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Posted By: Ryan Christoff

Gee tbob,

Thanks for helping. I do feel better. But humor me for a moment and tell me about Effa Manley. What have you discovered about her in your research? I happen to agree with you the Manley shouldn't have gotten in and Buck O'Neil should have. I also feel that all of the players that got in are more Hall-worthy than Buck. So are Dick Redding, John Beckwith, Grant Johnson, and several other players who DID NOT get in. Buck should have gotten in. AFTER the rest of the candidates that are more deserving.

Buck O'Neil may literally be the nicest man the game of baseball has ever seen. That's not hyperbole, either. Truly humble, kind, warm, intelligent, and incredibly charming. In my opinion, those are not reasons why he should be in the Hall of Fame. He should be in for the totality of his baseball life: player, manager, coach, scout, ambassador. Add those up and he is a HOFer to me. Still, there are many others that are more deserving.

Sentimentality shouldn't be the criteria used in casting a vote for the Hall. I applaud the members of the committee for resisting that temptation and taking their vote seriously. It shows me that this election process was not tainted by the political b.s. that so many of the old veteran's committees were ruined by and which wound up electing most of the current HOFers that many consider unworthy.

Here are a few questions for you which will be ignored and remain unanswered:

1. Why is Andy Cooper more deserving than Dick Redding? If he's not, please explain why you're not outraged. Or do you need Keith Olbermann to give you the green light?

2. Why is Cum Posey more deserving than Gus Greenlee? If he's not, please explain why you're not outraged.

3. Why is Ben Taylor more deserving than John Beckwith? If he's not, please explain why you're not outraged.

4. Why is Jose Mendez more deserving than George Stovey? If he's not, please explain why you're not outraged.

5. Why is Raymond Brown more deserving than John Donaldson? If he's not, please explain why you're not outraged.

6. Which inductees are less deserving than Buck O'Neil. Manley is one. Who else?

7. Please rank the 39 candidates in order from most deserving to least deserving. I'll post my list after you post yours. I'll be happy to answer any questions you have about why I ranked them the way I did.

Now I guess I'll hold my breath and wait for you to answer.

-Ryan