10 / SPORTS ILLUSTRATED KIDS JOHN^ IACONO
WHAT’S YOUR HOT TAKE? Do you have a question for
Kip Shoremore? A complaint? A topic he should write
about in a future issue? Send your letters to Kip’s
Treehouse-based editor at [email protected].But no one needs to
make a statistical case
for these two. Since
Babe Ruth retired, no
hitter has more Wins
Above Replacement
than Bonds (162.7. No
other pitcher outside
the Dead Ball era boasts a higher
WAR than Clemens (139.2). They
are possibly the two greatest
baseball players of all time. And
for many, they are also the game’s
two most infamous cheaters.
More than changing minds,
Bonds and Clemens’ slow climb
reflected turnover in the ranks of
the Baseball Writer’s Association
of America. Younger, statistically
minded voters, who grew up
looking up to these guys as
superheroes, have replaced older
writers, who remembered the
players of the “Steroid Era” as
unscrupulous record-stealers.
According to its website, “The
Hall of Fame’s mission is to
preserve the sport’s history, honor
excellence within the game and
make a connection between the
generations of people who enjoy
baseball.” And how better to make
a connection between generations
than to foster a decades-long
culture war over steroids?
One generation, however,
is noticeably absent from this
conversation: Ours! A photo
accompanies that mission
statement on the Hall of Fame’s
website. In it, a group of kids are
gathered around a mannequin
displaying one of Babe Ruth’s
uniforms. Let’s be real: When a
museum talks about fostering
connections “between the
generations” they don’t mean
between coworkers at sports
media companies who disagree
about who the all-time home run
king is. They’re talking about
parents bonding with kids over
the love of their favorite sport.
Put more simply, the Baseball
Hall of Fame is for the kids.
That’s why, as the self-appointed
cartoon representative of all
baseball-loving youth, I have some
demands on how our Hall be run
in the future:- Let the (Alleged) Cheaters In.
The traditionalists have won the
battle, but they’re losing the war.
The old guard kept a handful
of players out as a parting shot,
like 300 Spartans defending
the pass of Thermopylae
against an inevitable Persian
invasion (except way less
heroic, glamorous, or otherwise
impressive). After all, I know
what’s really going on. The olds
and olders only rehash the tired
Barry Bonds vs. Ted Williams
debates because they’re not ready
to admit that Mike Trout
has already surpassed them
both! They’re both ignoring
that the game has moved on.
Barry Bonds is ancient history.
The time between when he
hit his 500th home run and
today is the same number of
years as between the end of
World War I and the start of
World War II. So put him in
the museum already.- Create a Youngtimer’s
Committee. There exist
various veterans committees
who consider the candidacy
of people who have been
overlooked for one reason or
another. But too often—like
in the case of people like
Mark McGwire—you’re just
asking the same generation
of voters for the same answer
twice. To get a truly fresh
perspective, get some fans too
young to have seen any of these
guys play. I’m proposing a group
of kids who will review statistics,
YouTube videos, and old press
clippings to see who stands out.
We’ll submit a few names and—
in the spirit of proper parental
supervision—give a veterans
committee limited veto power. - Return My Letters. Why am
I not voting in the regular Hall
of Fame elections along with the
other big-name writers? If the
Baseball Writer’s Association
of America would have just
admitted me in the first place,
I wouldn’t have had to propose
this whole scheme. Is this about
that one Hot Take I promised
not to mention anymore? I told
Tom Verducci I’m sorry! I’m a real
writer. I have fan mail (p. 16)! I’m
not asking to be an inductee (yet).
I just want to vote. Let me in!!!
(HITTIN’ IN)
THE DOCK
OF THE BAY
Barry Bonds
happened.
Let’s put him
in the Hall
and move on!