Transplanted Texan: Mark McGwire, Tony Gwynn, and Cal Ripken will be on this year's baseball Hall of Fame ballot. There are a number of candidates we can have a "do they belong?" debate about (Gossage, Mattingly, et all), but Big Mac is the big one - does McGwire belong in the Hall of Fame? I say no.

DFO: A ESPN poll of prospective voters yesterday shows that only 20 percent support his first Hall of Fame bid. Character is one of the elements that voters are asked to consider before casting their ballots. McGwire, obviously, has the steriod stigma hanging over his head. Others do, too, most notably Barry Bonds who's threatening Henry Aaron's all-time HR record. However, if character is an issue, a good case could be made for booting Ty Cobb, who not only was a dirty player but also possibly racist.

Question: Should Mark McGwire and other steriod-era players eventually be allowed in the Hall of Fame?

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