By Jon Weisman
Mike Piazza nearly became a Hall of Famer today, falling 28 ballots short with 69.9 percent of the vote. Other former Dodgers include Jeff Kent at 14 percent, Fred McGriff at 12.9 percent, Gary Sheffield at 11.7 percent and Nomar Garciaparra at 5.5 percent.
Dodger manager Don Mattingly, in his final year on the ballot, had 9.1 percent of the vote.
Here’s how the four electees performed against the Dodgers in their careers:
- Craig Biggio: 812 plate appearances, .354 on-base percentage, .438 slugging percentage, 20 homers, 25 steals
- Randy Johnson: 166 innings, 3.09 ERA, 200 baserunners, 188 strikeouts
- Pedro Martinez: 62 2/3 innings, 4.02 ERA, 71 baserunners, 64 strikeouts
- John Smoltz: 249 innings, 2.86 ERA, 313 baserunners, 218 strikeouts
Next year’s Hall of Fame ballot could include such former Dodgers as Garret Anderson, Mark Grudzielanek, Chan Ho Park, Jeff Weaver, Brad Ausmus and Russ Ortiz.
