This post is for voting and discussion in the 141st 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 1980. Rules and lists are after the jump.
The new group of 1980-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 1980-born candidates, comprising those with A-G 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 9th, while changes to previously cast ballots are allowed until 11:59 PM EST Friday, February 7th.
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 1980 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-1980 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 1980 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 | 9 rounds | Billy Williams | 5 rounds |
| Vladimir Guerrero | 6 rounds | Bobby Abreu | 4 rounds |
| David Ortiz | 4 rounds | Ken Boyer | 4 rounds |
| Willie Randolph | 3 rounds | Stan Coveleski | 3 rounds |
| Gary Sheffield | 3 rounds | Andre Dawson | 3 rounds |
| Luis Tiant | 3 rounds | Andruw Jones | 3 rounds |
| Ted Lyons | 2 rounds | Monte Irvin | 3 rounds |
| Scott Rolen | 2 rounds | Don Sutton | 3 rounds |
| Johan Santana | 2 rounds | Reggie Smith | 2 rounds |
| Richie Ashburn | this round ONLY | Don Drysdale | this round ONLY |
| Todd Helton | this round ONLY | ||
| Minnie Minoso | this round ONLY | ||
| Ted Simmons | this round ONLY | ||
| Chase Utley | this round ONLY | ||
| Brandon Webb | this round ONLY |
Everyday Players (born in 1980, A-G surname, ten or more seasons played in the major leagues or at least 20 WAR):
Nelson Cruz
José Bautista
Rajai Davis
Jonny Gomes
John Buck
Chris Denorfia
Pitchers (born in 1980, A-G surname, ten or more seasons played in the major leagues or at least 20 WAR):
Matt Belisle
Santiago Casilla
Josh Beckett
Joe Blanton
Kevin Correia
Craig Breslow
Neal Cotts
As is our custom, here are quiz questions for each of the new players on the ballot.
1. Nelson Cruz’s 464 career HR are the most among players with zero HR before their age 24 season. Who was the first such player to reach 400 career home runs? (Darrell Evans, 1988)
2. Matt Belisle’s 10 wins in 2011 were the most that season among Rockie pitchers with a winning record. Which pitcher posted consecutive seasons similarly leading the Rockies in wins, while pitching, like Belisle, only in relief? (Daniel Bard, 2022-23)
3. Santiago Casilla posted six consecutive 50+ IP seasons (2010-15) with a .500+ W-L% and ERA under 3, a record run of such seasons by a reliever. Which pitcher shares that record with Casilla? (Hoyt Wilhelm, 1964-69)
4. José Bautista’s four seasons with 35+ home runs, 100+ walks and 100+ RBI are a Blue Jay franchise record, and place him among only 15 players with as many such seasons. Which player recorded the lowest OPS and OPS+ in such a season? (Kyle Schwarber, 2023)
5. Josh Beckett won 20 games for the Red Sox in 2007. Who was the first Red Sox 20 game winner as tall as Beckett at 6’ 5”? (Jim Lonborg, 1967)
6. Rajai Davis’s 8th inning game-tying home run in game 7 of the 2016 World Series improved his team’s Championship WPA by 39%, the most for a player whose team did not win the World Series. Davis stole 415 bases in a career of fewer than 5000 PA. Which player has the only larger stolen base total in such a career? (Ron Leflore, 455 SB)
7. Kevin Correia posted a record seven consecutive seasons (2008-14) with 100+ IP and ERA+ under 100. Which other two pitchers share that record? (Harry McIntire 1905-11, Jack Fisher 1961-67)
8. Jonny Gomes’s 3-run home run in game 4 of the 2013 World Series garnered 0.37 WPA for the eventual champion Red Sox and was the biggest WPA event of the series. Which player hit the home run yielding the highest WPA for the Red Sox in any World Series game? (Bernie Carbo, 1975 World Series game 6)
9. Joe Blanton’s 75 appearances in 2016 are the most by a Dodger pitcher aged 35 or older. Which pitcher recorded the most career games for the Dodgers aged 35 or older? (Dazzy Vance 1926-35, 239 games)
10. Craig Breslow’s 1.81 ERA in 2013 is the lowest by a Boston left-hander in a 50+ IP season pitching exclusively in relief. Breslow’s ERA ballooned to 5.96 the next season, the biggest jump in ERA for any Boston left-hander in such consecutive seasons. Who held the latter record before Breslow? (Rob Murphy, 1989-90)
11. John Buck was an All-Star selection in 2010, despite an almost 7 to 1 SO/BB ratio. Which catcher recorded the highest SO/BB ratio in an All-Star season? (Ivan Rodriguez 2007, 10.7 SO/BB ratio)
12. Neal Cotts posted a 233 ERA+ in 2005, best among undefeated relievers in 60+ IP seasons for world championship teams. Which pitcher shares that record with Cotts? (Mariano Rivera, 1998)
13. Chris Denorfia recorded five straight seasons (2011-15) playing 100+ games, including 5 or more at each outfield position, and is the only player to do so aged 30 to 34. Which player recorded the longest run of 100+ game seasons, at any age, including 10 or more games at each outfield position? (Jim Northrup, 1967-73)
