The 2019 National Baseball Hall of Fame ballot was released and featured were 20 newcomers and 35 overall candidates. Among those up for enshrinement are 10 former players with ties to the Los Angeles Dodgers.
The ballot is comprised of Rick Ankiel, Jason Bay, Lance Berkman, Barry Bonds, Roger Clemens, Freddy Garcia, Jon Garland, Travis Hafner, Roy Halladay, Todd Helton, Andruw Jones, Jeff Kent, Ted Lilly, Derek Lowe, Edgar Martinez and Fred McGriff.
Also appearing are Mike Mussina, Darren Oliver, Roy Oswalt, Andy Pettitte, Juan Pierre, Placido Polanco, Manny Ramirez, Mariano Rivera, Scott Rolen, Curt Schilling, Gary Sheffield, Sammy Sosa, Miguel Tejada, Omar Vizquel, Billy Wagner, Larry Walker, Vernon Wells, Kevin Youkilis and Michael Young.
While they spent time with the Dodgers, Garland, Jones, Kent, Lilly, Lowe, McGriff, Pierre, Ramirez, Sheffield and Young would each be immortalized while donning the cap of another club. Jones, Kent, McGriff, Ramirez, and Sheffield all appeared on the 2017 ballot.
McGriff, in particular, is in his 10th and final year on the ballot and only received 23.2 percent of the vote last year. Other returnees include Bonds, Clemens, Guerrero, Martinez, Mussina, Schilling and Sosa.
The group of newcomers is headlined by Rivera, who played all 19 of his Major League seasons with the New York Yankees and was named an All-Star 13 times, won five World Series Championships and has the most saves in the history of the sport with 652.
Halladay, who was recently killed in a plane crash, is also appearing on the ballot for the first time and has as good of a case as anyone to get in.
The 2019 class may very well include Martinez and Mussina, who fell just short of making it in 2018. Martinez is in his final year on the ballot and received 70.4 percent a year ago.
Candidates must be named on 75 percent of ballots cast by selected BBWAA members in order to gain election. Players may remain on the ballot for up to 10 years if they receive at least five percent of the vote each year.
Hall of Fame president Jeff Idelson will announce the results of the election live on MLB Network on Tuesday, Jan. 22, 2018. The induction ceremony will be held Sunday, July 21, during Hall of Fame weekend.
