If sitting in front of the hot stove all day is making you as drowsy as it is making me, here is a little distraction to while away some time as you wait for the earth-shattering news about who has signed Harper, Machado and the other, lesser free agents.
A co-worker shared this link to me, and we have determined that it is safe. It links to an Excel Online spreadsheet that is updated constantly as new info comes in, courtesy of Ryan Thibodaux. The link is here (bit.ly/hall19) or you can find the link on Ryan’s twitter here (https://twitter.com/NotMrTibbs).
Essentially, it tracks the ballots for the 2019 HOF-eligible players, for any ballots that have been made public. More importantly, it tracks whether a player has gained votes (where the voter did not select that player last year, but did this year) or lost votes (where the voter did select the player last year but did not this year).
A couple of interesting things to note (keep in mind that it is very early, and only 4.4% of ballots are known at this point — 18 out of 412-ish):
- Edgar Martinez is getting lots of early love. Of the 18 known votes, ALL of them (100%) have voted for ‘Gar, including four people who did not vote for him last year. As this is Edgar’s last (10th) year on the ballot and he was tantalizingly close to induction last year — 70.4% — this
couldshould be the year he finally gets in. - Mike Mussina is also making some gains, base on the small sample size. He has 15 of 18 votes at this point (83.3%), including 4 new supporters. This is GREAT news.
- Mo Rivera seems to be a lock, as he is also sitting at 100% support in his first year of eligibility.
- The late, great Roy Halladay is getting lots of support in his first year, with 16 of 18 voters selecting Doc on their ballots (88.9%).
- In his 9th year on the ballot, Larry Walker has picked up some support, but only 3 new votes so far, and has a long way to go.
- Perennial d-bag Curt Schilling has picked up 3 new supporters thus far, likely from emboldened Donald Trump supporters.
- Manny Ramirez thus far has lost 3 voters that went for him last year.
- Bonds and Clemens, who both ended up in 56-57% territory last year, have each picked up the same new supporter (Bill Center) and sit in solid contention at this early juncture.
I now have this link as a bookmark and will go back to it again and again for the enjoyment of seeing the trends toward (and away from) certain players.
Also note that there are additional tabs at the bottom of the spreadsheet that show the voting data for past years back to 2009.
Enjoy, FI fam…
Fan Interference 
Thanks for the link.
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It’s a law of nature: don’t worry = WATCH OUT!
It’s just a few clouds = expect a downpour
Sleeping by the Hot Stove = Check out what St Louis just found in their Xmas stocking.
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That’s just how it’s been going in Arizona. The horned toads are disappearing, too – so don’t walk around barefoot.
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He started this project a couple of years ago, and publicizing his results are part of the idea. I actually hate that someone is doing this, basically just shamelessly trying to scoop the official process and spoil the drama of the final announcement. I’d rather not read on the Internet what gifts 80% of my friends are getting me for Christmas in advance, even if I don’t know exactly whom is giving me exactly what.
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Well, I often share your feelings but not this time…
This is part of the new HOF vote. They got rid of all the retired sports writers when hadn’t covered MLB for years. The new breed break news on twitter – not on their usual publication. The long stories are for expansion and analysis.
The changes includes an attitude of personal involvement. The journalism class I took in HS emphasized invisible and nonjudgmental observation. Opinions of the observer were not allowed. This is no longer the norm.
Today’s journalists include themselves in the story as analyst. I like the accountability of writers offering themselves for judgement by offering their HOF votes for scrutiny.
This changes the process, too. Previously we would see, for example, Mickey Mantle get a high vote count, but not 100% of votes. I always thought there were some old bastards NOT voting for such a candidate for some stupid reason of their own. (“Even without my vote he’ll get in, but his yes vote percentage won’t exceed DiMaggio.”) I don’t know if my theory is correct – because we never knew who voted for whom (or is whom voted for who? Little help, Gator!).
The result is what you despise – voters publicize what they did and why. They just don’t all do it at the same time. Making their choices public will mostly eliminate really stupid votes like my imagined example. It also means we will soon see a 100% vote recipient, as publicized votes that are indefensible become rare and extinct.
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I got no issue with revealing and publicizing the ballots—AFTER the announcement! On the other hand, there is something to be said for privacy; look how many people right now would be mortified if their vote in the last presidential election were made public…..
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You’re right, I voted unwisely. ( just kidding, I did NOT vote for Tramp.
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Moose Watch is alive and well and if he gets in, my happy white butt is going to Cooperstown again!!!
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I prefer my mousses chocolate.
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Just beware of…. the salmon mousse.
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