It’s early January, so baseball fans knows what that means, it’s time for another vote on new entries to the Baseball Hall of Fame! Last year, Rickey Henderson made the cut on his first shot and Jim Rice made the cut on his last shot. Each person on the ballot needs to be present on 75% of the ballots to make it into the Hall, but each person has only 15 chances to make it.

A few weeks ago, the Veterans’ Committee voted in former manager Whitey Herzog and former umpire Doug Harvey. But who will join them in the enshrinement on July 25? There are some players that have been holdovers for the last few years (Andre Dawson, Bert Blyleven) and the newer candidates (Mark McGwire, Lee Smith, Fred McGriff). You’re probably wondering who the new contenders are along with their chances – well, you’re in luck! The actual results will be announced on the afternoon of Wednesday, January 6, but here is a list of notable new nominees (in alphabetical order) and MLBtoday’s take on their chances:

4 plaques = Start the ceremony NOW!
3 plaques = Maybe next year?
2 plaques = Stranger things have happened
1 plaque = I’ll save you a spot in the audience (well, not really)

Roberto Alomar– The 10-time Gold Glove winning second baseman was also a 12-time All-Star. He is the best candidate of all the newbies this year with 2,724 hits, 210 homers, 1,134 RBIs, 474 steals, and a .300 career batting average. As a second baseman, these are very good numbers.

Kevin Appier– The Ape won 169 games with a 3.74 ERA, but he was never really considered among the league’s best. His best year was 1993 when he went 18-8 with a 2.56 ERA, and he came in third in the AL Cy Young voting. Very good at times, but not HOF worthy.

Ellis Burks– Some people took advantage of the high altitude of Coors Field – Burks was one of them. In 1996, he hit .344 with 40 HR, 128 RBI, 142 runs, and 32 stolen bases, finishing third in NL MVP voting with the Rockies. He was only a two-time All-Star though despite his 352 career HR and 1,206 RBI.

Andres Galarraga– The Big Cat was a total beast of a hitter in the late 90s. Those years he stayed healthy and drove in over 100 RBIs each year (including a 150 RBI season in ‘96). He only had 399 career homeruns, so his 1,425 RBIs is what would get him in.

Pat Hentgen– The 1996 AL Cy Young award winner was clutch at times for the Blue Jays, but he only had 131 career wins with a 4.32 ERA. He had some very good years, but also had a handful of bad years – so he’s out.

Mike Jackson– A career 3.42 ERA reliever, Jackson had a few nice years closing in Cleveland. In 1998, he had 40 saves and in 1999 he had 39 saves. But that won’t be nearly enough for Jackson to make the HOF.

Eric Karros– In 14 seasons, Karros his .268 with 284 homeruns and 1,027 RBIs. He had some very good seasons in Los Angeles, but he certainly is not a Hall of Famer.

Ray Lankford– When I started following baseball, back in the 90s, Lankford was the best player on the terrible Cardinals. But he was also one of the most overrated players in the majors. He had career numbers of .272 average, 238 homeruns, and 258 steals. Not HOF numbers.

Barry Larkin– The career-Reds shortstop is an iffy pick here. He is a 12-time All-Star and three-time Gold Glove winner, 1995 NL MVP, and 1990 World Series champ. He hit .295 for his career with 198 homeruns, 960 RBIs, 2,240 hits, and 371 stolen bases. If he gets in, it will be due to his good hitting and fielding combinations.

Edgar Martinez– Edgar may be the best designated hitter of all-time. He had a leg injury that didn’t necessarily prevent him from playing the field, but made it obvious to keep him at DH throughout his American League career. He is an amazing hitter, but I just don’t think that his career stats are incredible enough to be able to overcome the fact that he never played the field (2,247 hits, 309 homers, 1,261 RBIs). This is a big test for DH’s to prove their stay in the HOF.

Fred McGriff– The Crime Dog was the cleanup hitter on two Atlanta World Series appearing teams. He fell just short of the illustrious 500 homerun plateau with 493 longballs, but will that keep him out of the Hall? Hopefully not, but I could see him needing to wait on this one.

Shane Reynolds– Not a strong year for starting pitchers, as you can see from Reynolds’ stats: 114 wins, 4.09 ERA, one All-Star game appearance.

David Segui– Even before being mentioned on the Mitchell Report, Segui was nowhere near a HOF player. He did average .291 in 15 seasons, but he was not a run producer at first base.

Robin Ventura– Grand Slam Double. His clutch hit against the Braves in the 1999 playoffs will live in Mets infamy, but he isn’t quite a Hall of Famer. He had tremendously consistent years (nine 20-HR seasons), but overall he was only a .267 hitter with 294 HR, and 1,182 RBI.

Todd Zeile– The most memorable thing about Zeile has to be that he played for 11 teams in 16 years. That won’t get him in the HOF though, neither will his .265 career average.