Candidates for Cardinals Hall of Fame unveiled at Winter Warm-Up

ST. LOUIS -- Though fan voting won't commence until next month, the Cards used Saturday's Winter Warm-Up platform to announce the eight modern-era candidates eligible for induction into the Cardinals Hall of Fame this summer.

Six of those candidates -- Ted Simmons, Bob Forsch, Mark McGwire, Joe Torre, Matt Morris and Keith Hernandez -- return to the ballot for a second year. The two new additions are Steve Carlton and Edgar Renteria, eligible for the first time now that he has been retired from baseball for at least three years. The other criteria for inclusion on this ballot was spending at least three seasons in a Cardinals uniform.

The ballot was assembled by a Red Ribbon Committee made up of media members and Hall of Fame managers Tony La Russa, Whitey Herzog and Red Schoendienst. The committee also debated the credentials of several worthy veteran candidates -- defined as players who have been retired at least 40 years and who played at least three seasons with the organization -- and through a secret balloting process selected one veteran player to be included in that 2015 induction class.

The winner of that vote, as well as the top two votegetters on the modern-era ballot, will be announced in late April. At that time, the Cardinals will also reveal the pick for a fourth non-player inductee, which can be anyone who made longstanding contributions to the organization.

The voting period for the modern ballot will open in late February, with the ballot to be hosted on MLB.com. Fans will be permitted to vote up to 25 times during the weeks-long voting window. The induction ceremony will take place on Aug. 15, at which time four new plaques will be added to the 26 already displayed in the Cardinals Hall of Fame wing inside Ballpark Village.