Ladies and Gentlemen, Your 2015 Hall of Fame Class

Much like the All Star Game, baseball gets their Hall of Fame right.  Also much like the All Star Game, the fact that so many people are so vocal and passionate about the players enshrined in the Hall of Fame also proves just how deeply embedded the game is in our national psyche.  

Unfortunately, this year's inductees make me realize my age.  All of these players were coming into the league when I was playing junior high ball and collecting baseball cards.  Let's put it this way: I'm old enough to remember Pedro as Ramon's little brother, Randy Johnson as that goofy  tall guy on the Expos, Smoltz as the young kid pitching a Game 7 and Biggio as that Catcher on the Astros who looked like he was 12.

Nevertheless, each of these players well deserves their elections and you would be hard pressed to find an argument that any of these players does not belong.  So without further ado, ladies and gentlemen, I present your 2015 Hall of Fame class:

Randy Johnson

Photo Courtesy of CBS Sports

At 6'10'' and 225 pounds it was impossible not to notice Randy Johnson.  If you didn't see him you would have heard the hiss of the terrifyingly fast moving fast ball.  Johnson was drafted by the Braves in 1982 but failed to sign (imagine if he had: Glavine, Avery, Smoltz, Maddux and Johnson). He was drafted again in 1985 in the second round by the Expos and reached the majors in 1988.  As the 1989 season neared the mid point, the Expos felt they had a chance to win now, while the Mariners were perpetually building for the future.  In what was seen as a steal for the Expos and a disaster for Seattle, the Mariners sent their only star, Mark Langston to the Expos in exchange for Gene Harris, Brian Holman and Randy Johnson.  It took less than a year for the Mariners to find out what they got.  On June 20, 1990 Johnson no-hit the Tigers.  Johnson would go 14-11 in his first full Mariners season and would establish himself as a star the following year with his first All Star appearance.  He would make 9 more in his career.  By 1995 Johnson was the most feared pitcher in the game and his dominance led the Mariners to their first ever post season birth.  He finished the season at 18-2 and in a one game playoff for the AL West title beat Mark Langston, now pitching for the Angels, whom he had been traded for years earlier.  He won his first Cy Young Award that year and finished 6th in MVP voting.  He continued to pitch for Seattle but had a rocky relationship with the ownership.  At the 1998 trading deadline he was moved to the Astros where he went 10-1 and helped Houston to the playoffs.  He signed with the Arizona Diamondbacks in the off season and immediately helped the expansion team become a contender.  He would win the next four straight Cy Young awards, three of four ERA titles and the 2001 World Series MVP (shared with co-ace Curt Schilling).  The Cy Young run ended after an injury plagued 2003 season when Johnson made just 18 starts and finished 6-8.  He returned healthy in 2004 and pitched a perfect game that year.  He was traded to the Yankees following that year and although he had a strong year, the team behind him was not the dominant Yankees of years past and the team struggled.  Johnson never seemed entirely comfortable in the big city and after the 2006 season he returned to Arizona in pursuit of 300 wins.  He had an injury plagued 2007 season but returned to win 11 in 2008.  He spent his final year with the Giants in 2009 and retired as one of the greatest pitchers in the history of the game.  It is impossible to list all of the achievements he had during his 22 year career. Suffice it to say he was without a doubt, a clear choice for the Hall of Fame.

