With the 2016 MLB Hall of Fame class set to be unveiled Wednesday, there will be a couple of storylines to keep an eye on.
The most intriguing aspect of the class will be whether or not former Seattle Mariners superstar Ken Griffey Jr. will become the first-ever unanimous selection. After that, all eyes will be on those players who are linked to performance-enhancing drugs.
Most notably, Barry Bonds and Roger Clemens.
Many have taken a strong stance against purported steroid users, saying that those who needed PEDs to get an advantage should be barred from Cooperstown. Both Bonds (MLB’s all-time home run leader) and Clemens (a seven-time Cy Young Award winner) have been on the ballot for a few years now, with neither coming close to getting the call.
If former MLB pitcher Roy Halladay had it his way, neither Bonds nor Clemens would ever get into the Hall of Fame:
Halladay, an eight-time All-Star and two-time Cy Young Award winner, came up during the steroid era. The right-hander won 203 games during his 16-year career and threw both a perfect game and a no-hitter.
For a good part of his career, Halladay was considered to be among the best pitchers in baseball. He undoubtedly went up against some who were using PEDs, so we can only wonder if his numbers would have been even better if everyone he played against had been clean.
One thing is for certain: Halladay does not want to see Bonds or Clemens—or any suspected steroids user—ever getting a plaque in Cooperstown.
Update: Thursday, January 7
The final HOF vote affirmed Halladay’s wish, keeping Clemens and Bonds out of Cooperstown for at least one more year.
Clemens, however, was not pleased with Halladay’s comments. The former pitcher referred to Halladay as “ill-informed,” calling his comment “asinine” in a statement released following Wednesday’s announcement, per Sports Illustrated.
Although he did not refer to Halladay by name, he did indicate his thoughts regarded “the latest coming from a former Blue Jays pitcher.”
What’s more, Clemens seemingly accused his critic of his own PED use.
“Just to enlighten [Halladay], he was accused of using amphetamines by the ‘strength coach,'” the statement read. “You should be very careful when putting tweets out while not having your facts on the matter at hand.”
As Sports Illustrated pointed out, Halladay never failed a drug test nor was he accused of steroid use in his 16 years in the league. While he didn’t cite this in his response to Clemens’ backlash, he did tweet he would let his reputation “speak for itself”:
[Roy Halladay, h/t to Sports Illustrated]
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