This post is for voting and discussion in the 138th round of balloting for the Circle of Greats (COG). This is the first of three rounds of balloting adding to the list of candidates eligible to receive your votes those players born in 1979. Rules and lists are after the jump.
The new group of 1979-born players, in order to join the eligible list, must, as usual, have played at least 10 seasons in the major leagues or generated at least 20 Wins Above Replacement (“WAR”, as calculated by baseball-reference.com, and for this purpose meaning 20 total WAR for everyday players and 20 pitching WAR for pitchers). This group of 1979-born candidates, comprising those with A-F surnames, joins the eligible holdovers from previous rounds to comprise the full list of players eligible to appear on your ballots.
In addition to voting for COG election among players on the main ballot, there will be also be voting for elevation to the main ballot among players on the secondary ballot. For the main ballot election, voters must select three and only three eligible players, with the one player appearing on the most ballots cast in the round inducted into the Circle of Greats. For the secondary ballot election, voters may select up to three eligible players, with the one player appearing on the most ballots cast elevated to the main ballot for the next COG election round. In the case of ties, a runoff election round will be held for COG election, while a tie-breaking process will be followed to determine the secondary ballot winner.
Players who fail to win either ballot but appear on half or more of the ballots that are cast win four added future rounds of ballot eligibility. Players who appear on 25% or more of the ballots cast, but less than 50%, earn two added future rounds of ballot eligibility. One additional round of eligibility is earned by any player who appears on at least 10% of the ballots cast or, for the main ballot only, any player finishing in the top 9 (including ties) in ballot appearances. Holdover candidates on the main ballot who exhaust their eligibility will drop to the secondary ballot for the next COG election round, as will first time main ballot candidates who attract one or more votes but do not earn additional main ballot eligibility. Secondary ballot candidates who exhaust their eligibility will drop from that ballot, but will become eligible for possible reinstatement in a future Redemption round election.
All voting for this round closes at 11:59 PM EST Sunday, February 3rd, while changes to previously cast ballots are allowed until 11:59 PM EST Friday, February 1st.
If you’d like to follow the vote tally, and/or check to make sure I’ve recorded your vote correctly, you can see my ballot-counting spreadsheet for this round here: COG 1979 Part 1 Vote Tally. I’ll be updating the spreadsheet periodically with the latest votes. Initially, there is a row in the spreadsheet for every voter who has cast a ballot in any of the past rounds, but new voters are entirely welcome — new voters will be added to the spreadsheet as their ballots are submitted. Also in the spreadsheet is a column for each of the holdover candidates; additional player columns from the new born-in-1979 group will be added to the spreadsheet as votes are cast for them.
Choose your three players, for both the main and secondary ballots, from the lists below of eligible players. The current holdovers are listed in order of the number of future rounds (including this one) through which they are assured eligibility, and alphabetically when the future eligibility number is the same. The 1979 birth-year players are listed below in order of the number of seasons each played in the majors, and alphabetically among players with the same number of seasons played.
Holdovers:
| MAIN BALLOT | ELIGIBILITY | SECONDARY BALLOT | ELIGIBILITY |
|---|---|---|---|
| Dick Allen | 8 rounds | Todd Helton | 14 rounds |
| Carlos Beltran | 8 rounds | Bobby Abreu | 5 rounds |
| Vladimir Guerrero | 4 rounds | Ken Boyer | 5 rounds |
| Luis Tiant | 4 rounds | Billy Williams | 4 rounds |
| David Ortiz | 2 rounds | Stan Coveleski | 2 rounds |
| Scott Rolen | 2 rounds | Don Drysdale | 2 rounds |
| Gary Sheffield | 2 rounds | Monte Irvin | 2 rounds |
| Don Sutton | 2 rounds | Reggie Smith | 2 rounds |
| Bobby Wallace | 2 rounds | Richie Ashburn | this round ONLY |
| Andruw Jones | this round ONLY | Lance Berkman | this round ONLY |
| Ted Lyons | this round ONLY | Andre Dawson | this round ONLY |
| Minnie Minoso | this round ONLY | Rick Reuschel | this round ONLY |
| Graig Nettles | this round ONLY | ||
| Willie Randolph | this round ONLY | ||
| Ted Simmons | this round ONLY | ||
| Chase Utley | this round ONLY |
Everyday Players (born in 1979, A-F surnames, ten or more seasons played in the major leagues or at least 20 WAR):
Adrián Beltré
Coco Crisp
Michael Cuddyer
Adam Dunn
Clint Barmes
David DeJesus
Jason Bartlett
Jack Cust
Pitchers (born in 1979, A-F surnames, ten or more seasons played in the major leagues or at least 20 WAR):
Mark Buehrle
Jeremy Affeldt
Erik Bedard
Aaron Cook
Frank Francisco
As is our custom, here are quiz questions for each of the new players on the ballot.