John Smoltz

Photo of John Smoltz Courtesy of MLB.com

John Smoltz's life was chosen for him by age 4.  He would follow in the path of his mother's and father's and grandfather's chosen calling, an accordion player.  Luckily John got up the courage to tell his parents he had different ideas, although not before winning several contests with the instrument.  Smoltz grew up in Detroit idolizing Jack Morris.  His grandfather worked at Tiger Stadium for decades and would get John into the press box or on the field before batting practice.  When the Tigers won the 1984 World Series, John and his brother got a piece of the grass at Tigers Stadium, replanted it and built a shrine around it.  So when he was drafted by the Tigers in 1985 it was a dream come true.  Yet before he could fulfill his dream  of pitching with Jack Morris as a 1-2 dynamo, he was traded to Atlanta for Doyle Alexander.  At the time Atlanta was a baseball grave yard and it took John a long while to accept the fact that he would not get to pitch with the Tigers.  Smoltz reached the majors in Atlanta in 1988 and went 2-7, not exactly rookie of the year, but his follow up season saw him at 11-6 with a 2.10 ERA by the All Star Break, enough to earn him a trip to Anaheim for the Bo Jackson show.  Smoltz took the loss in the game but the remembered moment is the back to back Home Runs Rick Reuschel served up to Bo Jackson and Wade Boggs.  Smoltz would make 7 more All Star Games in his career.  Following that first All Star appearance, Smoltz would work with a strong Braves rotation that would learn how to win.  Glavine, Avery and Pete Smith joined Smoltz and veteran Charlie Leibrandt to take the young Braves from last place in 1990 to the brink of a World Series title in 1991.  Starting Game 7 in Minnesota against childhood idol Jack Morris, Smoltz pitched 7 1/3 scoreless innings to give the Braves a chance to win, but Morris came out on top with 10 scoreless innings.  The young Braves core would go on to win 13 consecutive division titles, reaching the World Series 5 times and winning the 1995 World Series.  During that long run of playoff appearances Smoltz won 15 games.  He was also the 1992 NLCS MVP and the 1996 Cy Young winner.  Smoltz missed the 2000 season with an injury and was not strong enough to crack the rotation for 2001.  He convinced Bobby Cox that he could help the team out of the bullpen and saved 10 games in the 2001 season.  He had intended it as only a partial season answer but his performance was strong enough for the Braves to make him the team's closer for a full season.  In three years as the closer he would save 154 games, make 2 All Star Appearances and finished 3rd in the Cy Young voting in 2002.  As the rest of the rotation mates (Avery, Maddux and Glavine) moved on, the Braves moved him back to the rotation where he would again shine.  The Braves post season run had come to an end by this time but Smoltz was still dominant winning as many as 16 games.  Early in the 2008 season Smoltz needed shoulder surgery, leading the Braves to give up on him.  After being released by the Braves, Smoltz had to decide whether to retire or try a comeback at the age of 42.  Not ready to go out on a sour note, Smoltz signed with the Red Sox and had to convince the Red Sox he was worth it.  It was a disaster for Smoltz.  He started the year in the minor leagues and made his season debut in June against the Nationals.  Smoltz would go 2-5 for the Sox with an ERA over 8.  He was released in early August and worried that his career was over.  Still he worked hard at home and found a mechanical flaw in his delivery.  He auditioned for the Cardinals and was able to convince Tony LaRussa that he could help the Cardinals.  He asked for just one thing, the opportunity to start two games before being exiled to the bullpen.  With a big division lead LaRussa and the Cardinals agreed.  Smoltz was impressive in the two starts, impressive enough to be included in the post season rotation plans.  With the Dodgers up 2-0 in the NLDS Smoltz appeared in relief in the third game in St.Louis. Smoltz pitched 2 innings, allowed 4 hits and 1 run as the Cardinals were eliminated.  Hoping to resign with St.Louis in the off season, he was not in the team's plans and retired.  Like Johnson he has too many accomplishments to name here but he was a clear Hall of Fame choice.

