Hall of Fame voting results will be announced Monday afternoon and all signs point to a lonely class of 2012.
The official results will be revealed at 3 p.m. ET on the Baseball Writer’s Assocation of America’s official Twitter account.
Former Cincinnatti Reds shortstop Barry Larkin, the 1995 NL MVP, is believed to be the most likely candidate to gain entry after recieving 62.1 per cent in 2011.
Candidates need at at least 75% of the the vote for induction.
Tim Raines, Jack Morris, Jeff Bagwell and Lee Smith are also likely to get serious consideration, while the likes of Alan Trammell, Edgar Martinez, Fred McGriff, Mark McGwire and Larry Walker could see a boost in their support from 2011.
For a better sense of what to expect this afternoon, the fine folks at Baseball Think Factory have done everyone a favour and compiled this handy list of the voting results from 145 voluntarily released 2012 Hall of Fame ballots.
90.3% – Barry Larkin
60.0% – Jack Morris
57.2% – Jeff Bagwell
53.1% – Tim Raines
45.5% – Lee Smith
37.2% – Alan Trammell
32.4% – Edgar Martinez
24.1% – Fred McGriff
17.9% – Mark McGwire
17.9% – Larry Walker
And for a breakdown of whom 91 various writers voted for (including the likes of Richard Griffin, Jeff Blair and Ken Rosenthal,) some saint has compiled the following spreadsheet.
Meanwhile, over at ESPN.com, a story on how 18 of their writers with ballots voted also suggests Larkin will be the lone player inducted this July.
I don’t get a vote, but if I did there would be checkmarks beside the names of Larkin, Bagwell, Raines and Walker.
Of course the real fun begins next year when the names of Barry Bonds and Rogers Clemens appear on the ballot for the first time.