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With 334 esteemed South Side Sox members checking in this year, 251 votes were needed to get enshrined. Three players reached that mark. We have predicted the Hall of Fame voting three of the last four years, so I think it is a trend.
Getting the Call to the Hall (75%+)
Ken Griffey Jr. is the head of the 2016 class. Junior recorded 326 votes, good for 97.6 percent. In a stunning turn of events, he has elected to wear a White Sox cap on his plaque.
Tim Raines received 294 votes, good for 88 percent. Maybe the third time is the charm for the Rock, as he was voted in on South Side Sox back in 2011 and 2013.
Mike Piazza now walks with the immortals as he was chosen on 256 ballots, good for 76.6 percent. This marks the second time Piazza was chosen, as we voted him in back in 2013 as well.
Just Missed (60-74.99%)
Jeff Bagwell (203 votes, 60.8 percent). Bagwell gained 2 percent from last year, but is still well short of entering the Hall.
Strong Support (50-59.99%)
Barry Bonds (199 votes, 59.6 percent). Bonds jumped 20 percent in our vote from last year. Are people getting softer on the steroids stance? I hope so.
Roger Clemens (189 votes, 56.6 percent). Clemens jumped 15 percent from last year. I still find it odd that Bonds and Clemens don't have the same number of votes. Clemens had more last year, Bonds had more this year.
Mike Mussina (172 votes, 51.5 pitcher). Mussina jumped 9 percent without the huge pitcher names in front of him.
Edgar Martinez (169 votes, 50.6 percent). Edgar jumped 16 percent from last year and 26 percent that year from 2014. He's making big moves, but not big enough.
The 40 Percent Club (40-49.99%)
Trevor Hoffman (143 votes, 42.8 percent). After Griffey, Hoffman is the second strongest newbie on the ballot. He's going to be in it for the long haul.
Curt Schilling (142 votes, 42.5 percent). Schilling only gained two percent from last year, which has to be a disappointment for him.
Alan Trammell (136 votes, 40.7 percent). Trammell gained 14 percent in his final turn on the ballot, but he still fell way short. We failed him. The Veterans Committee will vote on his fate from now on. Sorry, Alan.
The 30 Percent Club (30-39.99%)
Fred McGriff (131 votes, 39.2 percent). The Crime Dog gained 16 percent this year. He's still getting screwed in my opinion.
The Roaring 20s (20-29.99%)
Lee Smith (85 votes, 25.4 percent). Big Lee gained 7 percent in our vote. He's only 50 percent shy with one year to go.
Jeff Kent (82 votes, 24.6 percent). Kent is up about 5 percent from last year.
Mark McGwire (68 votes, 20.4 percent) McGwire gained about nine points from last year, but is now off the ballot with the new 10-year rule.
At Least They Got Double Digits (10-19.99%)
Gary Sheffield (59 votes, 17.7 percent). The Sheff dropped 1 percent from last year. He seems to be stuck in the mud at just under 20 percent.
Jim Edmonds (57 votes, 17.1 percent). Edmonds is the third fresh meat candidate. He's got a long way to go, but will live to see another day.
Larry Walker (57 votes, 17.1 percent). Walker is up 2 percent from last year, but now with Edmonds on the ballot and polling in a similar spot, it's going to be tough for him to gain traction.
Sammy Sosa (46 votes, 13.8 percent). Slammin' Sammy saw a 5 percent increase from last year, but is still criminally short of where he should be.
Live to See Another Day (5-9.9%)
Nomar Garciaparra (30 votes, 9 percent). He lost a half-point of his vote, but will be back on the ballot in 2017.
Billy Wagner (29 votes, 8.7 percent). He sneaked through in his first year.
Gone But Not Forgotten (Under the 17 necessary votes to stay on the ballot)
David Eckstein had seven votes. Are you serious people?
Garret Anderson had three votes. And a sweet swing.
Luis Castillo had three votes.
Mark Grudzielanek had three votes. I assume his cousins voted.
Jason Kendall had two votes.
Mike Sweeney had two votes. Hi Hawk!
Brad Ausmus had one vote.
Troy Glaus had one vote.
Mike Hampton had one vote. From his wife. For getting that big contract.
Mike Lowell had one vote.
Randy Winn had zero votes. His family missed the article.
Conclusion
Ken Griffey Jr. was a no-brainer. After that things got confusing. Raines has always been a SSS favorite when there isn't a strong first class, so he got in easy. Piazza also has gotten support around here before and did so again as he just made the mark. Barry Bonds and Roger Clemens both received a big bump, but the other PED guys stayed around the same. Edgar Martinez and Fred McGriff saw big jumps. Mike Mussina found more support, but Curt Schilling stayed in the same area. Trevor Hoffman, Jim Edmonds and Billy Wagner all received enough votes to stay on the ballot here for another year. Mark McGwire and Alan Trammell bid farewell.
SSS Hall of Fame Class 2011: Roberto Alomar, Bert Blyleven, Tim Raines
SSS Hall of Fame Class 2012: Barry Larkin
SSS Hall of Fame Class 2013: Craig Biggio, Mike Piazza, Tim Raines
SSS Hall of Fame Class 2014: Greg Maddux, Frank Thomas, Tom Glavine
SSS Hall of Fame Class 2015: Randy Johnson, Pedro Martinez, Craig Biggio, John Smoltz
SSS Hall of Fame Class 2016: Ken Griffey, Jr., Tim Raines, Mike Piazza
Next year we see some big names on the ballot. Ivan Rodriguez, Manny Ramirez, Vladimir Guerrero, Magglio Ordonez, Mike Cameron, Javier Vazquez, Jorge Posada, Derek Lee, J.D. Drew, Orlando Cabrera, Aaron Rowand, Jason Varitek, Edgar Renteria, Tim Wakefield, Melvin Mora and Carlos Guillen are all eligible. I could vote for five of them right now. Things are going to get real murky.
Thanks for participating!