Pedro Martinez

Photo Courtesy of CBS Sports

Julia Roberts was once known as Eric Roberts' little sister.  Ken Griffey, Jr was once known as Ken Griffey's kid and Pedro Martinez was once known as Ramon's little brother.  Pedro came to the majors as a late season call up in 1992.  He appeared in 2 games and took a loss in his only decision.  After a 10-5 1993 season the Dodgers traded him to Montreal in exchange for Delino DeShields.  He immediately helped the Expos become a contender, and had it not been for the season ending strike, Pedro might have led the Expos to a post season berth.  He would spend the next three years in Montreal, making his first All Star appearance in 1996.  His final year in Montreal, 1997, saw him go 17-8 with a 1.90 ERA (best in the league) and won his first Cy Young award.  As always happens when a dominant player lands on a bad team, the press started the campaign of "what a shame he's stuck in that situation" and the Red Sox made the Expos a deal that the Expos had to take. The Red Sox sent Carl Pavano and Tony Armas to the Expos in exchange for Pedro and he made an immediate impact.  Pedro went 17-8 with a sub 3.00 ERA and helped lead the Red Sox into the post Roger Clemens era of Post Season baseball.  Pedro won the first game but the Red Sox were bounced from the ALDS by the Indians.  Pedro's season was good enough to give him a second place finish in the Cy Young race.  It would be a better year in 1999 as he went 23-7 with a 2.07 ERA, 313 K's and his second Cy Young.  Pedro started the All Star Game in Fenway Park with the legends of the league in attendance.  The "All Century Team" was revealed before the game but the legends saw the biggest cheers go to Pedro as he struck out Barry Larkin (Hall of Famer), Larry Walker, Sammy Sosa, Mark McGwire and Jeff Bagwell (with only Matt Williams reaching on an error).  He would again beat Cleveland in the first round of the post season and win a game against the hated Yankees as the rivalry between the two started to heat up.  The Red Sox would miss the playoffs in 2000, 2001 and 2002, although Pedro would continue to dominate the league.  At 18-4 and a 1.74 ERA Pedro won his third Cy Young award in 2000.  An injury plagued 2001 (7-3 in 18 starts) led to a big comeback in 2002 with a 20-4, 2.26 ERA and a second place finish in the Cy Young voting.  2003 was a turning point for the Red Sox and their rival Yankees.  A hard fought season series with boiling tempers led to an even more heated ALCS and a bean ball war.  In a now infamous scene, Pedro threw Don Zimmer to the ground during a bench clearing brawl that continued through a heated series. With a Game 7 deciding game at stake Pedro was the man on the mound and gave the Red Sox a lead into the late innings.  As all of America screamed at the television, hoping for Grady Little to get Pedro out of the game the Yankees rallied to tie the game and eventually destroy the dreams of the Red Sox nation.  It was, they said, the curse of Babe Ruth.  The 2004 Red Sox had a mantra.  "Reverse the Curse". Though late into the 4th game of the ALCS it looked like it was the same old story.  Just moments away from being swept from the playoffs the Red Sox rallied and won the game.  They kept the rally going three more games to reach the World Series where they won another four straight to end the curse once and for all.  As the biggest free agent in the wake of the win Pedro signed a big deal to go to New York.  Although Sox fans hated Pedro going to the rival city, they could at least be thankful it wasn't to the hated Yankees.  Instead, Pedro signed with the Mets.  He would be part of a big rebirth in the National League's big apple team.  He would go 15-8 and make another All Star appearance but the Mets failed to reach the post season.  2006 would be a post season appearance for the Mets but a below average year for Pedro.  At 9-8 and a 4.48 ERA it was his worst personal year to date, although he would be an All Star.  Injuries slowed his success and he would miss the post season.  The Mets could have used the help as they fell in 7 games to the eventual World Champion Cardinals.  2007 was another injury plagued year as he appeared in only 5 games, going 3-1.  He returned in 2008 to appear in 20 games but the Mets were a mess by that point and Pedro ended his New York tenure with a 5-6 record and an ERA of 5.61.  With the last two injury plagued and sub-par years Pedro failed to sign a contract in the off season and some thought his career was over.  Yet, the defending champion Phillies entered the All Star break looking for pitching help and signed Pedro to a contract for part of the 2009 season.  Pedro proved he was not done yet and went 5-1 in 9 starts, helping the Phillies win the NL East again.  Pedro started one game in the NLCS for the Phillies and went 7 very strong innings, allowing only 2 hits and 0 runs, leaving without a decision.  The Phillies advanced to the World Series for the second year in a row. With Cliff Lee, Cole Hamels and Pedro the Phillies looked to have a strong chance but Pedro took 2 losses and the Phils fell to the Yankees four games to two.  It was the last series of his career.  Although there was talk of Pedro getting another half season contract, it never developed.  He retired as one of the most accomplished and most feared pitchers of his generation.

