Rule 5: an Analysis of the Mlb Hall of Fame Character Clause
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RULE 5: AN ANALYSIS OF THE MLB HALL OF FAME CHARACTER CLAUSE _______________________ A Thesis Submitted to the Drexel University Graduate Board ______________________ in Partial Fulfillment of the Requirements for the Degree MASTER OF SPORT MANAGEMENT _____________________ by Brett Bush June 2010 © By Brett Bush 2010 All Rights Reserved iii ABSTRACT RULE 5: AN ANALYSIS OF THE MLB HALL OF FAME CHARACTER CLAUSE Brett Bush Master of Science Drexel University, 2010 Thesis Advisory Committee Chair: Dr. Amy Giddings The purpose of the research study was to (1) compare the different scandals that have occurred and the different ways of cheating in the sport of baseball, (2) research the Steroid Era and the players that have their name associated with it, and (3) look at the Major League Baseball Hall of Fame and explain how the purposes have an affect on being considered a Hall of Fame player using the Rule 5 Character Clause Hall of Fame entrance criteria. The review of literature in relationship to the research purpose and research questions are divided into the following sections: (1) Different Types of Scandals/Ways of Cheating In Baseball, (2) Players That Were Involved in Different Scandals, (3) Major League Baseball Hall of Fame Entrance Qualifications, (4) How the Hall of Fame Voting Committee Has Not Had Consistency in Their Voting, and (5) Current Hall of Famers' Opinions. The Literature Review demonstrated many different ways of cheating in baseball. Insight into Major League iv Baseball and the Hall of Fame was attained via a variety of media sources. The quantitative research provided several miscreants that have been involved in transgressions which do not live up to the Integrity and Character classifications that the Hall of Fame looks for in a candidate. Some of these players have been enshrined in the Hall of Fame already. For example Ty Cobb, Rogers Hornsby and Gaylord Perry have been elected despite certain transgressions. Throughout the history of the Hall of Fame, the voters have not had voting consistency as other players with similar infractions remain either banished from baseball or passed over during Hall of Fame elections. Current violators of the Rule 5 Character Clause, because of steroid use, are waiting for their time on the ballot but the outlook remains bleak. This further supports the inconsistency in the Hall of Fame voting process. Future research into the topic may provide alternate points of view which have not been expressed in the thesis. The current Hall of Fame voters, current Hall of Fame players, baseball players, owners, the Commissioner and/or other personnel have not been interviewed. Those are important individuals in the realm of baseball and should v have their opinions more closely associated with the lack of inconsistency the Hall of Fame has allowed. vi ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS I would like to thank Dr. Amy Giddings for helping me through this thesis from step one. The time that you took to help me out I am extremely grateful for and without you I would have been lost! Thank you to the Drexel committee for your time, Professors Dave O'Brien, Brett Burchette and Douglas Turco. Justin, thank you for allowing me to edit your paper that had to deal with a similar topic, your references helped me greatly in my search for information! Dad, I blame you for peaking my interest in baseball when I was younger. Your antics at the games were (and still are) priceless. Mom, thanks for the support over the years during my educational youth. Helping me with my homework in elementary school was no small feat, allowing me to do this all on my own was an even bigger one! Lastly, thank you to my parents for putting up with me while at Drexel during the pursuit of my Masters Degree. I know I was rough around the edges at times, especially while writing this thesis, but your unwavering support helped me get through it all. vii DEDICATION To Pop-Pop Morris, I told you that I wanted to be an architect once but never said what I wanted to create. I “put my mind to it and studied” and this is the fruition of my hard work; I know you would be proud. Consider this the skyscraper. viii TABLE OF CONTENTS Page ABSTRACT..................................................ii ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS...........................................v DEDICATION................................................vi CHAPTER 1. INTRODUCTION...........................................1 Need for the Study....................................8 Purpose of the Study.................................10 Research Questions...................................12 Limitations..........................................12 Delimitations........................................13 