What is Baseball’s Veterans Committee?

Visits: 19

The Major League Baseball Hall of Fame (HoF) is best known for it’s annual elections made by the Baseball Writers’ Association of America (BBWAA), but did you know there is a separate voting body that can also elect members into the HoF? The Committee on Baseball Veterans, more commonly known as the Veterans Committee dates back to 1939 and it is the only way non-players like managers, executives, umpires, broadcasters, etc. can become members of the HoF.

With the MLB World Series finished, Baseball enters into the Hot Stove season where the Winter Meeting are held, trades are made, free agents are signed and the next Hall of Famers are announced. But, if you want to get your baseball fix now, you can find baseball live scores of the Dominican Republic League: Lidom where games are currently being played. This professional Dominican league plays a 50 game schedule in the Winter from October through the end of December with Playoffs in January.

The Veterans Committee has gone through more than it’s fair share of iterations, controversies, etc. For a basic rundown of the history of the VC, its Wikipedia page will be sufficient, detailing the changes made in 2001, 2007, 2010, 2016 & most recently in 2022. For a detailed description of the current iteration of the VC, check out the Baseball HoF site.

For an excellent read on the history of the changes to the VC, especially the latest changed made earlier this year, please check out Jay Jaffe’s FanGraphs’ article from April 26, 2022!

Teaser: Be on the lookout for an upcoming article based upon the last chapter of G. Scott Thomas’s new book, “Cooperstown at the Crossroads” where I will be writing about the final chapter of the book that talk about Thomas’ ideas on fixing the Baseball Hall of Fame.