Detroit Tigers: From Kearney Mesa to Cooperstown, Alan Trammell’s Journey to the Hall

Trammell’s Hall of Fame Balloting

With new tools used for assessing potential Hall of Fame candidates, the BBWAA seemed to discard the sabermetric tools when judging Trammell.

These same tools were the basis for the argument that Jack Morris should not be considered a Hall of Fame Candidate.

The writers did not compare Trammell against all-time shortstops but against Yount and Ripken. Had the Detroit Tiger been compared to Hall of Fame shortstops of the past, he might have been a first ballot selection.

In the eyes of the writers, Trammell fell short. During the 15 years on the BBWAA ballots, Tram received on average 15% to 20% of the votes. He did not exceed 40% until his last year on the ballot.

Modern Baseball Era Committee

Previously known as the Veterans committee, The Eras committee is composed of six Hall of Fame players, a Hall of Fame manager, and an assortment of executives, BBWAA members and a historian.

In December 2017, the Era’s committee righted grievous wrongs. With the likes of George Brett, Rod Carew and Robin Yount all voting, the committee voted Alan Trammell and Jack Morris into the Hall of Fame.

The 16 member committee felt that the two were worthy of selection. Certainly, that group of Hall of Fame members knew who were the dominate and great player contemporaries of that period.