by Dylan Sondike ‘24

On Tuesday, January 25, David Ortiz was elected into the MLB Hall of Fame in his first year of eligibility. Barry Bonds and Roger Clemens, who were in their last years of eligibility, didn’t make the cut. Since Bonds or Clemens didn’t get inducted, Ortiz definitely didn’t deserve to be in the Hall of Fame. All three of these players either tested positive or were accused of taking steroids, but only Ortiz got into the Hall of Fame.

Bonds and Clemens were two of the best players in the game and deserved to be inducted into the Hall of Fame. According to a Washington Post article, Bonds was first accused of using steroids in 1998. Prior to, he had already won 3 MVP awards and one second-place finish. He also had 8 seasons of driving in over 100 RBIs and 9 seasons of hitting over 25 home runs. Many could argue that these numbers alone deserved Hall of Fame entry. After being accused of using steroids, he went on to win 4 more MVP awards and continued to put up more monster numbers. Bonds is a 14 time all-star, 8 time gold glove winner, leads the league for most home runs ever hit, and most walks ever. He also set the record for the most home runs in a season with 73. Bond’s numbers are way too good to not be in the Hall of Fame. 

A former pitcher of the Redsox, Blue Jays, Yankees, and Astros, Clemens also deserved to be in the Hall of Fame. He never tested positive for steroids, but his trainer and many others said he was taking them from 1998 through 2001. Similar to Bonds, Clemens racked up many accolades before first being accused, supporting the idea that those accolades alone should have been enough to get him into the Hall of Fame. Before 1998, Clemens won 4 of his 7 Cy Youngs, an MVP award, 6 all-star appearances, and 8 seasons of 15+ wins. After being accused, Clemens appeared in 5 more all-star games and had 4 more seasons of 15+ wins. Clemens is also currently third all time in most career strikeouts.

Ortiz was the only one out of the three who tested positive for steroids. Before he tested positive in 2003, Ortiz had no MVP awards, no all-star appearances, nor any other accolades. After 2003, however, he blossomed with 10 all-star appearances, 7 silver slugger awards, and is regarded as one of the best designated hitters of all time. Ortiz’s stats before his positive test were nothing special, but after his positive test, he turned it up. Neither Bonds nor Clemens tested positive for steroids, and even before they were first accused, they had already gained enough accolades to be in the Hall of Fame. If Ortiz could make it, Bonds and Clemens deserved to also be in the Hall of Fame.