The ballot features first timers, last timers, and roidheads.
This article details why I believe that the first player inducted in 2013 will be...Mike Piazza!
Piazza played for 16 seasons, compiling a statline of .308 427 homers and 1,335 RBIs.
During his career he compiled these highlights:
-His 35 homers as a rookie in 1993 were the most since Matt Nokes' 32 in 1987.
-In 1997 and 1999 his 40 homers are the fourth-most by a catcher, behind Hall of Famer Johnny Bench, Todd Hundley, and Javy Lopez.
-In 1997, his 201 hits were the most by a catcher in MLB history over 130 or more games.
On July 18, 2000 he hit his third grand slam of the season, matched by Carlos Beltran, John Milner, and Robin Ventura.
He had 72 RBIs before the All-Star Break were the most in Mets history, breaking the 69 by Dave Kingman in 1976.
He had nine career 30-homer seasons, including eight consecutive from 1995-2002
In 1996, 1997, and 2000, he led the All-Star Voting
From 1993-2001 he hit over .300.
On June 29, 1996 he hit 3 homers against the Rockies.
Piazza's career numbers, combined with his twelve All-Star appearances, (1993-2002, 2004-2005) and ten consecutive Silver Slugger Awards (1993-2002), in addition to his 1993 Rookie of the Year Award and 1996 All Star Game MVP, prove his worth to the teams he played on during his career.
The hit that healed a nation, Piazza's three-run home run on September 21, 2001, the first game in New York since 9/11.
The infamous "broken bat incident" in the 2000 World Series.
Mike Piazza WILL get into the Hall of Fame in 2013, and when he does, you can be sure that I will be there watching his induction!
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