Craig Biggio

Photo of Craig Biggio Courtesy of CBS Sports

The Astros in the mid 1980s were a great team.  A post season team.  A near World Series team.  With Nolan Ryan, Mike Scott, Glenn Davis, Billy Hatcher and Kevin Bass they were a powerful team.  In 1986 they came within a key hit of advancing to their first World Series.  By the time Craig Biggio reached the Astros in  1988 everything had gone down hill.  As the Astros rebuilt the team Craig Biggio was their lone remaining star.  He came up to the Major Leagues as a Catcher and made his first All Star team in 1991 along with Pete Harnisch, who had come over from Baltimore in the big off season trade.  Realizing the punishment that Biggio was taking behind the plate, Houston moved Biggio to Second Base.  Viewed with skepticism, it was portrayed as one more poor decision by Houston. Why would they take an All Star player and move him out of position?  All he did was make six All Star appearances at his new position and become the face of the Astros.  Never flashy, never putting up big power numbers in the increasingly important Home Run numbers, Biggio quietly led the Astros.  Five times he won Silver Slugger awards and four times he won Gold Glove awards.  By the mid 1990s the Astros organization was reborn around the "Killer B's" of Biggio, Bagwell, Derek Bell and Lance Berkman.  By 1997 the Astros were a regular contender.  In 2004 the Astros reached the NLCS for the first time since 1986 and in 2005, despite missing Jeff Bagwell, they reached the team's first ever World Series.  Although the Astros were swept by the White Sox every game was close.  Expecting a continuance of the post season runs, Astros fans were disappointed over the next few years.  Although Biggio could not lead the team back to the post season he did give the Astros fans one more big thrill as he reached 3000 hits during his final year, 2007.  4 times Biggio won player of the week.  He retired 5th all time in doubles, 6th in triples and 2nd in Hit by Pitch.  As much as Tony Gwynn is Mr. Padre, Craig Biggio is Mr. Astro.

TRIVIA QUESTION:
The 2014 Hall of Fame class included Tom Glavine and Greg Maddux, both big time post season pitchers.  Smoltz, Johnson and Pedro also proved to be big time post season winners.  Which Hall of Fame class had more post season wins?

Answer to Last Week's Question:
The 1985 All Star Game featured 16 future Hall of Famers (as of this writing).  On the American League side Henderson, Ripken, Winfield, Murray, Brett and Rice returned.  For the NL Gwynn, Sandberg, Carter and Smith returned. That made it a total of 10 returning All Stars.

Although there were six who did not return, Kirby Puckett, Wade Boggs and Mike Schmidt joined the Hall of Fame parade for 1986.

Who Did It Better?: You Decide

Before there was King Felix's reign in Seattle, King Carl ruled the Polo Grounds in New York.  Carl Hubbell was the dominant pitcher in either league in the 1930's, only Lefty Grove of the A's and Red Sox came close.  Hubbell started the second ever All Star game in his home stadium and faced a great collection of talent.  Of the nine players in the American League starting lineup (Charlie Gehringer (2B, Tigers), Heinie Manush (LF, Senators), Babe Ruth (RF, Yankees), Lou Gehrig (1B, Yankees), Jimmie Foxx (3B, Athletics), Al Simmons (CF, White Sox), Joe Cronin (SS, Senators), Bill Dickey (C, Yankees), Lefty Gomez (P, Yankees) all nine would end up in Cooperstown at the end of their career.  So would Hubbell, of course, but when a Hall of Fame player faces off against a Hall of Fame player someone has to win and someone has to lose. 

Photo of Carl Hubbell Courtesy of Baseball Almanac

The game started off poorly for Hubbell.  It looked like he would be more of a pawn than a king in this game.  Charlie Gehringer led off the game with a single to center and took second when Hubbell's teammate, Wally Berger made an error.  Hubbell then walked Heinie Manush and there were two on with no one out and three of the greatest hitters the game has ever known coming up in a row.  Each one by themself would be enough to give a pitcher a heart attack.  All three of them in a row would be the stuff of nightmares.

First was Babe Ruth.    He had already hit 699 career Home Runs, including 13 so far this year and had hit one in the last game before the break (he also had a double and drove in 4 lifting his season average to .300 to end the first half).  He certainly was not threatening to hit 60 Home Runs this year but there was still lethal power in that bat and with two men on base Ruth was sure he could make an impact on the game.  Suddenly Hubbell's screwball started to work. He almost completely abandoned the fastball and curve. "The thing to do was, you might just show them those pitches but don't get anythng over the plate with the screwball."  Hubbell said. Hubbell threw five screwballs and Ruth struck out swinging.  As he walked back to the bench Lou Gehrig walked to the plate.  The two teammates were not exactly on speaking terms personally but this was professional and Ruth probably muttered something about watching out for that damn screwball catching the front corner of the plate.

