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ESPN Staff Writer- Sports reporter, Kansas City Star, 2002-09
- Writer, Baseball, Baseball Prospectus
- Co-author, Pro Basketball Prospectus
- Member, Baseball Writers Association of America
- Member, Professional Basketball Writers Association
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ESPN Senior Writer- Covers MLB for ESPN.com
- Former deputy editor of Page 2
- Been with ESPN.com since 1995
On his first try, 3,000 Hit Club member Adrian Beltre is a lock for a Hall of Fame induction ceremony this summer. The much-beloved Bartolo Colon, we're afraid, isn't going to make the 2024 Cooperstown cut.
How about the rest of the field? ESPN MLB experts Bradford Doolittle and David Schoenfield take a look at the candidacies of some of the leading vote-getters on the BBWAA ballot to date and weigh their Hall of Fame chances for this year -- and beyond.
Players are listed in order of their current balloting percentage, via Ryan Thibodaux's Hall of Fame tracker site.
Joe Mauer
The case for Mauer: Mauer had a very high level of peak performance as a catcher -- winning three batting titles and hitting an incredible .365/.444/.587 in his MVP season in 2009 (nobody has hit for that high of an average since). During his nine full seasons as a catcher, he hit .323/.405/.469 with more walks than strikeouts. His career WAR of 55.2 is ninth all time among players who were primarily catchers (of the top 11 in WAR, only Mauer isn't a Hall of Famer) and his seven-year peak ranks fifth all time. He won three Gold Gloves and finished with a lifetime .306 average.