Jim Rice, Rickey Henderson Inducted Into Baseball Hall Of Fame

Rickey Henderson, the most prolific lead-off man in baseball history, got his call to the Hall Of Fame on his first try.

Jim Rice, the prolific slugger for the Boston Red Sox, got in on his final try.

Henderson was the all-time leader with 1,406 steals and 2,295 runs scored. Widely considered to be the greatest leadoff hitter ever, he was elected to the National Baseball Hall of Fame in his first time on the ballot with 94.8 percent of the votes cast by the Baseball Writers' Association of America.

Jim Rice received seven votes over the 75 percent threshold to garner 76.4 percent, earning 412 votes on the 539 completed ballots cast. Two ballots were sent in blank. This year, 405 votes were needed. Last year, Rice fell 16 votes short.

A .298 career hitter with 382 home runs, 2,452 hits and 1,451 RBIs in 16 seasons, Rice had four seasons of more than 200 hits, led the American League in home runs three times, RBIs twice, hits once, slugging percentage twice, was the AL Most Valuable Player in 1978 and was an eight-time All-Star

Both Rice & Henderson will be joined by Second Baseman Joe Gordon, who was elected to the Hall Of Fame by the Veterans Committee.

"The Hawk" Andre Dawson fell just short of the 75 percent required for election.

Congratulations to Rickey Henderson. Henderson, who habitually referred to himself in the third person, was the greatest leadoff hitter ever. Jim Rice was another great player who deserved to make the hall.

Hopefully next season Andre Dawson will make the Hall Of Fame.

Congratulations to Jim Rice & Ricky Henderson on their elections to the Baseball Hall Of Fame.

Goose Gossage Elected To Hall Of Fame

Goose Gossage became only the fifth relief pitcher elected to the Hall of Fame, earning baseball's highest honor Tuesday in his ninth try on the ballot.

Known for his overpowering fastball, fiery temperament and bushy mustache, the Goose received 466 of 543 votes (85.8 percent) from 10-year members of the Baseball Writers' Association of America.

"It was very emotional I'll tell you, off the charts. I can't describe the feeling," Gossage said after learning the news. "I can't lie. There's been some frustration and some disappointment."

Jim Rice was passed over yet again in his next-to-last year on the ballot, getting 392 votes (72.2 percent), up from 346 (63.5 percent) last year but 16 short of the 75 percent needed.

"Today's results are obviously a disappointment," Rice said in a statement. "I believe my accomplishments speak for themselves, and a majority of the voters seem to agree. It is tough to come this close, but I remain hopeful for the 2009 results."

Mark McGwire, a casualty of the Steroids Era in some writers' minds, received just 128 votes — the exact total he had last year. His percentage increased slightly to 23.6 percent, up from 23.5 percent last year when he was on the ballot for the first time.

"I don't think this steroid thing is over by any means. I'm sure that most of you guys, the writers, don't really know how to approach this," Gossage during a BBWAA conference call.

Gossage, who fell short by 21 votes last year, joins Hoyt Wilhelm (1985), Rollie Fingers (1992), Dennis Eckersley (2004) and Bruce Sutter (2006) in Cooperstown's bullpen.

Gossage was sitting in a recliner in his living room overlooking the Rocky Mountains in Colorado Springs, Colo., when he received the call. He turned to reporters in the room and said, "Oh my God, I've been elected."

"A shock wave went through my body like an anvil just fell on my head," Gossage said. "I think having to wait makes it that much more special."

His mother died in 2006, Gossage said with tears welling up in his eyes, and he had hoped she would live long enough to see him inducted.

Gossage was a nine-time All-Star who pitched for nine major league teams from 1972-94 and had 310 saves — 52 of them when he got seven outs or more.

The first time he appeared on the Hall ballot in 2000, Gossage received only 33.3 percent of the vote.

Rice will appear on the writers' ballot for the 15th and final time next year, when career steals leader Rickey Henderson will be among the newcomers. The highest percentage for a player who wasn't elected in a later year was 63.4 by Gil Hodges in 1983, his final time on the ballot.

The last player elected in his final year on the BBWAA ballot was Ralph Kiner in 1975.

"I think Jim Rice does belong in the Hall of Fame," Gossage said. "No hitter scared me, but Jim Rice came the closest."