1. Adrián Beltré played over 700 games at 3rd base for three franchises. Which other two players recorded 700+ games at 3rd base for two franchises? (Buddy Bell, Doug DeCinces)
2. Michael Cuddyer was a league batting champion as a 34 year-old in 2013, his first season batting .300. Who is the only older player to do the same? (Yuli Gurriel, 2021)
3. Coco Crisp is one of 12 expansion era players with 300 doubles and 300 stolen bases in a career including 1000 games in CF. Which of those players hit fewer career home runs than Crisp’s total of 130? (Willie McGee, 79 HR)
4. Adam Dunn recorded a 40+ HR season in 2012 at age 32 while leading his league in strikeouts and walks. Who is the only older expansion era player to do the same? (Mike Schmidt, 1983)
5. Clint Barmes is one of 40 players with dWAR four times greater than oWAR in a 1000+ game career. Which of those players has the only career WAR higher than Barmes’ total of 14.9? (Hughie Critz, 16.7 WAR)
6. David DeJesus recorded 6 consecutive seasons (2005-10) for Kansas City (plus three more for other teams) with 20+ doubles and more walks. Which player has the only longer streak of such seasons by a Royals outfielder? (Amos Otis, 1970-79)
7. Jack Cust posted a 2.7 WAR season in 2008 while leading his league in walks and strikeouts. Which player recorded the only lower WAR total in such a season? (Adam Dunn, 1.6 WAR in 2012)
8. Jason Bartlett recorded shortstop seasons for three franchises, each with 20+ doubles, 20+ stolen bases and 40+ walks. Which other shortstop has done the same? (Trea Turner)
9. Mark Buehrle posted 14 consecutive 200+ IP seasons (2001-14). Which pitcher recorded the longest streak of such seasons? (Cy Young 1891-1909, post-1901: Warren Spahn 1947-63)
10. Jeremy Affeldt went undefeated in 33 games over his post-season career. Who is the only retired pitcher with more games in an unblemished post-season career? (Paul Assenmacher, 36 games)
11. Erik Bedard posted a 119 ERA+ over his first eight seasons, but saw that number decline to 81 over his final three campaigns, a 38 point drop that is 11th highest among starting pitchers with ERA+ under 90 in 300+ IP over their final three seasons, and with 700+ IP before that point. Which of those pitchers saw the largest ERA+ drop over those final three seasons? (Christy Mathewson, 66 point drop)
12. Aaron Cook is the Rockies’ franchise leader in career IP despite a 3.8 SO/9 for Colorado that is lowest among 176 pitchers with 50+ IP for the Rockies. Among all pitchers with 250+ IP for Colorado, who has the lowest career SO/BB ratio as a Rockie? (Jamey Wright)
13. Frank Francisco recorded four straight seasons (2008-11) of 50+ appearances with 120+ ERA+, H/9 under 9, SO/9 over 9, and SO/BB ratio under 4. Which two pitchers recorded the only longer streaks of such seasons by a reliever? (Francisco Rodriguez 2003-08, Troy Percival 1995-99)
