The Baseball Writers Association of America revealed the results from the 2015 Baseball Hall of Fame vote. This time around, Randy Johnson, Pedro Martinez, John Smoltz and Craig Biggio were elected. They will be officially inducted at the ceremony on July 26 as part of the Hall of Fame Induction Weekend on July 24-27.
This is only the fourth time in history at least four players were elected into the Hall via the BBWAA vote and it's the first time it happened since 1955.
Johnson received 97.3 percent of the vote, with Martinez not far behind at 91.1. The record-high percentage is 98.84, which Tom Seaver received in 1992.
Smoltz got 82.9 while Biggio grabbed 82.7 in his third try. The other three inductees are now officially first-ballot Hall of Famers.
Johnson, 51, pitched in parts of 22 seasons in the majors. He went 303-166 with a 3.29 ERA (135 ERA+), 1.17 WHIP and 4875 strikeouts in 4135 1/3 innings. He won five Cy Young awards and finished second in the voting three other times. He led the league in strikeouts nine times, ERA four times, WHIP three times, wins once and winning percentage four times, among other stats. He was the co-MVP of the 2001 World Series, when his Diamondbacks beat the dynasty Yankees in an epic seven-game series.
Martinez, 43, was 219-100 in parts of 18 seasons. He had a 2.93 ERA (best-ever 154 ERA+ among starters), 1.05 WHIP and 3154 strikeouts in 2827 1/3 innings. He won three Cy Youngs and finished second two other times. He topped his league in ERA five times, WHIP six times, strikeouts three times, wins once and winning percentage three times, among other rate stats (like hit rate five times). He won a World Series ring with the 2004 Red Sox.
Smoltz, 47, is the only man in baseball history with over 200 wins and 150 saves. He was a two-time All-Star as a closer and went six times as a starter, winning the 1996 Cy Young. In parts of 21 seasons, he was 213-155 with a 3.33 ERA (125 ERA+), 1.18 WHIP and 3084 strikeouts in 3473 innings. He had 154 saves in 169 chances, a 91 percent clip. In the postseason, Smoltz went 15-4 with a 2.67 ERA and four saves in 209 innings.
This is the second straight year that three players have made it into the Hall of Fame on their first ballot.
Biggio, 49, seemed headed here eventually, getting 68.2 percent of the vote in 2013 and 74.8 percent last year. The seven-time All-Star ranks 21st in career hits at 3060 and fifth in doubles with a whopping 668. He's also 15th in runs (1844), 33rd in total bases, 66th in stolen bases (414). Thanks to being 66th in walks, 21st in hits and second all-time in hit-by-pitches, it's not surprising to see Biggio ranking 18th in times on base. Even as a table-setter, Biggio's 292 homers and 1175 RBI are impressive. His career slash line is .281/.363/.433.
Total vote breakdown, thanks to bbwaa.com (above 75 percent needed for election, with below five percent meaning the player falls off the ballot)
Johnson, 97.3 percent
Martinez, 91.1
Smoltz, 82.9
Biggio, 82.7
-----
Mike Piazza, 69.9
Jeff Bagwell, 55.7
Tim Raines, 55
Curt Schilling, 39.2
Roger Clemens, 37.5
Barry Bonds, 36.8
Lee Smith, 30.2
Edgar Martinez, 27
Alan Trammell, 25.1
Mike Mussina, 24.6
Jeff Kent, 14
Fred McGriff, 12.9
Larry Walker, 11.8
Gary Sheffield, 11.7
Mark McGwire, 10
Don Mattingly, 9.1
Sammy Sosa, 6.6
Nomar Garciaparra, 5.5
-----
Carlos Delgado, 3.8
Troy Percival, 0.7
Aaron Boone, 0.4
Tom Gordon, 0.4
Darin Erstad, 0.2
Rich Aurillia, 0
Tony Clark, 0
Jermaine Dye, 0
Cliff Floyd, 0
Brian Giles, 0
Eddie Guardado, 0
Jason Schmidt, 0
Mattingly also falls off the ballot, as this was his 15th and final chance.
