Detroit Tigers fans will see familiar faces on the 2018 Hall of Fame ballot. Three newcomers with Detroit ties join returner Gary Sheffield on the quest for Cooperstown.
The Detroit Tigers are represented well on the 2018 Baseball Hall of Fame Ballot.
While no one on this ballot would go into the Hall of Fame wearing a Tigers hat, two players joining the ballot this year played a small portion of their careers in the Motor City.
The two newcomers, outfielder Johnny Damon and first baseman Aubrey Huff, will join holdover Gary Sheffield on the 33-man ballot.
Sheffield is entering his fourth year on the ballot.
He earned 13.3% of the votes last year, his highest total thus far. He has quite the uphill battle ahead of him to reach the 75% threshold necessary for induction into Cooperstown.
In addition to Damon, Huff and Sheffield, former Tigers first base coach and 24-year veteran Omar Vizquel will hit the ballot for the first time.
Vizquel spent the majority of his career with the rival Cleveland Indians, accruing 2,877 hits and winning 11 Gold Glove Awards.
The full ballot, according to MLB.com, is listed below:
Barry Bonds
Chris Carpenter
Roger Clemens
Johnny Damon
Vladimir Guerrero
Livan Hernandez
Trevor Hoffman
Orlando Hudson
Aubrey Huff
Jason Isringhausen
Andruw Jones
Chipper Jones
Jeff Kent
Carlos Lee
Brad Lidge
Edgar Martinez
Hideki Matsui
Fred McGriff
Kevin Millwood
Jamie Moyer
Mike Mussina
Manny Ramirez
Scott Rolen
Johan Santana
Curt Schilling
Gary Sheffield
Sammy Sosa
Jim Thome
Omar Vizquel
Billy Wagner
Larry Walker
Kerry Wood
Carlos Zambrano
Let’s take a look at the group of former Tigers and their chances for the Hall of Fame.