Yesterday I posted about the mockery sportscaster Dan Le Batard made with his Hall of Fame voting privileges. Well, he doesn’t have to worry about that any more. According to this piece on ESPN, he “has been kicked out of the Baseball Writers’ Association of America for one year and barred from future Hall of Fame votes.”
In the article ESPN disassociated themselves from his actions:
“We respect and appreciate Dan’s opinions and passion about Hall of Fame voting,” ESPN spokesman Josh Krulewitz said in a statement. “He received his vote while at the Miami Herald. We wouldn’t have advocated his voting approach, which we were just made aware of today.”
Love the way they throw the Herald under the bus.
La Velle E. Neal III, president of the BBWAA, posted the decision on the organization’s website yesterday:
The BBWAA Board of Directors has decided to remove Dan Le Batard’s membership for one year, for transferring his Hall of Fame ballot to an entity that has not earned voting status. The punishment is allowed under the organization’s constitution.
In addition, Le Batard will not be allowed to vote on Hall of Fame candidates from this point on.
The BBWAA regards Hall of Fame voting as the ultimate privilege, and any abuse of that privilege is unacceptable.
On the one hand, I’m all for free speech, so the fact that Le Batard was punished for exercising his constitutional rights is troubling to me in a very small sense. But on the other hand, it is overwhelmed by the fact that he went about his protest in a very self-serving manner.
Yes, we know the Hall of Fame voting system is flawed, especially when it comes to the questions of how those with ballot power view the whole PED thing. But that’s a decision each voter has to make for him or herself, so, as such, I don’t really consider it a “Hall” problem.
I wonder how long it will take him to portray himself as a martyr, proof that the Hall of Fame, MLB, and any other “powers that be” have it in for him for speaking his mind.
January 9, 2014
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