First revealed 2023 Hall of Fame ballot features numerous surprises

The 2023 MLB Hall of Fame ballot has officially been released, and there are several surprises throwing fans for a loop that were revealed.

Several surprises came for MLB fans as the first 2023 Hall of Fame ballot has officially been revealed from Sadiel Lebron.

Lebron added quite a few players to the ballot that many disagree with, and many also disagree with the fact that Manny Ramirez was dropped.

Ramirez is certainly a controversial topic considering he was suspended twice for PED use, but his talent made him seem like a guaranteed Hall of Fame contender. He was an incredible player, finishing his 19-season career slashing .312/.411/.585 for an OPS of .996, but use of PEDs causes a player’s credibility to be questioned, which is tough to defend for a Hall of Fame case.

It’s not so surprising that he’s been dropped by Lebron from the ballot, but many are more surprised by the fact that Andy Pettitte, in particular, was kept over Ramirez.

Pettitte has been in conversation for the Hall of Fame for quite some time, but most haven’t seen a strong enough case through his performance. He had a great career with the New York Yankees, helping them win five World Series and being a three-time All-Star. His accomplishments aren’t unnoticed, but he’s compared to amazing pitchers already in the HOF, such as Cy Young himself.

According to Gabe Lacques of USA Today, “Pettitte had flashes of dominance but was never truly dominant; despite his gaudy innings pitched totals, Pettitte never struck out more than 180 batters in a season, nor did he ever rank in the top 10 in key rate stats like strikeouts or walks per nine innings, or strikeout-walk ratio.”

Pettitte has also admitted to using PEDs, as were many MLB members on the ballot, which is another surprise the ballot holds.

Several players who used PEDs made the 2023 Hall of Fame ballot

The ballot had other Yankees players notorious for their PED use on the ballot, including Alex Rodriguez and Gary Sheffield. These players accomplished a lot, but there’s definitely controversy surrounding them for similar reasons as Ramirez.

While PED use doesn’t automatically disqualify a player from landing in the Hall of Fame, it makes it much harder. A-Rod and Ramirez were almost guaranteed spots until their suspensions, but now they’re struggling to make it as they’ve appeared on the ballot multiple times over the years and have yet to land a spot.

The 2023 ballot has brought many valid opinions on the matter, and it’ll be interesting to see how it all plays out when the 2023 Hall of Fame class is officially announced.