Prior to the Steroid Era, 500 home runs was considered the milestone a slugger could reach to ensure that one day he would be immortalized in the Baseball Hall of Fame. From 1936 to 2003, all 15 eligible sluggers who hit 500 or more home runs were voted into the Hall of Fame. In addition, from 1939 to 2001, nine sluggers who finished their careers with 407 to 493 home runs appeared on the Hall of Fame ballot, seven of those nine were elected to the Hall of Fame, with five--Lou Gehrig, Stan Musial, Willie Stargell, Carl Yastrzemski, and Dave Winfield--gaining election in their first year on the ballot and the other two--Billy Williams and Duke Snider--being voted in on their sixth and eleventh ballot, respectively. It was clear that a slugger who reached the 400 home run milestone had almost as good a chance of being elected to the Hall of Fame as a slugger who reached 500. However, like everything else, the Steroid Era has complicated Hall of Fame voting. Since 2002, six sluggers who hit between 431 to 493 home runs have appeared on the Hall of Fame ballot but only two of those six, Andre Dawson and Cal Ripken Jr., have been voted in. Two others, Jose Canseco and Juan Gonzalez, fell off the ballot after failing to collect 5% of the vote, while Jeff Bagwell and Fred McGriff remain on the ballot but are currently on the outside looking in.
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"LANCASTER, SC (WBTV) - A Lancaster man has been arrested after police say he shot and killed a former Major League Baseball player near an elementary school early Tuesday morning.

According to the Lancaster Police Department, officers were called to the 600 block of North Market Street around 1:58 a.m. Tuesday morning to the report of a shooting. This is less than 1/5-mile away from Clinton Elementary School.

When officers arrived they found Danny Clyburn Junior lying in the front yard of a home. Clyburn was reportedly found unresponsive and suffering from a gunshot wound.

Emergency crews responded and determined that Clyburn had died from his injuries.

Clyburn is a former Major League Baseball player, where he played as an outfielder for the Tampa Bay Devil Rays and Baltimore Orioles."

Our thoughts and prayers to Clyburn's friends and family.
Source: WBTV News

Enter for your chance to win a pair of tickets to attend the Joe Maddon Town Hall Meeting - Thursday, February 16th at the Southern Chevy Dealers Sound Stage at 10AM. After the meeting, Joe will sign autographs.

This is way more depressing than the Canzler trade. Hopefully he gets a shot with the White Sox.

By Ben Nicholson-Smith [January 30, 2012 at 3:59pm CST]
Outfielder Justin Ruggiano will decline his outright assignment and become a free agent, Marc Topkin of the Tampa Bay Times reports on Twitter. The Rays had designated him for assignment last week.

"It was a tough decision but in the end I had to do what was best for my career," Ruggiano said, according to Topkin.

Ruggiano appeared in 46 games for the Rays last year, playing all three outfield positions. The 29-year-old posted a .248/.273/.400 line in 111 plate appearances. Ruggiano, who also played for the Rays in 2007-08, is not yet arbitration eligible.