Mark Grudzielanek on Opening Day, 2002. (Adam Pretty/Getty Images)
By Jon Weisman
Three one-time Dodgers — Garret Anderson, Brad Ausmus and Mark Grudzielanek — are making their first appearance on the Baseball Writers Association of America Hall of Fame ballot.
They will join returning candidates including Nomar Garciaparra (5.5 percent of the vote in 2015), Jeff Kent (14 percent), Fred McGriff (12.9 percent), Mark McGwire (10 percent), Mike Piazza (69.9 percent) and Gary Sheffield (11.7 percent).
A candidate needs at least 75 percent of the vote to be elected to the Hall of Fame, and at least 5 percent to stay on the ballot for another year (up to 10 years). Piazza missed the Hall last year by 28 votes.
Should Grudzielanek find a groundswell of support, he would arguably where a Dodger cap in the Hall. Playing for six teams in 14 years, he spent his most time (five seasons) in Los Angeles, collecting 673 of his 2,040 career hits, highlighted by the 1999 season in which he hit .326/.376/.436. Trivia: Grudzielanek is the only Dodger second baseman to score more than 100 runs in a season since Davey Lopes in 1979.
Anderson, the longtime Angel, came to the Dodgers with 2,501 career hits and added 28 more in his final big-league season, most memorably an RBI walkoff single in the 14th inning to beat Arizona on June 2, 2010. Ausmus spent his final two of his 18 MLB seasons with Los Angeles.
Among those coming off the Hall of Fame ballot after last year were Don Mattingly and Jason Schmidt.
jpavko
Grudzielanek should get in simply as compensation for Vin Scully mispronouncing his name for his entire time with the Dodgers. Please how Grudzielanek comes out as Grassirlanek
Don Bright
If I had 10 votes, I would give out 9. Unlike most writers, I don’t hold a grudge to the steroid guys. Sure put something on their plaque, but if they are eligible to be voted on, then I believe you go by their stats and not so much by their character.
Anyway, the 9 I would vote for: Bagwell, Bonds, Clemens, Griffey, Jr., Hoffman, Kent, Martinez, McGriff, and Piazza.
Sorry but Sosa, McGuire, Rains, and Schilling are not HOF worthy. There’s some others that are close, and maybe another year I would include them, like Sheffield. Trammel and Lee Smith had plenty of chances to get in by this point, and still still don’t IMO. Some shouldn’t even make it to next year(Castillo, Eckstein, Grudz, Sweeny and Winn).
jpavko
I completely agree about Sosa and Sheffield. Hershiser and Fernando fall in the same category. As much as I love the BUlldog aNd Fernando for what they meant to the Dodgers, they just don’t have the number to qualify for the HAll