Both Rivera and Halladay were first time candidates, so either or both could have been elected unanimously, which would have satisfied those opposed to the supposed policy of not electing any player unanimously. But they were only interested in Rivera being elected unanimously. The thought that Halladay could or would be elected unanimously never entered their minds.
Halladay got the exact same number of votes as Edgar Martinez, the incredible edible designated hitter, who was also elected. Martinez was in his 10th and final year of eligibility. Maybe the 62 who did not vote for Halladay figured that they had plenty of years to vote for him. Maybe they thought he deserved to be elected to the Hall of Fame ... just not on the first ballot.
I've heard a couple of knocks on Halladay:
- too few wins
- not enough volume, which I guess means innings.
Halladay 1998-2013:
SUMMARY
Career
WAR
64.3
W
203
L
105
ERA
3.38
G
416
GS
390
SV
1
IP
2749.1
SO
2117
WHIP
1.178
Rivera 1995-2013:
SUMMARY
Career
WAR
56.2
W
82
L
60
ERA
2.21
G
1115
GS
10
SV
652
IP
1283.2
SO
1173
WHIP
1.000
Both the criticisms of Halladay are from "kill the win" people. Halladay crushes Rivera in Wins and threw more than twice as many innings.
Oh wait, Rivera was a relief pitcher, a closer. Rivera was not supposed to get Wins, only Saves. And he was only supposed to pitch one inning per appearance.
During those years, who would you rather have?
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