While I’m not going to do the grand analysis of the first trailer, here’s the latest trailer for the Jackie Robinson biopic, 42, starring Chadwick Boseman and Harrison Ford. Keep an eye open for Christopher Meloni as Leo Durocher, Alan Tudyk as Phillies manager/racist dirtbag Ben Chapman, and Pee Wee Reese (Lucas Black) making a bit of a reference to how MLB now honors Robinson every season.
One of the major gripes with Hall of Fame voting is that it is the Baseball Writers’ Association of America that does the voting. Even some of the writers themselves gripe about it, and many organizations actually forbid their writers from taking part in it, as it is in, a way, a case of newsman actively taking part in making the news.
And, of course, there is the the fact that, unlike, say, MVP voting or Cy Young voting, not every writer necessarily has seen the players on the ballot play, or even been a contemporary of them. While this can, in some cases, be a good thing- it allows for more neutral analysis statistically, for example, it is problematic. In addition, once a person gets a HoF vote, they have it for life, even if they then move on to cover a different topic or retire.
So the question some have is why the BBWAA has this power in the first place. Well, the fact is, when the HoF first opened, the BBWAA was basically the only organization that was around that could have done the job. Remember, it was the 1930s: television didn’t exist commercially, mass travel was not what it is now, and even radio, perhaps the top mass-media of the day, would rarely have covered national games outside of the playoffs. So, in essence, the only people who would have been able to see all of those players were, in essence, the writers and the players themselves. And so, the job was given to the BBWAA.
Now, however, we live in a different world, which is why I have suggestions on how to modernize the HoF vote… after the jump.
Spanning the internet to bring you the latest WBC news and notes:
As usual, the full list is after the jump:
Yes, nobody was elected to the Hall of Fame today, meaning that the only people going into the Hall this summer will be long-dead old-timers. It is sad to see Biggio and Piazza not get in when their connection to the steroid era has been innuendo at most, and for returning candidates like Bagwell, Raines and Jack Morris not to get in either (although Morris, at least, is more of a iffy pick to start with).
But want to know what the true tragedy is? Kenny Lofton just being dropped from the ballot entirely, only receiving 3.2% of the vote, just behind Bernie Williams (who also deserved to remain on the ballot).
Now, I’m not saying Kenny Lofton is a Hall of Famer. He isn’t, but he is not a player who should have been dropped after his first appearance. After all, he was, as I was growing up, a near-constant presence in baseball, seemingly always making the All-Star Game, winning a Gold Glove, or leading off for a playoff contender… and this was after his best years. In 1994, for example, he may well have had a chance to get the MVP if not for the season being cut short. He is 15th in career stolen bases.
In other words, he shouldn’t have just been dropped from the ballot. He never should have been a major threat to make the Hall, but he should have gotten his 15 years on the ballot.
I’ll have another post later on the Hall of Fame.
Today’s news for the WBC:
As usual, the big list is under the jump:
Some semi-midday news:
As usual, the rest is under the jump:
Today’s news:
-A Venezuelan sports website has news about some of the players who will or will not be on the roster, which is expected to be released sometime around the 16th. Now, my Spanish isn’t very good, but between that and Google Translate, I’ve figured this out:
-Similarly, there’s an article about Puerto Rico’s possible team:
–Jose Bautista would like to play for the Dominican but doesn’t like his chances, given his injury. He hasn’t been told no yet, though. I’m putting him in the “probably out” category.
As always, go below the jump for the full list:
Today’s news:
As usual, the full list is after the jump:
Today’s news:
As usual, go after the jump for more.
I’ve featured links to a site that covers Japanese baseball, and a site about Korean baseball, so today, I’m putting up a link to a site on European baseball. It’s called “Mister Baseball“. It has nothing to do with that one movie about Tom Selleck playing in Japan, and instead covers all of the ups and downs of the various leagues in Europe, both the two professional ones in the Netherlands and Italy, as well as the smaller competitions elsewhere, while sometimes also giving some general baseball news.
You can find it above, or in the links section of this blog.
The Baseball Continuum 