There was much talk yesterday about how the Hall of Fame is changing its rules for electing both officials and those players that did not get in via election from the baseball writers.  Those not elected will be grouped by era: 1871-1946, 1947-1972, and 1973- present.  Its easy to see why these era’s were created- pre-integration, post-integration and post free agency.  The rule has been made to lesson the difficulty with comparing the importance of players and officials from different eras to the game in any one era.  Yesterday, many were buzzing about how this could help George Steinbrenner, as he really was one of the most important piece of baseball post 1973, as noted in this Tyler Kepner piece.

Steinbrenner isn’t the only person this is going to help.  Marvin Miller could be the other big winner, as without him their would be no free agency.   And now, instead of being compared to officials from other eras, or even players from other eras, he will stand against those in the post 1973 era and he will shine.  They rest all stood on his shoulders- and that has to be recognized.

The committees to elect each will come from current members of the Hall who played during those eras.  That will help both Steinbrenner and Marvin as well.  No longer will Miller be kept out by players who didn;t benefit from having a union.  Now, players like Reggie Jackson, Robin Yount, and George Brett will be voting of the post 1973 group, while Willie Mays, Yogi Berra and others who may not appreciate free agency in the same way will elect the best from another era.

This shift should also help all those specialists who didn’t exist prior to the 1970s.  The closers and the designated hitters that have long been help out of the hall should get another chance- if they were really that good- by getting on the ballot of their peers.

And it could, in the long run, change the way the steroid era is viewed.  In a few years, there will be the peers of Mark McGwire and Barry Bonds in the hall.  And after both have gone through, and been passed by, the regular election procedures, a jury of their peers will decide if they were really the best in the era, or if steroids changed everything.

The Hall will be shaped by those who are already inside.  And that should be exactly how the change should happen.