NEWNow you can listen to Pak Gazette articles!
Roger Clemens and Barry Bonds are probably in their last at-bat when it comes to induction into the Baseball Hall of Fame.
The two missed their latest attempt to secure a spot in Cooperstown through the Contemporary Era Committee on Sunday. The 16-member panel voted for former San Francisco Giants and Houston Astros star Jeff Kent to earn his place in the hallowed halls.
CLICK HERE FOR MORE SPORTS COVERAGE ON PakGazette.Com
Second baseman Jeff Kent #21 of the San Francisco Giants walks on the field during the MLB game against the Los Angeles Dodgers on September 19, 2002 at Dodger Stadium in Los Angeles, California. (Stephen Dunn/Getty Images)
Baseball Hall of Fame President Jane Forbes Clark said Monday that she believed Clemens and Bonds were snubbed again because committee members evaluate those who thrived in the Steroid Era the same way baseball writers do.
“I’m not surprised because I think there are overlaps and obviously discussions among writers and we have writers represented on that committee,” Clark said.
Bonds has denied knowingly using performance-enhancing drugs during his career. Clemens maintains that he has never used performance-enhancing drugs either. President Donald Trump also gave his endorsement to Clemens before the committee voted.
ROGER CLEMENS AND BARRY BONDS MISS THE LAST CHANCE TO ENTER THE BASEBALL HALL OF FAME
In this July 19, 2007, file photo, Barry Bonds of the San Francisco Giants hits a three-run home run during the seventh inning of a baseball game against the Chicago Cubs in Chicago. (AP Photo/M. Spencer Green, File)
The Baseball Hall of Fame announced last March that candidates who received fewer than five votes from the 16-person panel are ineligible for voting by that committee during the next three-year cycle. A candidate who is eliminated later reappears on a ballot and again receives fewer than five votes will be prohibited from appearing on future ballots.
If Clemens and Bonds reappear on the committee’s ballot in 2031 and don’t get five votes, they will be banned from appearing in future appearances unless the rules are changed again.
New York Yankees pitcher (22) Roger Clemens delivers against the Baltimore Orioles at Camden Yards. (Geoff Burke/USA TODAY Sports)
CLICK HERE TO DOWNLOAD THE Pak Gazette APP
“The good thing about this is that it will open up spaces on the ballot so more people can be reviewed,” Clark said. “They can certainly come back in six years, in 1931, but between now and then some other people will have a chance because I think that’s really important.”
