We here at HBT have been doing drive-bys on all of the Hall of Fame candidates for some time, but on the eve of the Hall of Fame results becoming public, the insiders at Comcast Sportsnet offer you five in-depth takes on five of the top Hall of Fame candidates in 2013:
Andrew Baggarly of CSNBayArea.com assess the problematic case of Barry Bonds:
Bonds was the most talented hitter I’ve ever seen. He was a savant. He predicted pitch after pitch from the dugout, leaving his teammates in amazement. Perhaps only Ted Williams had his combination of cunning, vision and confidence.
Sean McAdam of CSNNE.com talks about Roger Clemens before he was assumed to have started taking PEDs:
If you put Clemens’ before-and-after date at 1996, he had won three Cy Young Awards, an MVP and had tied Cy Young as the winningest pitcher in Red Sox history.
Patrick Mooney and Tony Andracki of CSNChicago.com take on Sammy Sosa, and take on Sosa ... and continue to take on Sosa ...
Only seven men have hit more than the 609 home runs Sammy Sosa slammed during his big-league career. He did it with a flair for the dramatic, inside one of baseball’s cathedrals, while playing for a marquee franchise.
John Kelly of CSNHouston.com looks at Craig Biggio:
Craig Biggio is in his first year of eligibility, and in an ordinary year would be a shoe in for induction -- 3,060 hits, 668 doubles, 291 home runs, 1,175 RBIs and 1,844 runs scored in a career that spanned 20 seasons, all in a Houston uniform. But this is no ordinary year.
Finally, Jim Salisbury of CSNPhilly.com gives us the candidacy of Curt Schilling:
Any look at Schilling’s candidacy has to go heavy on his postseason work: He won World Series in 2001, 2004 and 2007; He was 11-2 with a 2.23 ERA and a .968 WHIP (walks and hits per innings pitched) in 19 postseason starts; He was 4-0 with a 1.37 ERA in five elimination starts. (His team won all five.); He was the MVP of the 1993 NLCS with the Phillies; He was the co-MVP of the 2001 World Series with the Diamondbacks.
That’s the overview, but where do our insiders come down on each candidate? How did they vote and, more importantly, what do these guys -- who know their subjects better than anyone -- think will happen tomorrow when the vote is revealed?
Do yourself a favor and take some time with these in-depth looks. Because after tomorrow, it will all be history for another year.