Andre Dawson was third with 358 votes (65.9 percent), followed by Bert Blyleven at 336 (61.9 percent), Lee Smith at 235 (43.3 percent) and Jack Morris at 233 (42.9 percent).

"We as players that are on the bubble can have opinions, and it does really no good to vent or get angry because it's out of our hands," said Blyleven, whose percentage rose from 47.7 last year. "I know Goose vented a little bit last year, and Jim Rice will probably vent this year. I have four more years. For some reason they make some of these guys like Gossage and Bruce Sutter wait. Like Goose said, he's not going to save any more games."

Tim Raines topped the 11 newcomers on the ballot, receiving 132 votes (24.3 percent). All of the others appearing for the first time fell below the 5 percent necessary to remain on the ballot next year.

Gossage will be inducted July 27 in Cooperstown, joined by five men elected last month by the revamped Veterans Committee: former commissioner Bowie Kuhn, former Dodgers owner Walter O'Malley, managers Dick Williams and Billy Southworth and ex-Pirates owner Barney Dreyfuss.

Williams managed Gossage on the San Diego Padres, helping them win the 1984 NL pennant.

"There isn't anybody I'd rather go in with than Dick Williams," said Gossage, who spoke with his former manager right after getting the news.

Barry Bonds to Boycott Hall Of Fame If Ball Is Marked With Asterisk

The last homerun of Barry Bonds career in a Giants Uniform, Number 762.

Barry Bonds would boycott Cooperstown if the Hall of Fame displays his record-breaking home run ball with an asterisk.

That includes skipping his potential induction ceremony.
"I won't go. I won't be part of it," Bonds said in an interview with MSNBC that aired Thursday night. "You can call me, but I won't be there."

The ball Bonds hit for home run No. 756 this season will be branded with an asterisk and sent to the Hall. Fashion designer Marc Ecko bought the ball in an online auction and set up a Web site for fans to vote on its fate. In late September, he announced fans voted to send the ball to Cooperstown with an asterisk.

Of course, the asterisk suggests Bonds' record is tainted by alleged steroid use. The slugger has denied knowingly using performance-enhancing drugs. Fans brought signs with asterisks to ballparks this season as he neared Hank Aaron's career home run mark.

Bonds has called Ecko "an idiot."

"I don't think you can put an asterisk in the game of baseball, and I don't think that the Hall of Fame can accept an asterisk," Bonds said. "You cannot give people the freedom, the right to alter history. You can't do it. There's no such thing as an asterisk in baseball."

The Greatest Slugger of the Steroids Era (who will not be in the Hall Of Fame anyway) is only trying to change the inevitable. Although I thought the ball should be without an asterisk, I think that the fans should get what they want.

Barry Bonds has decided to boycott the Hall Of Fame. The Hall Of Fame has decided to boycott Barry Bonds. Something's gotta give.

Phil Rizzuto, Hall of Fame Yankee, Dead at Age 89

Phil Rizzuto, the Hall of Fame shortstop during the Yankees' dynasty years and beloved by a generation of fans who delighted in hearing him exclaim "Holy cow!" as a broadcaster, died Tuesday. He was 89.

His death was confirmed by the Yankees. Rizzuto had been in declining health for several years and was living at a nursing home in West Orange, N.J.

Rizzuto, known as "The Scooter," was the oldest living Hall of Famer. He played for the Yankees throughout the 1940s and '50s, won seven World Series titles, was an AL MVP and played in five All-Star games.

Rizzuto later announced Yankees games for four decades and his No. 10 was retired by baseball's most storied team.

At 5-foot-6, Rizzuto was a flashy player who could always be counted on for a perfect bunt, a nice slide or a diving catch in a lineup better known for its cornerstone sluggers. He played 13 seasons alongside the likes of Joe DiMaggio and Mickey Mantle in a career interrupted by Navy service in World War II.

Rizzuto was equipped with a productive bat, sure hands and quick feet that earned him his nickname. A leadoff man, he was a superb bunter, used to good advantage by the Yankee teams that won 11 pennants and nine World Series between 1941 and 1956.

This is a sad day for the Yankees and a sad day for Baseball, as The Yankees have lost one of their greatest players, Phil Rizzuto.