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Hall Pass

Michael Cox

Well, I don't think anyone could have doubted that Nolan Ryan and George Brett would make it into the H o' F on the first ballot -- after all, there was so much peer pressure. What with all the "is there any doubt?" editorials by many of the very members who vote in the thing, nobody wanted to be shamed by being left at the pier when that boat sailed. Even Robin Yount's squeaking in was more likely than not.

However, the sheer volume of votes for both men was a bit surprising. Ryan and Brett, right up there with Seaver and Cobb (actually, the biggest surprise for me was that somebody voted against Cobb, but I guess that's the kind of thing Albert Belle has to look forward to after he gets his 500 dingers and retires)? I mean, they're good, but who'da thunk it?

Actually, the most fun part of this is watching the few writers who dared not check the "Ryan, Nolan" and "Brett, George" boxes being rooted out like heretics. No, scratch that, it's watching them try to justify their votes, and coming out sounding like the expense-account wasting bozos they are.

Now, there are some excellent ways to handle the stigma of not selecting The Chosen Ones, the best being not to bother talking about it at all. However, I can understand a writer wanting to tell all, because after all he is writer. But when people with less than rational minds try to rationalize, it can be a sad, sad sight.

First to be "exposed" for passing on Ryan (by a Dallas radio station, natch) was Philly columnist Bill Conlin. And his rationale? He could have said that he knew Ryan already had more than enough votes, that he had a soft spot for Carlton Fisk or Minnie Minoso, but no.

He used something he called "the celestial Game 7 test." He imagined it was Game 7 of the World Series. Who would he choose to start: Nolan Ryan or Sandy Koufax. Of course, he chose Koufax. Am I just crazy, or is there any reason that Koufax should have been involved in the equation at all?

At least now I know that if I hold a BBWAA membership when Ken Griffey Jr. comes up for election, I should make sure he passes the "Game 7 test" against Willie Mays, or sorry, Junior.

Item: I heard a great one the other day -- the final home run balls by McGwire and Sosa were going up for online auction on Ebay. And get this: the final auction would be shown live on a giant computer screen at Madison Square Garden! thousands of people, watching a Web page on a JumboTron! It kills me just thinking about it...what? It's true?

Item: I know that the whole Roger Clemens thing has been talked to death, but I just want to say that the Hendricks brothers' (Clemens' agents) timing was beautiful. Clemens managed to withdraw his trade demand just days before Bud Selig would have declared his demand null and void. It's almost as if they knew what was coming.

Even stranger was Randy Hendricks' later comment, "Our press conference had nothing to do with a non-existent event." Since it's been confirmed that the memos and punishments exist, we must presume that the event of which Hendricks speaks is a Jeff Manto celebrity roast...

Item: Thanks to the feds' relaxation of trade restrictions against Cuba, the Orioles will get to play the Cuban national team. Now, it's no surprise that Peter Angelos has been working on such a deal for years. After all, like the Cuban nationals, Baltimore is mainly made up of guys old enough to want to lie about their ages...

about the author

Michael Cox is attempting to have Strikethree.com shown on the DiamondVision screen at Jacobs Field between innings. He promises to drag out the best Albert Belle jokes he can. Suggest funny stories involving a baseball bat and Cal Ripken's locker at mc@strikethree.com.