HOF thread

[D-train]

Was ichiro more popular than junior? I mean around the country

I wasn't around the country back then so I don't know. Junior was in a lot of National Ads. I don't remember Ichiro in any....

[Donn Beach]

Okay, here's a MLB.com article arguing ichiro is the most popular MLB player ever. I believe that's what this comes down to, the unanimous induction thing, popularity. I wondered about junior. He was both very popular and talented but a handful of voters decided not to vote for him anyway. I could see that being even more difficult with ichiro, that is go on record to not recognize him. But we will see, I really have no idea how it might turn out.

His combination of unfettered joy for life, a sharp sense of humor and an intense, almost mystical commitment to his work has always been captivating. He has been compelling in such a uniquely universal way that resonated with people of different ages, nations and backgrounds -- a household name in homes all over the world, a sporting legend who made millions fall in love with the game of baseball. For all these reasons and more, I firmly believe that Ichiro is the single most beloved baseball player of all time.

There are obviously a handful of other players -- Ken Griffey Jr., Mariano Rivera, Hank Aaron, Babe Ruth, Willie Mays and Roberto Clemente all come to mind -- that belong in the conversation. But Ichiro, in my opinion, stands head and shoulders above the rest.

They combined the article with a poll

Who is the most beloved baseball player of all time?


Ichiro 65%

Ken Griffey Jr. 12%

Mariano Rivera 3%

Babe Ruth 7%

Roberto Clemente 3%

Hank Aaron 2%

Willie Mays 3%

Other 5%
5378 Votes

https://www.mlb.com/cut4/is-ichiro-the- ... ll-history

[D-train]

Okay, here's a MLB.com article arguing ichiro is the most popular MLB player ever. I believe that's what this comes down to, the unanimous induction thing, popularity. I wondered about junior. He was both very popular and talented but a handful of voters decided not to vote for him anyway. I could see that being even more difficult with ichiro, that is go on record to not recognize him. But we will see, I really have no idea how it might turn out.

His combination of unfettered joy for life, a sharp sense of humor and an intense, almost mystical commitment to his work has always been captivating. He has been compelling in such a uniquely universal way that resonated with people of different ages, nations and backgrounds -- a household name in homes all over the world, a sporting legend who made millions fall in love with the game of baseball. For all these reasons and more, I firmly believe that Ichiro is the single most beloved baseball player of all time.

There are obviously a handful of other players -- Ken Griffey Jr., Mariano Rivera, Hank Aaron, Babe Ruth, Willie Mays and Roberto Clemente all come to mind -- that belong in the conversation. But Ichiro, in my opinion, stands head and shoulders above the rest.

They combined the article with a poll

Who is the most beloved baseball player of all time?


Ichiro 65%

Ken Griffey Jr. 12%

Mariano Rivera 3%

Babe Ruth 7%

Roberto Clemente 3%

Hank Aaron 2%

Willie Mays 3%

Other 5%
5378 Votes

https://www.mlb.com/cut4/is-ichiro-the- ... ll-history

Talk about recency bias. Ichiro 5x more popular than Griffey, 10x more than babe Ruth? lol Was the voting limited to Japanese teenagers??

[D-train]

Not all voters go public. Nobody knows who didn't vote for Jeter or Griffey. I could see a few not voting for him for a variety of reasons.

[Donn Beach]

Thought they had, interestingly, the writers wanted it but the hall overruled it

It comes as a pretty big shock to anyone following the Hall of Fame proceedings. A few years ago, the Baseball Writers Association of America (BBWAA) voted to make all the ballots public. It was expected that would go into action in 2018, but the Hall of Fame stepped in and said it would keep the ballots private.

Again, this was not the writers’ decision. According to those who were present at the BBWAA at the time of the vote, the motion passed overwhelmingly.

[D-train]

Thought they had, interestingly, the writers wanted it but the hall overruled it

It comes as a pretty big shock to anyone following the Hall of Fame proceedings. A few years ago, the Baseball Writers Association of America (BBWAA) voted to make all the ballots public. It was expected that would go into action in 2018, but the Hall of Fame stepped in and said it would keep the ballots private.

Again, this was not the writers’ decision. According to those who were present at the BBWAA at the time of the vote, the motion passed overwhelmingly.

It is interesting because the guys that go public tend to be the younger new school Big Hall guys and those that don't are the old school small hall guys. So a guy typically needs to be well over 75% with the public guys to get in. Last year 17.5% of guys didn't go public.

[D-train]

Starting to wonder if writers are boycotting the Tracker. Still only 12 votes with just a few weeks to go. Usually at this point there are at least 100 iirc.

Still only one of Felix, Ichy and CC are still Uni and Wagner will get in on his last year on the ballot. Check out his career btw. Just a model of consistency. Other than one blip just prior to going on the DL it is impeccable. Well deserved induction imo.

5 seasons with an ERA under 2 and none with an ERA of 3 or higher other than the blip season in 2000.

https://www.baseball-reference.com/play ... bi02.shtml

[bhofferb]

As long as writers can only vote for 10 players, being elected unanimously means nothing. Do we really think the here were writers who thought Griffey didn’t deserve the HOF? The more likely thought process was “Griffey’s getting in, so I’ll use my vote on Player X instead” That said, there is no way Ichiro was 6 times more popular than Griffey, at least in America

[Donn Beach]

Of course ichiro isn't six times more popular than junior, but is he as popular? Even that is saying a lot

[D-train]

Of course ichiro isn't six times more popular than junior, but is he as popular? Even that is saying a lot

Seeing comments when he is mentioned in National posts on X he is truly beloved. ZERO negative comments. Which is almost unheard on X. You could say I like puppies and you will have 5 comments about how they deserve to get their asses beat with rolled up newspapers for peeing on the floor.