Photo of Babe Ruth Courtesy of NBC Sports

Gehrig was at the top of his game and was definitely one of the most feared hitters in baseball.  Gehrig was on fire this year.  He came into the All Star Break with 21 doubles, 24 Home Runs, was hitting .367 and had driven in an almost unheard of 91 RBI just half way through the season.  If Ruth terrified a pitcher Gehrig would make most pitchers want to curl up in a ball and cry.  At least doing that would avoid the pain that was seemingly inevitable because if you don't throw the ball he can't hit it out of the park.  But Hubbell had to make a pitch at some point.  "Gehrig, if I can keep that ball down, keep those breaking balls down I can get him to hit the ball on the ground there's a chance for a double play and I can get out of the inning."  Gehrig ruined his plans.  Hubbell worked Gehrig and gained the advantage.  He had the best hitter of the year off balance and Gehrig went down swinging.  Manush and Gehringer pulled off a double steal moving the runners to second and third.  Hubbell didn't care.  The runners were meaningless right now.  Two outs and still two men on base.  Not just two outs but two straight strikeouts of two straight Hall of Fame players. 

Photo of Lou Gehrig Courtesy of Columbia University

Gehrig shook his head and headed back to the dugoout.  On the way back to the bench he passed the beast.  Jimmie Foxx, the big "Double X".  Gehrig may have told the two time reigning MVP in the absolute prime of one the greatest careers in history, swing away because if you catch hold of one it will go a long way.  In the days before weight training was an accepted part of the training for a baseball player Foxx's arms were gigantic.  They didn't make uniforms big enough for arms the size of sequoias so Foxx cut the sleeves.  He carried his 44 ounce bat up to the plate and was ready to take a few cuts at Hubbell's screwball.  Foxx swung away and tried to send one to the deepest parts of the Polo Grounds.  Instead, he let loose a cut that would have made the mighty Casey proud but hit only the air.  Strike three.  And three first ballot Hall of Fame players went down on strikes.  It was an amazing thing and it was only partly done. 

Photo of Jimmie Foxx Courtesy of Bleacher Report

In the bottom of the first the National League got off to a fast start.  Frankie Frisch, the Fordham Flash and manager of the St.Louis Cardinals, led off the game with a Home Run to right field.  The next three batters went in order and Hubbell took the slow walk back out to the mound with a 1-0 lead. 

This was his park.  This was his crowd.  This was his home.  This was his mound.  He owned this place and he owned these batters.

Al Simmons stepped in, took a few practice cuts and prepared to swing away.  He was swinging a hot bat at .348 for the year with 58 RBI on the year but he had been stuck on 13 Home Runs for a week.  He faced off against Hubbell and followed the example of Ruth, Gehrig and Foxx before him.  He walked back to the dugout after swinging through strike three.

Photo of Al Simmons Courtesy of Sports Illustrated

Up next was Joe Cronin.  The "boy wonder" manager of the Washington Senators.  The sporting world thought Senators owner Clark Griffith was  nuts when he decided to give Cronin the manager job at the start of the 1933 season but Cronin and Griffith laughed all the way to an American League pennant.  It would be the last trip to the postseason for Washington baseball until 2012.  Cronin was having a slightly off year so far, he came into the break hitting only .289, but he was still dangerous.  Hubbell took care of him with ease.  His fifth straight strike out of a fifth straight Hall of Fame member. 

Photo of Joe Cronin Courtesy of Bleacher Report

The All Star Game was designed to display the best against the best to see who would create the most magical memories.  Hubbell created the first truly special All Star Game moment, one that is still considered among the great achievements in baseball history.  Hubbell's streak of strike outs would be broken when Bill Dickey, the Yankees catcher, hit a single in the at bat folllowing Cronin.  King Carl ended the second inning by striking out Lefty Gomez.

Hubbell pitched a total of three innings and faced 13 batters (all of them future Hall of Fame members) and struck out six of them.  He left the game with a 1-0 lead although Dodgers Pitcher Van Lingle Mungo would blow the save and take the loss in the game.  Leave it to a Dodger to ruin a Giant's big moment.

Nothing like this would happen again in an All Star Game for another 66 years.  The 1999 All Star Game was a celebration of the All Century Team and it took place at historic Fenway Park.  The pregame ceremony was one of the great moments in All Star history.  One by one legends poured onto the field:  Stan Musial, Hank Aaron, Willie Mays, Frank Robinson and Ted Williams mingled with Tony Gwynn, Ken Griffey Jr and Cal Ripken.  The biggest moment of the night came when the game started. Pedro Martinez, like Hubbell in 1934, pitching in front of his home crowd started the game by striking out Barry Larkin (future Hall of Fame member), Larry Walker (fighting for a batting title), and Sammy Sosa (in the middle of another 60 Home Run season). 

