Roger Rubin's 2019 Baseball Hall of Fame ballot

By Roger Rubinroger.rubin@newsday.comDecember 14, 2018

Newsday's Roger Rubin cast his ballot for the Baseball Hall of Fame Class of 2019. While writers can vote for up to 10 players, Rubin voted for six.

BARRY BONDS

Credit: Newsday / J. Conrad Williams Jr.

Barry Bonds, the all-time home run king, played 22 years for the Pittsburgh Pirates and San Francisco Giants. He has 762 career home runs but has been linked to performance-enhancing drugs in the past.

ROGER CLEMENS

Credit: Newsday / Paul J. Bereswill

Roger Clemens, a seven-time Cy Young Award winner and two-time World Series champion, racked up 4,672 strikeouts -- third-most in MLB history -- and won 354 games. However, he has been linked to performance-enhancing drugs in the past.

ROY HALLADAY

Credit: Getty Images North America / Drew Hallowell

Halladay was one of 23 pitchers to throw a perfect game and was just the second to throw a no-hitter in the postseason, the other being Don Larsen. The two-time Cy Young winner accumulated 2,117 strikeouts with a 3.38 ERA in 16 seasons, pitching 67 complete games, 13 more than any other pitcher in that time span. Halladay was killed in 2017 when the plane he was piloting crashed off the coast of Florida.

EDGAR MARTINEZ

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Edgar Martinez was the transcendent DH, a spot in the lineup that began as something of a dumping ground for aging, injured or defensively challenged players. Martinez was born for the role and was a DH in 68 percent of his appearances. He spent his entire 18-year career with the Seattle Mariners and was a seven-time All-Star. Martinez hit .312 with 309 home runs, 1,261 RBI and 1,219 runs in 2,055 MLB games.

MARIANO RIVERA

Credit: Newsday / Thomas A. Ferrara

Mariano Rivera holds the all-time record for saves with 652. He was 82-60 with a 2.21 ERA, 1.000 WHIP and 1,173 strikeouts in 19 seasons, all with the Yankees. The five-time World Series champion won World Series MVP in 1999 and was a 13-time All-Star. Rivera would become the sixth reliever to enter the Hall of Fame and, inarguably, the best among Dennis Eckersley, Bruce Sutter, Hoyt Wilhelm, Rollie Fingers and Trevor Hoffman.

CURT SCHILLING

Credit: Newsday / Paul J. Bereswill

Curt Schilling was a three-time World Series champion, pitching 20 seasons with the Phillies, Diamondbacks, Red Sox, Orioles and Astros. He had a career postseason record of 11-2, and his .846 postseason winning percentage is a major-league record for pitchers with at least 10 decisions.