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Roger Clemens and Barry Bonds are probably down to their last game when it comes to entering the Baseball Hall of Fame.
The two missed out on their latest bid for a spot in Cooperstown through the Contemporary Era Committee on Sunday. The 16-member panel voted for former San Francisco Giants and Houston Astros star Jeff Kent to take his place in the hallowed halls.
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Second baseman Jeff Kent #21 of the San Francisco Giants goes on the infield during the MLB game against the Los Angeles Dodgers on September 19, 2002 at Dodger Stadium in Los Angeles, California. (Stephen Dunn/Getty Images)
Baseball Hall of Fame Chairwoman Jane Forbes Clark said Monday she believed Clemens and Bonds were rejected again because committee members rate those who thrived in the steroid era the same way baseball writers do.
“I’m not surprised because I think there’s overlap and obviously discussions among the writers, and we have writers represented on that committee,” Clark said.
Bonds has denied knowingly using performance-enhancing drugs during his career. Clemens maintains that he has never used PEDs either. President Donald Trump also gave Clemens his endorsement before the committee voted.
ROGER CLEMENS, BARRY BONDS GO FOR LAST CHANCE TO ENTER BASEBALL HALL OF FAME
In this July 19, 2007, file photo, San Francisco Giants’ Barry Bonds hits a three-run home run during the seventh inning of a baseball game against the Chicago Cubs in Chicago. (AP Photo/M. Spencer Green, File)
The Baseball Hall of Fame announced last March that inductees who received fewer than five votes from the 16-person panel are ineligible for that committee’s vote during the next three-year cycle. A candidate who is later dropped, reappears on a ballot and again receives fewer than five votes will be excluded from future ballots.
If Clemens and Bonds reappear on the committee’s ballot in 2031 and fail to receive five votes, they will be barred from future appearances unless the rules are changed again.
New York Yankees pitcher (22) Roger Clemens delivers against the Baltimore Orioles at Camden Yards. (Geoff Burke/USA TODAY Sports)
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“What’s great about it is it will open up seats on the ballot so more people can be filed,” Clark said. “They can certainly come back in six years, in ’31, but between now and then some others will have a chance because I think it’s really important.”
