2024 Baseball Hall of Fame Contemporary Era Committee Results

Jim Leyland, sneaking a smoke in the dugout with the Tigers.

Yesterday the Contemporary Baseball Era committee met and elected Jim Leyland to the Baseball Hall of Fame. In my post last week, I predicted the committee might elect more than one man from the ballot, but that didn’t happen. Lou Piniella was named on 11 of 16 ballots, missing election by just one vote. Bill White received 10 votes, and none of the other men on the ballot received more than 5 votes.  

I’m not surprised that Leyland was elected, he was a great manager who managed a lot of excellent teams over his career. I was a little surprised that Piniella wasn’t elected as well, but since he’s come so close to getting elected, I think he will get in one of these times. I think it would be cool to have Bill White in the Hall of Fame, but it seems a little odd to elect him as an executive since he only spent 5 years in that role. I think baseball should have some kind of “overall excellence” Hall of Fame they could put people in. I was thinking of something similar for Lefty O’Doul when he was on an Era Committee ballot in 2021. O’Doul’s career was really too short to elect him to the Hall of Fame as a player, but he also managed in the Pacific Coast League for 22 years after his playing career. But the Baseball Hall of Fame doesn’t honor minor league managers. So, there’s not much of a path for O’Doul to get into the Hall of Fame. Bill White falls into a similar category. White was an excellent player, but not quite great enough for the Hall of Fame. White was then an announcer for the Yankees from 1971 to 1988, a distinguished run, but not worth of Hall entry on its own. Perhaps those figures in baseball who don’t quite fit in the other categories should be eligible for this imaginary “overall excellence” Hall of Fame wing.  

I was also shocked that umpire Joe West didn’t get elected to the Hall of Fame. West has umpired more games than anyone else in MLB history. What more do you want from an umpire?  

Stay tuned for my upcoming post in December where I profile the candidates on the BBWAA Hall of Fame ballot.  

2024 Baseball Hall of Fame Contemporary Baseball Era Managers/Executives/Umpires Ballot

I'll always picture Jim Leyland managing those great Pirates teams of the early 1990's.

Bill White, stellar first baseman for the St. Louis Cardinals during the 1960's.

Okay, this is the longest and most boring name for a baseball Hall of Fame ballot. That being said, I’m glad that the managers, executives, and umpires are on their own ballot. It’s not fair to compare any of these guys to players. In this post, I’ll cover the eight men on this ballot. 

Cito Gaston: Gaston managed the Toronto Blue Jays to back-to-back World Series titles in 1992 and 1993. His overall record as a manager was 894-837, for a .516 winning percentage. Gaston was the first Black manager to win a World Series title. While Gaston is rightfully revered in Toronto, I don’t think 894 wins are enough to get into the Hall of Fame. 

Davey Johnson: Won 1,372 games over a 17-year managerial career. Johnson led the 1986 New York Mets (with Keith Hernandez!) to the World Series title. Johnson ranks 33rd all-time in manager wins, but his .562 winning percentage is higher than Hall of Fame managers Connie Mack, Tony LaRussa, Bobby Cox, Joe Torre, Sparky Anderson, Bucky Harris, Walt Alston, Leo Durocher, Casey Stengel, Bill McKechnie, Tommy Lasorda, Dick Williams, Miller Huggins, and Wilbert Robinson. I’d be fine if Johnson gets into the Hall of Fame.  

Jim Leyland: Leyland won 1,769 games, good for 18th place all-time. His winning percentage was only .506, but almost every manager ahead of Leyland in wins is in the Hall of Fame, so he probably should be too. Plus, Leyland just seemed like a cool guy. 

Ed Montague: Montague was an umpire from 1976 to 2009. I really don’t know much about him, but sure, anyone who makes this ballot as an umpire probably deserves to be in the Hall of Fame. 

Hank Peters: I’ve never heard of Hank Peters before. He was a front-office executive for 42 years, working for the A’s, Orioles, and Indians. I don’t have any feelings about him getting into the Hall of Fame or not.  

Lou Piniella: Following a solid MLB playing career, including a selection as the 1969 AL Rookie of the Year, Piniella embarked on a successful managerial career, winning 1,835 games, good for 17th on the all-time list, just ahead of Jim Leyland. Again, almost everyone ahead of Piniella in games won is in the Hall of Fame, so he probably should be too. Piniella is famous in baseball card collecting for appearing on 3 different “Rookie Stars” cards for 3 different teams: 1964 with the Senators, 1968 with the Indians, and 1969 with the Pilots. Piniella never actually appeared in a regular season game with the Pilots, as he was dealt to the Royals at the end of spring training.  

Joe West: West holds the all-time record for games umpired: 5,460 over a 44-year career. Yes, Joe West should be in the Hall of Fame. 

Bill White: A stellar first baseman during the 1960’s, mainly for the St. Louis Cardinals, White was an 8-time All-Star and a 7-time Gold Glove winner. White was President of the National League from 1989 to 1994. During that time White was the highest-ranking Black executive in American sports. White’s career as an executive was only 5 years long, which makes me wonder if this is more of a kind of “lifetime achievement” honor. White was an excellent player, a longtime broadcaster for the New York Yankees, and then NL President, so his career is a varied tapestry. He’s certainly deserving of recognition, so I wouldn’t have a problem if he gets elected on this ballot.  

I have no idea how the voting is going to end up for this committee, but I think we’ll see at least two of these candidates elected to the Hall of Fame.