While Alomar's falling short was surprising, I think what shocked me more was that Barry Larkin received recognition on barely 50% of the ballots. I think he's a deserving HOFer, although that's of course up for debate.
What did you find most surprising? The voting results can be found here:
http://www.baseball-reference.com/awards/hof_2010.shtml
Btelsh - I hope you're right about Blyleven.
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My top three:
3. Alomar getting 73.7%, just missing election. I have thought for years, pretty much from the moment Hirschbeck began wiping his face, that Robbie would miss the cut on his first ballot, but that he was this close, yeah, that surprised me. I feel no outrage whatsoever over this outcome.
2. Edgar Martinez getting 36.2%. I was of two minds how the first ballot of The Greatest DH Of All Time would go -- hint toward election with a high, majority return? Or get drubbed down in Murphy/Mattingly land? Nope, the voters split the middle on him. It's encouraging, and there's probably a big "no DH will ever get MY first ballot vote" contingent that will turn their personal, desolate corner next year, but strangely I found this very encouraging.
1. David Segui getting one vote. This candidate hardly belonged on the ballot to begin with, but add to that he is an admitted hGH user with his own section in the Mitchell Report, which circumstantially indicates he used steroids as well. I thought one vote would be a personal triumph, and lookit!, he got one vote. I don't have any issue with the occasional voter tossing an electoral bone to a dead-dog candidate, sometimes it's amusing, but Segui? Man, that voter was some friend.
hurdlemaster21
Roberto Alomar will be in the Hall of Fame, I think part of the reason he didn't make it was due to some of the sportswriters not wanting to vote for him due to his spitting on an umpire. But he will make the HOF eventually.
Barry Larkin is a well above average player, but may take him another 5-10 years to get in.
Bert Blyleven, there is no reason why he didn't make it his year. He should be in next year.
I am more intrigued by the DH argument. To me this argument is eerily similar to the one that was originally made for the relief pitchers. When you think of all of the good "set-up relievers" that get as good of ERA's and strikeout #'s as closers, minus the saves. The set-up guys won't make the HOF because they don't have the save stat to support their efforts. Yet they pitch just as many innings, if not more, as the closer. Most, if not all closers are not asked to step into the batters box, thus only playing the field and throwing around 10-20 pitches per appearance. Now, the DH, still has to bat 3-5 times a game, be smart on the base-paths and pay attention to the game for all 9 innings. Some closers stay in the locker room until the 6th inning.
To wrap up my point...no-one is going to keep Trevor Hoffman or Mariano Rivera out of the HOF, so why would we keep Edgar Martinez, who has the "DH of the Year" award named after him, out of the Hall of Fame?
The Mick 7
Bert Blyleven not getting in was the biggest shock for me. Next was Alomar not making it. I would have put Dawson third on my priority list. I was more disappointed than anything else. The BBWAA really doesn't do a very good job as far as I'm concerned. 539 voters and at least 25-30% are not even actively involved in the sports anymore.
Barry Larkin was a better short stop than Ozzie Smith. For Larkin not to be given the same consideration was very disappointing.
staggmovie
Andre Dawson being elected into the Hall of Fame. This was not his first year on the ballot, I am believing his 9th year on the ballot, and it seem like every year the writers would find some way, not getting him close enough votes to be voted in. I am not sure if he is a hall of famer or not, but they have other players that waited longer enough, and they have never been voted in by the writers, in the 15 years on the ballot, and it may not be fair to them.
jfish311
To me, it is that someone like Edgar Martinez gets more votes than a player like Dale Murphy. Besides BA, their offensive stats are somewhat comparable. A little more power for Murphy, a few more hits and better OBP for Martinez. But then I take into consideration Murphy's two MVP awards and the fact that he was a gold glove outfielder and Martinez hardly played the field at all during his career. I don't really get it, to me it would be like a guy who scores 28 points a game in basketball but has to be taken out before each defensive possession. Sure he helps the team, but someone who scores 20 points and plays great defensive has to be more valuable, right? It seems to me that a player who was predominately a DH would have to have offensive stats that far exceed those of other players who take the physical abuse from and help the team by playing defense.