Walker among 10 most overlooked in Hall of Fame selections

Maple Ridge, B.C., native Larry Walker is in his ninth year on the National Baseball Hall of Fame ballot. Photo Credit: Associated Press

By Tracy Ringolsby

Inside the Seams

The Hall of Fame addressed two lingering oversights when its Modern Era Committee elected Tigers greats Jacks Morris and Alan Trammell with the 2018 induction class.

But there’s more.

That’s the nature of a voting process where enshrinement is tied to support from 75 percent of voters.

Not that there’s anything wrong with that. The exclusivity of the Hall of Fame focuses fans’ debates on players who have been snubbed by Cooperstown.

For now, push aside Pete Rose and Shoeless Joe Jackson. Both have Hall of Fame résumés but were banned from baseball for life, which makes them ineligible.

»Larry Walker: He appears on the writers’ ballot for the ninth time (out of 10 chances) this fall, yet he has not received more than 34.1 percent support. That doesn’t bode well for Walker, who has been discounted by voters because his biggest seasons came when he played for the Rockies. However, he accrued just 31 percent of his career plate appearances at Coors Field, and advanced metrics such as wins above replacement (WAR) view the well-rounded Walker as more qualified than contemporary right fielders such as Tony Gwynn, Dave Winfield and Vladimir Guerrero.

For a list of the other nine most overlooked Hall of Fame candidates, according to Ringolsby, you can follow this link.