The Hall of Fame ballots are underway. Who doesn’t want to be a part of that elusive crowd, to be immortalized in Cooperstown? One of the biggest baseball legends, Gary Sheffield still dreams of this. Yet year after year he has failed in his bid, with 2024 being his 10th and final year of eligibility. Sheffield knows this and is frustrated at his ballot treatment.

The nine-time All-Star has been one of the most respected and feared hitters of his time. Sheffield’s reputation for heavy hits and brutal honesty made him a mainstay in the league. Yet one mistake was enough to tarnish the retired slugger’s legacy. It was a mistake that Sheffield has denied ever since but it has nonetheless affected his standing in the baseball world.

The Barry Bonds connection that still haunts Gary Sheffield

When USA Today interviewed Gary Sheffield, he touched upon how frustratingly deeply the BALCO scandal had affected his life. Though Sheffield has always denied allegations, it still affects him. As he said – “They called me to testify against Barry, I was a witness, not a suspect. Nobody investigates that.”

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Gary Sheffield vehemently denies ever taking any PED voluntarily. His story has always been the same – after the 2001 season, Sheffield went to San Francisco to train with then-Giants legend Barry Bonds, and the two had mutual admiration for each other at first. On Bonds’ insistence, Sheffield agreed to live in his house. They lifted weights, exercised, and trained hard. Sheffield’s knee had a cyst problem so he underwent surgery but three days later the stitches broke open.

That was when Bonds’ trainer gave him a cream to stop the excessive blood flow but that cream, unknown to Sheffield, contained steroids. The former slugger has always said that he did not know that there was something in that ointment, he just wanted to stop the bleeding. But ever since then, he has been forever attached to the PED scandal. 

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Even though Sheffield said he was a witness, not a culprit, the connection became permanent when his name was included in the Mitchell report. Suddenly he was a poster child for PEDs in baseball, the name Gary Sheffield forever tainted. And it never helped his Hall of Fame chances.

The Hall of Fame bid that keeps getting ignored

Gary Sheffield’s votes have gradually improved. In 2022, the 5x Silver Slugger got around 40% of the votes, this climbed to 55% in 2023. But Sheffield still has some distance to cover to that coveted 75%.

In his last year, the baseball legend hopes to get what he feels is rightfully his. Yet one cannot deny that sometimes perception plays a wider role than belief. Whatever the case, Sheffield’s story remains a talking point for a majority of baseball fans. The Hall of Fame class will be announced on Jan 23. 2024.

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