The 2021 Hall of Fame ballot was announced yesterday.

Twenty-five players are on the ballot, including eleven first-time players and fourteen returning names.

Players remain on the ballot from year to year as long as they receive at least five percent of ballots cast. If they don’t, they are dropped. They also remain on the ballot for up to ten seasons. 

If a player receives at least 75 percent of the ballot, he makes it into the Hall of Fame.

A lot of players make it on their first year of elegibility, which to me says you are a true Hall of Famer. It’s always weird that a player doesn’t make it in at first, then goes year to year picking up votes. How? His career numbers are set in stone. He isn’t getting any better.

If I were to run things, I’d say you get in the first ballot or you’re done. You’re either a Hall of Famer or not.

It’s not the Hall of On-Second-Thought or a Hall of Maybe. That’s how marginal players make it in, and that’s how the Hall of Fame is watered down.

It should be reserved for the best of the best.

Here are the returning player:

Curt Schilling, 70%, 9th year

Roger Clemens, 61%, 9th year

Barry Bonds, 60.7%, 9th year

Omar Vazquez, 52.6%, 5th year

Scott Rolen, 35.3%, 4th year

Billy Wagner, 31.7%, 6th year

Gary Scheffield, 39.5%, 7th year

Todd Helton, 29.2%, 3rd year

Manny Ramirez, 28.2%, 5th year

Jeff Kent, 27.5%, 8th year

Andruw Jones, 19.4%, 4th year

Sammy Sosa, 13.9%, 9th year

Andy Pettitte, 11.3%, 3rd year

Bobby Abreu, 5.5%, 2nd year

The new players on the ballot for 2021 are:

Mark Buehrle

A.J. Burnett

Michael Cuddyer

Dan Haren

LaTroy Hawkins

Tim Hudson

Torii Hunter

Aramis Ramirez

Nick Swisher

Shane Victorino

Barry Zito