Fanning the Flames - The Hall of Fame Vote and Paul Ladewski

Well, we know now neither Cal Ripken nor Tony Gywnn will get into the Hall of Fame unanimously. However, it is almost irrational for someone to have either left the two men off the ballot based on their stats and what they have done for baseball, unless they are delusional, have an agenda or just are too lazy.

We have a case study.

Writer Paul Ladewski of the Daily Southtown in suburban Chicago let the world know in a column this week, he’d submitted a blank ballot because the issue with performance-enhancing drugs in baseball.

According to David Steele in his blog in the Baltimore Sun, these are the words from Paul Ladewski:

"Walter Johnson, Cy Young and Honus Wagner didn't receive such Hall passes. Neither did Lou Gehrig, Babe Ruth and Ted Williams. In fact, nobody has in the history of the game. Based on the standards set by the Hall of Fame voters decades ago, is there a neutral observer out there who can honestly say Gwynn and Ripken should be afforded an unprecedented honor?''

This is what he says and his logic for sending a blank ballot.

"At this point, I don't have nearly enough information to make a value judgment of this magnitude. In particular, that concerns any player in the Steroids Era, which I consider to be the 1993-2004 period, give or a take a season," Ladewski wrote.

"This isn't to suggest that Gwynn or Ripken or the majority of the other eligible candidates padded his statistics with performance-enhancers and cheated the game, their predecessors and the fans in the process. ... But tell me, except for the players themselves, who can say what they put into their bodies over the years with any degree of certainty?"

I can often see the forest from the trees. I don’t get this guy at all.

Anyhow, I know we are in the great unknown, except in a few instances of whom and did not take steroids, but I think it’s too late and very much unfair to put a moral spin on one’s vote to make a point and therefore punish those deserving.

I can understand his logic, but in the end, it’s like painting everyone with the same brush, and if he’s convinced that cheating does not exist, or not has ever existed in sports, then he should relinquish his right to vote. It's unfair to punish those in the present and in the future just because you have own agenda, especially for those not involved in the steroid proceedings or not have faced punishment for it.

What about Gaylord Perry and Whitey Ford who doctored their own balls? How about Ty Cobb who was an ardent racist and had no problem hurting his own peers on the ball field? Do we consider anyone who’s been arrested automatically guilty just because of appearances and stereotypes.

If this guy has an issue with drugs and wants to punish those in the present and future without any proof at all, then he should really reconsider what he does for a living.

Hell, he’d better not ever serve on my jury (not that I'd ever end up in court).

I mean, it’s not like politicians are beacons of truth, either and he should not vote ever again. Perhaps, he should not see a movie anymore; I mean, a quarter half of Hollywood has been in rehab, in the tabloids doing something stupid or jail.

Mr. Ladewski, you are delusional and it is very shortsighted to punish those who have not been accused or proven of any crime or violation is just wrong and un-American.