Elections to the National Baseball Hall of Fame for 2022 were conducted according to the rules most recently amended in 2016. As in the past, the Baseball Writers' Association of America (BBWAA) voted by mail to select from a ballot of recently retired players, with results announced on January 25.[1]David Ortiz, in his first year of eligibility, was the only player elected from the BBWAA ballot.
Meetings of the Early Baseball Era Committee and Golden Days Era Committee—two of a group of four bodies generally referred to as the Veterans Committee—who consider players from the 1871–1949 and 1950–1969 eras, respectively, took place in December 2021, having been postponed from December 2020 due to the COVID-19 pandemic.[2] The Early Baseball Era Committee elected Buck O'Neil and Bud Fowler, while the Golden Days Era Committee elected Minnie Miñoso, Gil Hodges, Jim Kaat, and Tony Oliva.[3]
The inductees and other honorees composing the class of 2022 were honored in ceremonies in Cooperstown, New York, on July 24, 2022.[4][5]
BBWAA ballot
The list of players appearing on the BBWAA ballot was announced on November 22, 2021.[6] There were 17 players carried over from the prior year's ballot, who garnered at least 5% of the vote in 2021 balloting and were still eligible for election, along with 13 players selected to appear on this ballot in their first year of eligibility, whose final major league appearance was in 2016.[7][8] A total of 2801 votes were cast for individual players, an average of 7.11 votes per ballot.
This was the final BBWAA ballot for Barry Bonds, Roger Clemens, Curt Schilling, and Sammy Sosa.[10] Schilling joined Jim Bunning in becoming the second player ever to run out of eligibility after having twice received 70% of the vote, but falling short of the necessary 75%.
The Early Baseball Era Committee met to consider players from the pre-1950 era.[11] The committee was established in July 2016;[12] this was its first meeting to consider candidates for election to the Hall.[11]
Within the Early Baseball Era Committee, the Hall of Fame announced a Special Early Baseball Overview Committee to form a ballot of 10 Negro League players for consideration; the special committee was led by former commissioner Bud Selig in a non-voting role.[11]
The ballot was announced on November 5, and the voting was held on December 5. All 10 candidates were deceased.[13][14]
The Golden Days Era Committee met to consider players from the 1950–1969 era.[11] The committee was established in July 2016;[12] this was its first meeting to consider candidates for election to the Hall.[11]
The ballot was announced on November 5, and the voting was held on December 5. Of the 10 candidates, only Jim Kaat, Tony Oliva, and Maury Wills were still alive.[13][14]
According to the rules last amended in 2016, nominees in the Ford C. Frick Award balloting were considered from the Broadcasting Beginnings category—"early team voices and pioneers of baseball broadcasting"—one of three categories considered on a rotating basis.[12] The announced finalists, all of whom were deceased at the time nominations were announced, were:[17][18]
Pat Flanagan (1893–1963), Chicago Cubs broadcaster
Jack Graney (1886–1978), Cleveland Indians broadcaster; MLB player 1908, 1910–1922
Waite Hoyt (1899–1984), Cincinnati Reds broadcaster; MLB player 1918–1938; inducted to the Hall of Fame in 1969
France Laux (1897–1978), St. Louis Cardinals and St. Louis Browns broadcaster
On December 8, 2021, the Hall of Fame announced that Jack Graney won the Frick Award.[19] The award was officially presented on July 23, 2022, in a ceremony in Cooperstown.
The 2022 BBWAA Career Excellence Award will also be officially presented on July 23 in Cooperstown, honoring a baseball writer "for meritorious contributions to baseball writing". The award was formerly named for J. G. Taylor Spink, longtime publisher of The Sporting News.[20]
