Blue Jays alumni climb in HOF ballot totals

January 22nd, 2020

TORONTO -- On Tuesday night, it was announced that the Hall of Fame will welcome two new members this year, with the additions of Yankees shortstop Derek Jeter and outfielder Larry Walker, who will become the first Canadian position player to head to Cooperstown and second Canadian ever.

Among the remainder of the names on the ballot, four former Blue Jays earned more votes than ever, with right-hander , shortstop , third baseman and second baseman all seeing their vote totals increase as returnees to the voting process.

The Hall of Fame’s official induction weekend is set for Cooperstown, N.Y., this summer, with the official ceremony taking place on July 26.

Although none of the former Blue Jays will be represented this year, their impacts were felt during the time in Toronto. Clemens spent just two seasons with the team and won back-to-back Cy Young Awards with the Blue Jays in 1997 and ’98, two of the seven such trophies he accumulated throughout his career.

With Toronto in 1997, the Texas native went 21-7 with a 2.05 ERA over 34 starts and 264 innings, hurling nine complete games with three shutouts and striking out 292. The following season, Clemens compiled 20 wins to go with a 2.65 ERA over 33 starts and 234 2/3 frames, adding five more complete games, another three shutouts and 271 strikeouts.

This year marked Clemens’ eighth time on the ballot, and his vote total has continued to increase each year. Last year, he was named on 59.5 percent of the ballots, and this year his total increased to 61 percent, though still significantly short of the required 75 percent to gain entry. Clemens spent the majority of his career with the Red Sox.

Kent was on the ballot for the seventh time, garnering 27.5 percent of the vote after receiving 18.1 percent last year. The California-born infielder began his 17-year big league career with the Blue Jays, selected by the club in the 20th round of the 1989 Draft and making his debut in Toronto in 1992. Before spending the bulk of his career with the Giants, Kent got into 65 games for the team that gave him his professional start, hitting .240/.324/.443 with eight home runs, 13 doubles, one triple and 35 RBIs for the Blue Jays.

Rolen returned to the ballot for his third time, racking up 35.3 percent of the vote after getting 17.2 percent last year. Among the 17 years the infielder spent in the Majors -- the majority with the Phillies -- Rolen played in the American League for just two of them, both with Toronto. For the Blue Jays, the native of Indiana hit .288/.358/.452 with 19 home runs, 59 doubles, three triples and 93 RBIs over 203 games.

Vizquel spent the final season of his 24 years in the big leagues with the Blue Jays, helping to anchor the infield while getting into 60 games with Toronto. The Venezuelan infielder, who spent the majority of his career with the Indians, reached 52.6 percent of the vote in his third time on the ballot after getting 42.8 percent last year, and he is in good shape electorally.