By Matt Snyder | Baseball Writer
This is only the fourth time in history at least four players were elected into the Hall via the BBWAA vote and it's the first time it happened since 1955.
Johnson received 97.3 percent of the vote, with Martinez not far behind at 91.1. The record-high percentage is 98.84, which Tom Seaver received in 1992.
Smoltz got 82.9 while Biggio grabbed 82.7 in his third try. The other three inductees are now officially first-ballot Hall of Famers.
Johnson, 51, pitched in parts of 22 seasons in the majors. He went 303-166 with a 3.29 ERA (135 ERA+), 1.17 WHIP and 4875 strikeouts in 4135 1/3 innings. He won five Cy Young awards and finished second in the voting three other times. He led the league in strikeouts nine times, ERA four times, WHIP three times, wins once and winning percentage four times, among other stats. He was the co-MVP of the 2001 World Series, when his Diamondbacks beat the dynasty Yankees in an epic seven-game series.
Martinez, 43, was 219-100 in parts of 18 seasons. He had a 2.93 ERA (best-ever 154 ERA+ among starters), 1.05 WHIP and 3154 strikeouts in 2827 1/3 innings. He won three Cy Youngs and finished second two other times. He topped his league in ERA five times, WHIP six times, strikeouts three times, wins once and winning percentage three times, among other rate stats (like hit rate five times). He won a World Series ring with the 2004 Red Sox.
Smoltz, 47, is the only man in baseball history with over 200 wins and 150 saves. He was a two-time All-Star as a closer and went six times as a starter, winning the 1996 Cy Young. In parts of 21 seasons, he was 213-155 with a 3.33 ERA (125 ERA+), 1.18 WHIP and 3084 strikeouts in 3473 innings. He had 154 saves in 169 chances, a 91 percent clip. In the postseason, Smoltz went 15-4 with a 2.67 ERA and four saves in 209 innings.
This is the second straight year that three players have made it into the Hall of Fame on their first ballot.
Biggio, 49, seemed headed here eventually, getting 68.2 percent of the vote in 2013 and 74.8 percent last year. The seven-time All-Star ranks 21st in career hits at 3060 and fifth in doubles with a whopping 668. He's also 15th in runs (1844), 33rd in total bases, 66th in stolen bases (414). Thanks to being 66th in walks, 21st in hits and second all-time in hit-by-pitches, it's not surprising to see Biggio ranking 18th in times on base. Even as a table-setter, Biggio's 292 homers and 1175 RBI are impressive. His career slash line is .281/.363/.433.
Total vote breakdown, thanks to bbwaa.com (above 75 percent needed for election, with below five percent meaning the player falls off the ballot)
Johnson, 97.3 percent
Martinez, 91.1
Smoltz, 82.9
Biggio, 82.7
-----
Mike Piazza, 69.9
Jeff Bagwell, 55.7
Tim Raines, 55
Curt Schilling, 39.2
Roger Clemens, 37.5
Barry Bonds, 36.8
Lee Smith, 30.2
Edgar Martinez, 27
Alan Trammell, 25.1
Mike Mussina, 24.6
Jeff Kent, 14
Fred McGriff, 12.9
Larry Walker, 11.8
Gary Sheffield, 11.7
Mark McGwire, 10
Don Mattingly, 9.1
Sammy Sosa, 6.6
Nomar Garciaparra, 5.5
-----
Carlos Delgado, 3.8
Troy Percival, 0.7
Aaron Boone, 0.4
Tom Gordon, 0.4
Darin Erstad, 0.2
Rich Aurillia, 0
Tony Clark, 0
Jermaine Dye, 0
Cliff Floyd, 0
Brian Giles, 0
Eddie Guardado, 0
Jason Schmidt, 0
Mattingly also falls off the ballot, as this was his 15th and final chance.
By Matt Snyder | Baseball Writer
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