Appling
02-12-2007, 07:43 AM
Current eligibility rules require five years of retirement as a player before a candidate may be put on the Hall of Fame ballot. But before that, many players got votes quicker than that -- and some were elected in less than the now-minimum six years.
Here are a few I can find:
player --- Election -- Last --- Years
name ---- Year -- Active -
Babe Ruth -- 1936 -1935 = 1 year (95.1%)
Lou Gehrig -- 1939 -1939 = 0 years (special election)
Rogers Hornsby 1943 -1937 = 5 years (78.1%)
Carl Hubbell - 1947 -1943 = 4 years (87.0%)
Mel Ott ----- 1951 -1947 = 4 years (87.2%)
Joe DiMaggio -1955 -1951 = 4 years (88.8%)
Roberto Clemente 1973-1972 = 1 year (92.7%) special election
This is all I can find but I may have missed a few.
Hornsby received over 100 votes in 1936 (while he was still an active player) and again in 1939, before he was elected in 1942.
Carl Hubbell received 75 votes in 1946 before he was elected in 1947.
Mel Ott received 94 votes in 1949 and 115 votes in 1950, befoe he was elected in 1951.
Joe DiMaggio received 117 votes in 1953 and 175 votes in 1954 before he was elected in 1955.
So these players were technically not "first-ballot" winners, but they were voted to the Hall of Fame faster than the six years now set as a minimum.
Jimmie Foxx, who retired after the 1945 season, received 50 votes in 1948, 85 in 1949, and 103 in 1950 before he was elected in 1951 --which happens to give him a six-year wait.
I think comparing vote percentages is meaningless until the mandatory six-year delay rule was established. Is it better for DiMaggio to get elected in four years (but on his third ballot) with 88.8% of the vote, or Williams to be elected in six years (but on his first ballot) with 93.4% of the vote?
Here are a few I can find:
player --- Election -- Last --- Years
name ---- Year -- Active -
Babe Ruth -- 1936 -1935 = 1 year (95.1%)
Lou Gehrig -- 1939 -1939 = 0 years (special election)
Rogers Hornsby 1943 -1937 = 5 years (78.1%)
Carl Hubbell - 1947 -1943 = 4 years (87.0%)
Mel Ott ----- 1951 -1947 = 4 years (87.2%)
Joe DiMaggio -1955 -1951 = 4 years (88.8%)
Roberto Clemente 1973-1972 = 1 year (92.7%) special election
This is all I can find but I may have missed a few.
Hornsby received over 100 votes in 1936 (while he was still an active player) and again in 1939, before he was elected in 1942.
Carl Hubbell received 75 votes in 1946 before he was elected in 1947.
Mel Ott received 94 votes in 1949 and 115 votes in 1950, befoe he was elected in 1951.
Joe DiMaggio received 117 votes in 1953 and 175 votes in 1954 before he was elected in 1955.
So these players were technically not "first-ballot" winners, but they were voted to the Hall of Fame faster than the six years now set as a minimum.
Jimmie Foxx, who retired after the 1945 season, received 50 votes in 1948, 85 in 1949, and 103 in 1950 before he was elected in 1951 --which happens to give him a six-year wait.
I think comparing vote percentages is meaningless until the mandatory six-year delay rule was established. Is it better for DiMaggio to get elected in four years (but on his third ballot) with 88.8% of the vote, or Williams to be elected in six years (but on his first ballot) with 93.4% of the vote?