Last player elected with fewer than 5 years of retirement

[Appling]

Excluding Roberto Clemente (elected by special election after his tragic death on a mission of mercy) -- who was the last MLB player elected to the Hall of Fame with fewer than five seasons of retirement at the time of election?

I think this is easy, but in this forum I find many surprises!

[Captain Cold Nose]

Excluding Roberto Clemente (elected by special election after his tragic death on a mission of mercy) -- who was the last MLB player elected to the Hall of Fame with fewer than five seasons of retirement at the time of election?

I think this is easy, but in this forum I find many surprises!
Joe DiMaggio. 1955.

[Appling]

Joe DiMaggio. 1955.
I agree: JPD in '55.

Greenberg and Cronin in 1956 were not First Ballot winners.
No elections in 1957, 1959 or 1961.
No one elected in 1958 or 1960.

So: were Bob Feller and Jackie Robinson in 1962 the first HOF candidates kept off earlier ballots because of the 1954 rule requiring a five-year wait? (Both players retired after the 1956 season but 1962 was their first chance to appear on the ballot.)

Dom DiMaggio and Bob Elliott retired after 1953, but they were not realistic "First Ballot" candidates. I wonder who else might have retired after the 1954 or 1955 seasons, who might otherwise have been a candidate less than five years after retirement. Roy Campanella? Ralph Kiner? John Mize?

[Captain Cold Nose]

Greenberg and Cronin in 1956 were not First Ballot winners.
No elections in 1957, 1959 or 1961.
No one elected in 1958 or 1960.

So: were Bob Feller and Jackie Robinson in 1962 the first HOF candidates kept off earlier ballots because of the 1954 rule requiring a five-year wait? (Both players retired after the 1956 season but 1962 was their first chance to appear on the ballot.)

Dom DiMaggio and Bob Elliott retired after 1953, but they were not realistic "First Ballot" candidates. I wonder who else might have retired after the 1954 or 1955 seasons, who might otherwise have been a candidate less than five years after retirement. Roy Campanella? Ralph Kiner? John Mize?
Kiner made his debut in 1960, four years after he retired. He received all of three votes. Campy did not appear until 1964, which would be after the six-year period. 1960 seems to be Mize's debut on the ballot.

[Appling]

Kiner made his debut in 1960, four years after he retired. He received all of three votes. Since Kiner retired after the 1955 season, he should be subject to the "5-year wait" established in 1954. The three votes for Kiner in 1960 must have been "write-in" ballots.
Do write-ins count in HOF balloting?

[Freakshow]

Since Kiner retired after the 1955 season, he should be subject to the "5-year wait" established in 1954. The three votes for Kiner in 1960 must have been "write-in" ballots.
Do write-ins count in HOF balloting?
They don't count now. In the 1950's there seems to have been a transition period after the instituting of the 5-year rule, where they were counting write-ins. Boudreau, Doerr, Marion, Reynolds and Keller are some of the guys who seem to have experienced this.

[steelcurtain76]

The only other player who did not have to wait 5 years...that I know about...is Lou Gehrig.

[Appling]

The only other player who did not have to wait 5 years...that I know about...is Lou Gehrig.
Gehrig was inducted long before the 5-year-retirement requirement was established.

[sturg1dj]

The only other player who did not have to wait 5 years...that I know about...is Lou Gehrig.

look at the first class, they just took the best retired players....it just so happened that some had been retired for awhile

[Appling]

look at the first class, they just took the best retired players....it just so happened that some had been retired for awhile
Of the five players voted into the Class of 1936, I believe Babe Ruth is the only one who was retired less than five years. Walter Johnson's final season was 1927 and Cobb's was 1928.

[ElHalo]

look at the first class, they just took the best retired players....it just so happened that some had been retired for awhile

They didn't just take the best retired players. Anybody could be voted in; Lou Gehrig and Rogers Hornsby both did well in the voting for the 1936 Hall class, despite still being active.

[Appling]

They didn't just take the best retired players. Anybody could be voted in; Lou Gehrig and Rogers Hornsby both did well in the voting for the 1936 Hall class, despite still being active.
I am glad they didn't take any active players at the onset -- that would have set a poor precedent. Pete Rose might have made the HOF before his gambling addiction was exposed.