[mgruber2]

He will get in on first ballot

[dustin12368]

He goes in first ballot , one of the best defensive catchers ever and he could hit some...

[waynetalger]

1st ballot is my vote for Pudge.

[zaccheus85]

I think Pudge is in. Other than Piazza, no other catcher in the 90s and early 2000s were as good offensively as Pudge. But offensive numbers aside, not many other catchers in the 90s and early 2000s were doing as much defensively as Pudge.

Piazza I think gets in...greatest offensive catcher of a generation.
Edgar Martinez...not sure he does, despite being the epitome of the modern DH.
Konerko...not sure.
Thome...maybe, better shot than Konerko.
Helton...as much as it pains me to say it being a Rockies fan, if he does get in it will be a few years in. Too many ppl will point to the Coor's Field factor for his numbers. (I think he should bc of his great avg and hr totals on some awful teams I had the privilege to watch during his tenure).

[djohn]

Pudge should be a 1st ballot, and being a huge fan of his I hope he gets in on the 1st try. However there were some PED allegations that came up from his time with the Rangers, and there will be plenty of voters who won't vote for him because of those allegations. I really hope he makes it in on the 1st try, as it took Gary Carter way too long to get in and I don't want to have to wait that long for Pudge to get in.

[Phillies_Joe]

Probably one of the worst game calling catchers I have ever seen. Refused to call for breaking balls with ROB just so he could have a shot at throwing them out and could not handle a pitching staff. Great arm and great agility behind the plate. Well above average productivity for a catcher. Long career and was a gamer. Will he be enshrined in Cooperstown....yes. 1st Ballot? I believe your either in or your not as your records and legacy don't change once you retire, but that's another story......

[mmahoney]

I think yes.

First ballot or not, that raises a question for me. If you don't make it on your first ballot what makes you more attractive on future ballots? Your stats don't change. The other people on the ballot should be irrelevant. Your stats are either hall worthy or not. Not sure why if I didn't think someone was hall worthy the first time on ballot my mind would change.

[djohn]

First ballot or not, that raises a question for me. If you don't make it on your first ballot what makes you more attractive on future ballots? Your stats don't change. The other people on the ballot should be irrelevant. Your stats are either hall worthy or not. Not sure why if I didn't think someone was hall worthy the first time on ballot my mind would change.

There are several people who have their own "set of rules" when filling out a ballot. Unfortunately, not everyone agrees on how to vote, so there are several different "rules" that certain voters use, such as:
1) Only vote for 1 person each year, or some other set number
2) Never vote for anyone from the "steroids-era", even if there has never been even a small suspicion of them using a PED.
3) Vote for everyone that they think should be in, except the ones that everyone else is definitely voting for (as they will already have enough votes, so why waste another vote on them, when you could use that extra vote for Robin Ventura or some other player that really won't ever get in).
4) Vote using their emotions, for instance if they don't like a player they won't vote for them even if they are deserving of being in the hall.
There are several other reasons, not to mention the people who get ballots and don't vote for anyone each year. As long as the HOF is a popularity contest amongst writers, there will always be delays with some players getting in right away while others have to wait years.

[sesfan01]

I vote yes to Pudge, Helton, and and possibly Guererro.
Maybe for Thome and Martinez
No to Piazza, Konerko.

[jason32rich]

Yeah Pudge is a HOFer. He's probably the second best all around catcher to ever play the game...right behind Bench.
Piazza will get in eventually...Best offensive catcher ever.
Konerko nope
Thome Yeah, one of 5 players in major league history to ever hit 600 homers without a syringe in their butt.
Martinez nope, he only played on one side of the ball and didn't accumulate overwhelming stats at the plate.
Helton nope, only about 80% of the numbers he needed to accumulate in my opinion considering he played in arguably the greatest hitters park of all time.
Vlad Guerrero Yeah