Photo of Barry Larkin Courtesy of ESPN

His American League teammates scored twice in the first with RBI singles by Jim Thome and Cal Ripken and Pedro walked back out to the mound to face the most feared hitter in the game, Mark McGwire.  Like the last three, McGwire went down on strikes.  Four in a row.  One more and he would tie Hubbell's record. 

At the plate was Matt Williams.  He didn't give Martinez a chance to strike him out.  He grounded the first pitch to Roberto Alomar at second base and when Alomar couldn't handle it Williams was safe on an error.  Jeff Bagwell battled for six pitches and as Bagwell swung through the final pitch Williams was thrown out trying to steal for a double play.

Photo of Jeff Bagwell Courtesy of Bleacher Report

Hubbell had struck out five straight Hall of Fame members in a row.  Martinez had struck out 5 of 6 batters at the prime of their careers.  There is a debate of which was more impressive.  Undoubtedly, Hubbell's was more impressive for several reasons:

1. The 1934 All Star Game was taken very seriously.  In recent years it has evolved into a friendly exhibition but there were still very deep seated hard feelings between the leagues in 1934.  When Hubbell accomplished his feat the batters were not up there swinging for the fences to launch a tape measure Home Run.  These batters were trying to win a game. 

2. A strike out now is accepted and almost expected of a big power hitter, whereas, at the time of Hubbell's accomplishment a strikeout was much less acceptable.  In the entire 1934 season Ruth would strike out 63 times, Gehrig only 31, Foxx 75, Al Simmons 58 and Cronin 28.  By comparison, in the complete 1999 season Larkin would strike out 57 times, Walker 52 times (these two are comparable to Cronin, Gehrig, Ruth and Simmons), Sosa 171 times, McGwire 141 times and Bagwell 127 times. 

3. Bagwell struck out but he swung at a pitch he never would have normally considered swinging at.  With Williams on base the hit and run was put on.  When Williams, not a strong base stealer, took off for second Bagwell had to try to make contact no matter what.  If he didn't Williams would be hung out to dry for sure.  Bagwell swung through a pitch well outside the strike zone that he desperately was trying to foul off.

4. The overall format of the league was different in 1934.  There was still a lot of animosity between the leagues (the baseball wars had only ended about 30 years before and wounds were still fresh.  Because of the animosity between the leagues it was less common (though not unheard of) to have trades between American and National League teams.  This was long before free agency so players were not choosing what team they wanted to sign with every few years and it was before interleague play so the only chance anyone from one league had to face someone from the other league was in the World Series.  Hubbell had never faced most of these batters before (he had faced Cronin the year before in the World Series) so Hubbell had to learn what they liked to hit quickly.  Martinez had been in the National League for several years before moving on to Boston.  He had faced these batters in his National League seasons and also faced some of them in Interleague Play on an almost yearly basis.  Martinez knew these hitters and knew what they liked and where they liked it making Hubbell's feat even more amazing.

Clearly based on these statistics and the over all philosophical approach to the game at the time of Hubbell's accomplishment, his is the better of the two.

TRIVIA QUESTION:

Of the five players struck out by Pedro Martinez in the 1999 All Star Game there was a combined total of four MVP's (Barry Larkin (1995), Larry Walker (1997), Sammy Sosa (1998), Mark McGwire (none) and Jeff Bagwell  (1994) among them.  Of the five players struck out by Carl Hubbell (Lou Gehrig, Babe Ruth, Jimmie Foxx, Al Simmons and Joe Cronin) how many combined MVP's were there in the group?

LAST WEEK'S ANSWER:
The innaugural class of Hall of Fame inductees were elected in 1936 and comprised six members:
Honus Wagner (SS)
Babe Ruth (OF)
Christy Mathewson (P)
Walter Johnson (P)
Ty Cobb (OF)
No player has ever received a 100% vote for the Hall of Fame (shockingly there were apparently some writers who felt these five were not Hall of Fame players).  Ruth and Wagner appeared on identical 95.1% of the ballots.  Christy Mathewson appeared on 90.7, Johnson 83.6 and Cobb 98.2.  There has been a tradition among sports writers that because none of these all time greats received a 100% vote, no player will ever receive 100%.  Because of this tradition players like DiMaggio, Mays, Jackie Robinson, Tony Gwynn (and any other player you can name who would define a Hall of Fame player) did not receive a 100% vote on the Hall of Fame ballot.