Definition of Terms..................................14 Historical Necessities...............................30 The Invention of Baseball.......................30 The Hall of Fame................................34 2. REVIEW OF LITERATURE..................................37 (1) Different Types of Scandals/Ways of Cheating in Baseball.............................................38 (2) Players That Were Involved in Different Scandals.............................................42 (3) Major League Baseball Hall of Fame Entrance Qualifications.......................................43 (4) How the Hall Of Fame Voting Committee Has Not Had Consistency in Their Voting..........................47 (5) Current Hall of Famers Opinions.............................................49 3. METHODOLOGY...........................................53 Research Design......................................54 Quantitative Data Analysis...........................54 Scandals.............................................58 Summary..............................................59 4. RESULTS AND DISCUSSION................................60 Different Scandals in Baseball.......................60 Discussion of the Research Questions.................62 1. What Constitutes Being Considered A Scandalous Player In Baseball?.............................62 ix 2. Who in Major League Baseball History is Considered a Scandalous Player A) Already in the Hall of Fame.............63 Grover Cleveland Alexander............63 Wade Boggs............................65 Ty Cobb...............................67 Joe DiMaggio..........................73 Jimmie Foxx & Other Alcoholics........74 Rogers Hornsby........................76 Ferguson Jenkins......................78 Mickey Mantle.........................78 Gaylord Perry.........................82 Kirby Puckett.........................85 Babe Ruth.............................89 B) Not in the Hall of Fame.................95 The Bossard Family....................95 Drug/Cocaine Scandals.................96 Keith Hernandez..................97 Steve Howe.......................97 Lamarr Hoyt......................98 Darryl Strawberry................98 Dwight Gooden...................101 Tim Raines......................102 Dave Parker.....................103 Orlando Cepeda..................103 Steve Garvey.........................105 “Shoeless” Joe Jackson...............108 Denny McLain.........................112 Pete Rose............................112 Amphetamine/Steroid Era.............................120 Amphetamines...................................120 Steroid Era....................................123 The Original Records......................124 Steroids: What Are They?..................129 The Effect on Performance.................131 The New Records...........................146 Players Involved...............................151 I) Admitted To Use........................151 Mark McGwire.........................151 Andy Pettitte........................158 Alex Rodríguez.......................161 II) Denied Usage..........................169 Barry Bonds..........................169 Roger Clemens........................179 Rafael Palmeiro......................187 x Sammy Sosa...........................189 III) Others Involved......................193 Manny Ramirez........................193 Eric Gagne...........................194 Edgar Martinez.......................196 Fred McGriff.........................197 Dale Murphy..........................197 An Accepted Type of Performance Enhancer............200 General Discussion..................................203 Implications for Future Research....................203 Implications for Practitioners......................208 The Voting Process in Place Needs To Be Altered........................................208 5. SUMMARY, CONCLUSIONS, AND RECOMMENDATIONS FOR FUTURE RESEARCH.....................................220 Summary............................................220 Conclusions........................................227 Recommendations for Future Research................234 REFERENCES...............................................238 APPENDIXES APPENDIX A - BASEBALL PLAYERS..................291 APPENDIX B – ABNER DOUBLEDAY PLAQUES...........305 APPENDIX C - NON-BASEBALL PLAYERS..............307 xi LIST OF TABLES 1.1 CAREER HOME RUN RECORD LEADERS........................17 1.2 SINGLE SEASON HOME RUN RECORD.........................27 4.1 50-HOME RUN PLATEAU BETWEEN 1961–2009................128 4.2 HOME RUNS HIT PER DECADE 1980-2000...................132 4.3 HANK AARON AND WILLIE MAYS CAREER HOME RUN TOTALS....143 4.4 BARRY BONDS 2001 HOME RUNS...........................147 4.5 ALEX RODRÍGUEZ'S CAREER STATISTICAL MEASUREMENTS.....166 1 CHAPTER 1 INTRODUCTION The Major League Baseball Hall of Fame was created in 1936 as an independent,