McAdam: Ten Hall of Fame election thoughts - Curt Schilling getting in soon?

It was made official Tuesday night -- Mariano Rivera, Roy Halladay, Mike Mussina and Edgar Martinez will be inducted into Cooperstown this summer. What can we learn from that impending honor? (And a few other thoughts on the process thrown in for good measure.)

1. The unanimous search is over.

Rivera became the first player ever to be named on every ballot, and was a deserving candidate to do so. Ken Rosenthal properly called the infatuation with debating who would be the first player unanimously selection a "silly obsession,'' and he's exactly right. Too much time was devoted to bemoaning the fact Ken Griffey Jr. was not named on two ballots when he went in, and too much time was spent on devising theories as to why no one ever attracted 100 percent support.

That said, it was embarrassing to the Baseball Writers Association that it had never happened -- Babe Ruth, Willie Mays, Ted Williams ... none of them, incredibly, got every vote.

Now that Rivera has made history, it's time to put this tired storyline to bed.

2. This was a year to break down stereotypes.

In the past, it's been difficult for both closers and designated hitters to get elected. Only a handful of closers have been voted in, and while Harold Baines (elected by the Veterans Committee last month), Frank Thomas, Paul Molitor and others spent significant time at DH, Martinez becomes the first player to do so for much of his career.

However, I believe it might be tougher for closers going forward, as the save becomes more and more devalued. Moreover, what closer wants to have his career compared to Rivera's?

3. The old milestones are fading away.

It used to be starting pitchers needed 300 wins and hitters needed 3,000 hits. No longer.

Halladay won "only'' 203 games and Martinez had "only'' 2,247 hits (and 309 homers). As "counting stats'' -- wins, hits, RBI -- lose their currency, voters are properly taking a harder look at other numbers and analytics.

4. The results bode well for Curt Schilling and Larry Walker.

Schilling, who was on the ballot for the seventh time, went from being named on 51.2 percent of the ballots last year to 60.9. That's a significant jump. And with three years of eligibility, Schilling is certainly trending toward election.

It's not known whether the same can be said for Walker, who has just one year remaining on the ballot. But Walker soared in voting this year, named on 54.6 percent of all ballots, up dramatically from 34.1 percent.

Another leap will be necessary next year, his last chance. But at the very least, he now has better odds. And he'll get plenty of promotion on his final year of eligibility, too.

5. Once again, it's going to be crowded on the induction stage.

For the second straight year, the BBWAA elected four players. Add in Baines and Lee Smith from the Veterans Committee, and that's six players in Cooperstown on July 21.

Over the last six elections, 20 players have been elected by the BBWAA, the largest total ever over a six-year span in the history of the balloting.

The Hall of Fame -- which doesn't impact the balloting, it should be noted -- loves big classes since it usually means big crowds on Induction Weekend. Rivera's presence will boost those numbers further, given the proximity Cooperstown has for Yankee fans.

6. The climb will still be steep for Barry Bonds and Roger Clemens.

It's been an article of faith Bonds and Clemens would continue to see their support grow as older voters gave way to younger ones. The rationale: younger voters would be less bothered by suspected (or known) PED use.

And it's true, as Bonds' and Clemens' totals continue to climb. But this year's increase was almost negligible: Clemens went from 57.3 percent in 2018 to 59.5 and Bonds moved from 56.4 to 59.1. With just three years of ballot eligibility left, that rate of increase won't get them to the necessary 75 percent.

7. Please explain this discrepancy...

Bonds won seven NL MVPs. Clemens won seven Cy Young Awards. Bonds is the all-time home run leader, by both career and single-season. Only five pitchers who began their careers in 1900 or later won more games than Clemens.

Get it? We're talking all-time great. They are, almost inarguably, the greatest position player and starting pitcher of the last 30 years.

If you don't vote for either because of anti-PED stance, I understand and respect that principle. But how does one vote for one and not the other? And yet, 253 voted for Clemens and 251 for Bonds.

I'd love to hear from the two voters who voted for one and not the other.

8. I'm an incredibly....um...average voter.

This year, the average ballot case contained 8.1 names; my 2019 ballot had eight names: Rivera, Mussina, Martinez, Halladay, Clemens, Bonds, Schilling and Andruw Jones.

Until last year, I had been a proponent of the "small Hall'' approach, whereby only the absolute best of the best got my vote. But I changed that stance to be more inclusive and, concurrently, decided to vote for the best players, PED links or not.

9. I'm glad Andruw Jones survived.

Jones attracted only 32 votes, translating to 7.5 percent. But that keeps him above the threshold of 5 percent needed to remain on the ballot.

My vote for Jones draws criticism annually -- it comes with the territory -- but consider this: Baseball Reference revealed Tuesday, utilizing the defensive component of WAR, Jones is ranked as the best outfield defender of all time. Add in 434 career homers and that's good enough for me.

Jones is, effectively, the outfield version of Ozzie Smith.

10. Since we like to look ahead, next year's first-timers are pretty lean.

On the 2020 ballot, the first-time additions will include: Jason Giambi; Josh Beckett; Adam Dunn; Eric Chavez; Bobby Abreu; Paul Konerko; Cliff Lee; Alfonso Soriano; Rafael Furcal; and, of course, Derek Jeter.

Of that group, only Jeter looks like an obvious choice, so that should help Walker (on his last chance), as well as Schilling, and potentially, Clemens and Bonds.