.7, ranked fifth) and 2008 (12.0, ranked sixth), all with the Cubs.
PED-associated players
Five players associated with performance enhancing drugs who otherwise might have been shoo-ins to the Hall of Fame were again denied induction:
Barry Bonds, in his ninth year of eligibility, received 61.8 percent of the vote, up slightly from the 60.7 percent he received in 2020. His career began in 1986 and he earned 152.2 Box-Toppers points from 1995 to 2007, 24th among all players and second among all outfielders. (If his entire career were tracked, projections put his Box-Toppers point total at about 230.)
Roger Clemens, in his ninth year of eligibility, received 61.6 percent of the vote, up slightly from the 61.0 percent he received in 2020. His career began in 1984 and he earned 164.8 Box-Toppers points from 1995 to 2007, 17th among all players and 14th among all pitchers. (If his entire career were tracked, projections put his Box-Toppers point total at about 320.)
Gary Sheffield, in his seventh year of eligibility, received 40.6 percent of the vote, up from the 30.5 percent he received in 2020. Sheffield has 124.1 career Box-Toppers points since 1995, ranked 44th among all players and fourth among all outfielders. If his entire career from 1988 to 2009 were tracked, he would have roughly 155 career Box-Toppers points.
Manny Ramirez, in his fifth year of eligibility, received 28.2 percent of the vote, the same percentage he received in 2020. Ramirez had 166.2 career Box-Toppers points since 1995, ranked 16th among all players and first among outfielders. (Ramirez began his career in 1993, prior to Box-Toppers tracking. If his entire career were tracked, rough projections put his career total at about 173.)
Sammy Sosa, in his ninth year of eligibility, received 17.0 percent of the vote, up from the 13.9 percent he received in 2020. His career began in 1989 and he earned 113.2 Box-Toppers points from 1995 to 2007, 57th among all players and sixth among all outfielders. If his entire career were tracked, projections put his Box-Toppers point total at about 135.
While Clemens and Bonds were again denied induction into the Baseball Hall of Fame by baseball writers in the BBWAA, the internet writers (IBWAA) did vote to induct them in 2018, giving them 75 percent of their vote. However, Box-Toppers would not have voted for either player because of their PED ties.
Clemens, Bonds, Sosa and Schilling will all be on the Hall of Fame ballot for the 10th and final time in 2022.
First year of eligibility
There were 11 players who were in their first year of Hall eligibility, having played at least 10 seasons and been retired for five.
Of those 11, only three received 5 percent or more of the writers’ votes to remain on the ballot in 2022—pitcher Mark Buehrle (11.0 percent), outfielder Torii Hunter (9.5 percent) and pitcher Tim Hudson (5.2 percent). The other eight players received less than 5 percent of the vote, including five who received no Hall of Fame votes.
2021 ceremony to include 2020 holdover inductees
Even though there will be no new 2021 inductees to the Hall of Fame, last year’s inductees are set to be formally honored in ceremonies this summer in Cooperstown, N.Y. In 2020, baseball writers elected Derek Jeter and Larry Walker to the Hall of Fame, but their ceremonies in July 2020 were postponed due to the coronavirus pandemic. They, along with Ted Simmons and the late Marvin Miller, who were elected by the Modern Era Committee for 2020 induction, are now slated to be inducted in July.
About Box-Toppers—Box-Toppers tracks who most helps their team win the most games. Using standard box score statistics, Box-Toppers uses a simple formula to determine a Player of the Game for each Major League Baseball game played. That player is the person who contributed most to his team’s win. In regular season games, players earn 1.0 Box-Toppers point for being named Player of the Game and can earn bonus points for being Player of the Day or top player or batter in their league for the day.
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Related:
Box-Toppers’ 2021 Hall of Fame picks
How Hall of Fame candidates fared in Box-Toppers points and rankings: 2020, 2019, 2018, 2017, 2016, 2015.