With the MLB the season now at a close, there are plenty of other events and festivities that will occur off the field for those who are playing and those who aren’t—including the release of the Contemporary Baseball Era Committee ballot, which earns them Hall of Fame consideration.
Eight former big league players comprise the Contemporary Baseball Era player ballot, which features candidates whose primary contribution to the game came since 1980. Older fans should compare these ballots to the Veterans
Committees of yore, which inducted the likes of Phil Rizzuto and Joe Gordon long after their time on the BBWAA ballot ended.
Bobby Grich and Sal Bando are two players who belong to the Classic Baseball pool for pre-1980 players. At the same time, another former Yankee, Jorge Posada, who went one-and-done on the 2017 BBWAA ballot, won’t be eligible until his theoretical 10-year period has lapsed. He and Johan Santana would qualify for the 2029 Contemporary Era ballot.
To briefly describe what the committee is, here it is, straight from the National Baseball Hall of Fame website:
“The Era Committees consist of three different electorates: The Classic Baseball Era, consisting of the period prior to 1980 and including Negro Leagues and pre-Negro Leagues stars; and the Contemporary Baseball Era, consisting of the period from 1980 to present day. The Contemporary Baseball Era is split into two separate ballots – one ballot to consider only players who made their greatest impact on the game since 1980, and another composite ballot consisting of managers, executives and umpires whose greatest contributions to the game have come since 1980.”
Sixteen committee members will vote, and at least 12 votes will be needed to secure induction. Commitee members are limited to a maximum of three votes, so unless you land the right audience (à la Harold Baines), it can be tough plane to land. The committee has not yet been announced, but it generally consists of a mix of former Hall of Famers, executives, and media members.
The results of the Contemporary Baseball Era Committee vote will be announced live on MLB Network at 7:30pm ET on Sunday, December 7, and Yankees fans should be tuned in, as three of their former players are involved in the ballot.
Don Mattingly
Mattingly is beloved by Yankees fans for many reasons, primarily due to his outstanding on-field performance during dark years for the Yankees franchise. Owner George Steinbrenner’s meddling paid the price on Mattingly’s rosters; while some could have captured Wild Card berths had those spots existed, his entire career was spent without playoff ball until his 1995 swan song.
Individually, Mattingly’s peak was one of the best from a first baseman in modern MLB history, as from 1984-89, he amassed six consecutive All-Star appearances, won the batting title over Hall of Fame teammate Dave Winfield in ‘84, captured the AL MVP in ‘85, and nearly won a second straight in ‘86. “Donnie Baseball” was an elite defender at first base, capturing five straight Gold Glove awards and winning nine in his illustrious career. Mattingly also won three Silver Sluggers throughout his 14-year MLB career, which was curtailed by agonizing back injuries in the early ’90s.
Mattingly left the game just before the Yankees launched their 1996-2000 dynasty, stepping back to pave the way for Tino Martinez. He returned to the dugout in 2004 as a Yankees coach, and after being passed over in favor of Joe Girardi as Joe Torre’s successor as Yankees skipper during the 2007-08 offseason, he followed Torre to Los Angeles. When Torre retired from the Dodgers’ helm, Mattingly became the manager, and he led LA at the very beginning of their present run of NL dominance, from 2013-15. They parted ways and he then managed the Marlins from 2016-22, winning 2020 NL Manager of the Year honors for a surprising playoff berth.
Mattingly is currently bench coach for the Blue Jays, with whom he finally made it the World Series after 5,231 games as a player, coach, and manager — though heartbreak still found him in Game 7 to deny him a ring, as his Jays fell to the manager who replaced him in LA, Dave Roberts. Perhaps a belated Hall of Fame induction could soothe those wounds.
Roger Clemens
Clemens made his rounds in MLB with teams like the Red Sox, Blue Jays, and Astros, but he was a key cog in the last two of the championship-winning teams during the Yankees’ dynasty years. Already a five-time Cy Young Award winner at the time he was shockingly acquired in exchange for a David Wells-led package, “the Rocket” made the All-Star team twice in New York and won his sixth Cy in 2001 (he’d win his last Houston in ‘04). Clemens also achieved a career milestone in June 2003, notching his 300th career win and 4,000th strikeout in the same game.
While his time with the Yankees was brief relative to his 24-year career, “The Rocket” will be remembered not just for his hot temper but also for his controversial Hall of Fame bid, which is clouded due to potential usage of performance-enhancing drugs (as cited in the Mitchell Report). He was acquitted on all counts in the trial, but off-field issues have overshadowed his career, which, on paper, would clearly be in contention for the “best pitcher of all-time” category.
Gary Sheffield
The final former Yankee to make it on the ballot is Gary Sheffield. Having played the fewest seasons in pinstripes from age 35 to 37, he still had three excellent years. Two of his three seasons resulted in All-Star appearances and Silver Slugger awards, and in his first season as a Yankee, he finished second in MVP voting only behind the Anaheim Angels’ Vladimir Guerrero — who Steinbrenner somehwat infamously snubbed in favor of Sheffield during the 2003-04 offseason, despite Brian Cashman’s rumored agreement with Guerrero.
Throughout his career, Sheffield finished as a World Series champion in 1997 with the Florida Marlins, a nine-time All-Star, and a five-time Silver Slugger, in addition to winning a batting title in 1992 with the San Diego Padres. He joined the 500-homer club in 2009 with the Mets, his final year in the majors.
Sheffield, though, has also been marred by links to the performance-enhancing drugs issue that plagued this generation of superstars, thanks to his link to another member of this eight-man ballot: Barry Bonds. There’s also the fact that, no matter the issue, he was always the one to speak out first and remain the loudest. So, for seemingly those two primary reasons, he was omitted from many Hall of Fame voters’ ballots. Maybe this committee will have something different to say.
For bigger profiles on Mattingly, Clemens, and Sheffield, check out these by Jay Jaffe over at FanGraphs. They’re from years past, but still relevant.
Other players on the ballot include Bonds, former Blue Jays and Mets first baseman Carlos Delgado, Giants and Astros second baseman Jeff Kent, longtime Braves outfielder Dale Murphy, and Dodgers icon Fernando Valenzuela.
