It’s the Hot Stove Season, and all I’m seeing in the baseball press is who’s talking to which free agents. That’s boring. There’s something more fun that we can talk about – the Hall of Fame ballot.

Let’s take a look at all the new players on the ballot.

I don’t have a vote, and I doubt I ever will, but I can still have Opinions.

Generally, candidates can be grouped into a couple of classes / ranks. So let’s do that.

There’s one No-Brainer this time. Anyone who does NOT vote for Ichiro Suzuki and doesn’t use all ten of their votes should have their BBWAA membership revoked. I can see not voting for him if you want to give a vote to a player who needs to stay on the ballot, but leaving him off when you’ve got a vote to spare? COME ON!

The next one is the Yep, They Should Be In level. C.C. Sabathia might not look like a HoFer at first glance (only once in his 19 year career did he take home a major award), but he does have over 250 wins (which is getting rarer and rarer these days) and over 3000 strikeouts. “King Felix” Hernández was the ace of the Seattle Mariners’ staff for all of his 15 seasons. Though he only got one Cy Young Award, he was often among the league leaders in ERA.

Now we get to the Hall of the Very Good. These are the players who might make a team Hall of Fame, or might show up on one of those Veterans’ Committee ballots in the future. Under slightly different circumstances, they’d find themselves in Cooperstown.

Ian Kinsler combined power and speed (a 2x member of the “30 HR – 30 stolen base” club) over his career, and helped the Texas Rangers win pennants in 2010 and 2011.

Dustin Pedroia has a Rookie of the Year and MVP award in his collection, and is among the top ten in many offensive categories on the “career leader” lists for the Boston Red Sox.

Troy Tulowitzki was one of the best all-around shortstops in the game. He made five All Star Games, and earned two Silver Sluggers and two Gold Gloves in his ten years with the Rockies. Unfortunately, injuries cut his career short.

I’m calling the next level “Congratulations on a Fine Career”. They should hang out on the ballot for a couple of years, but I just can’t see them getting any serious support.

Curtis Granderson brought solid, reliable power to the teams he played for (344 home runs in 16 seasons), and made three All Star teams. He was also recognized for his off-the-field charity work with a Roberto Clemente Award in 2016.

Adam Jones spent eleven seasons with the Baltimore Orioles, during which he made five All Star teams and earned four Gold Gloves.

Russell Martin is one of three catchers in the Modern Era with over 100 home runs and 100 stolen bases – the other two are Hall of Famers Carlton Fisk and Ivan Rodriguez.

One of the better offensive catchers in MLB history, Brian McCann has ten seasons with 20 or more home runs. He made seven All Star teams and was on the 2017 World Champion Houston Astros.

Hanley Ramirez was the NL Rookie of the Year in 2006, and became the first Seattle Mariner to win a batting title (he hit .349 in 2009).

Ben Zobrist helped two teams win the World Series – the Royals in 2015, when he hit .303 in the post-season; and the Cubs in 2016 when he earned the World Series MVP honors.

Finally, though these players have nothing to be ashamed of in their careers, I can’t see them appearing on the ballot next year. “Thank You For Playing”.

Spending 10 of his 12 seasons with the Colorado Rockies, Carlos González is among the leaders of that franchise in a number of offensive categories. He’s also got three All Star Games and a batting title on his record.

Fernando Rodney made three All Star teams, and has one of the best seasons ever for a reliever when he posted a 0.60 ERA over 74 2/3 innings while getting 48 saves in 2012.

So, who would I vote for if I had a ballot?

Ichiro (DUH), Sabathia, and Hernandez (why else would I put them in those tiers?). Kinsler, Pedroia, and Tulowitzki – if only because they deserve serious consideration. The other newcomers? Nope.

For the returning players, Billy Wagner (it’s too hard to justify his NOT being in the Hall), Alex Rodriguez (I think his post-playing career has helped compensate for his character shortcomings – unlike others in a similar situation, he’s not vanished from the scene), Chase Utley (I’ve got the spare vote, so why not), and David Wright (I’m a Mets fan, what can I say?).

And that’s ten players. If I had an extra vote, it would go to Carlos Beltrán. He’s in no danger of falling off the ballot, so I feel comfortable passing on him this year.

We’ll see what happens soon enough.