It took 59 rounds of voting to elect the great Cubs second baseman (to go along with the great Cubs shortstop/first baseman and the great Cubs third baseman previously elected), but in a closely contested round, Ryne Sandberg was chosen as the 68th inductee into the High Heat Stats Circle of Greats. More on Sandberg and the voting after the jump. Continue reading →

This post is for voting and discussion in the 69th round of balloting for the Circle of Greats (COG).  This round completes the addition to the ballot those players born in 1916. Rules and lists are after the jump. Continue reading →

This post is for voting and discussion in the 68th round of balloting for the Circle of Greats (COG).  This round begins to add to the ballot those players born in 1916. Rules and lists are after the jump. Continue reading →

Bob Feller had a quick impact on professional baseball: major leaguer at 17, star by 19, superstar by 21. He had a quick impact on our voting as well, appearing on nearly 60% of the ballots in his first round and now on over 70% of the ballots. This time it was enough to get him elected, by a wide margin, as the 67th inductee into the High Heat Stats Circle of Greats. Most Happy.

More on Feller and the voting after the jump. Continue reading →

This post is for voting and discussion in the 67th round of balloting for the Circle of Greats (COG).  This round adds to the ballot those players born in 1917. Rules and lists are after the jump. Continue reading →

Ted Williams’ transcendent performance as a hitter allowed him to lead this talent-laden ballot’s vote count from beginning to end. Ted becomes the 66th inductee into the High Heat Stats Circle of Greats. The voting concluded with the Splendid Splinter having appeared on 69 ballots, breaking Greg Maddux’s record of 68 votes in a single COG round.  More on Ted and the voting after the jump. Continue reading →

This post is for voting and discussion in the 66th round of balloting for the Circle of Greats (COG).  This round adds to the ballot those players born in 1918, a group that includes some guys who were pretty good at baseball. Rules and lists are after the jump. Continue reading →

The most important single figure in American sports history was also one of the greatest ever at playing the game of baseball. “Faster than you can say Jack Robinson” (a phrase dating back to the 18th century), Jackie Robinson becomes the 65th inductee into the High Heat Stats Circle of Greats. More on Robinson and the voting, after the jump. Continue reading →

This post is for voting and discussion in the 65th round of balloting for the Circle of Greats (COG).  This round completes the addition of those players born in 1919.  Rules and lists are after the jump. Continue reading →

Willie (“Stretch”) McCovey was elected to the Cooperstown Hall of Fame by the baseball writers in his first appearance on their ballot. It took McCovey a bit longer under our COG system, but in this his 27th round on the our ballot, Willie becomes the 64th inductee in the High Heat Stats Circle of Greats. More on McCovey and the voting, after the jump. Continue reading →