Ken Griffey Jr. And Mike Piazza Elected To Hall Of Fame

On Wednesday, two of the most popular players in recent Major League Baseball history were elected to the Hall of Fame: Ken Griffey Jr. and Mike Piazza.

Griffey nearly became the first player to receive an unanimous election; he fell three votes short of that, but still set the record for the highest percentage earning 99.3% of the total votes. Despite playing in the steroid era, the slugger’s name was never linked to any accusations of cheating.

“I can’t be upset [about missing out on three votes]. It’s just an honor to be elected, and to have the highest percentage is definitely a shock,” Griffey said on a conference call.

Piazza had to wait slightly longer–this was his fourth year on the ballot as compared to Griffey’s first–but that did not make the moment any less special. “Incredibly special. Wow,” Piazza said on a call with MLB Network. “I sat here with my mouth on the floor,” he said. “Yogi Berra had like four ballots. Joe DiMaggio had three ballots,” Piazza would also say on a conference call. “And so myself being sort of a student of the history of the game, and having respect for the process, it was nail-biting at times, but I had a tremendous amount of support throughout my career from the writers and the fans.”  

Regarded as one of the greatest hitting catchers ever, Piazza is most remembered for hitting an emotional home run 10 days after the 9/11. The shot gave the Mets a lead in the first sporting event played in New York City since the attacks.

Photo: Ken Griffey Jr. by Jodycl via Wikimedia Commons