Royals begin fan balloting for club’s 2017 Hall of Fame Class
The Royals on Wednesday opened online fan balloting for the franchise’s 2017 Hall of Fame class.
The eligible former Royals include outfielder Al Cowens, outfielder Johnny Damon, right-handed pitcher Al Fitzmorris, outfielder Bo Jackson, third baseman Kevin Seitzer, right-handed pitcher Jeff Suppan and third baseman/outfielder Mark Teahen.
Royals fans can vote online at Royals.com/HOFVote through Jan. 30. The fan vote represents just 10 percent of the balloting process. In addition to fans, all living members of the Royals Hall of Fame, select members of the Royals Board of Directors, members of the Kansas City Chapter of the Baseball Writers Association of America, some Kansas City electronic media representatives and Royals front office staff will cast ballots. A player must receive 75 percent of the vote to be inducted into the Royals Hall of Fame.
The club’s Hall of Fame voting process includes two phases. In addition to the regular phase in odd-numbered years, which focuses on former players and managers, a veterans committee phase takes place in even-numbered years, considering “both non-field personnel and players who have previously received Royals Hall of Fame votes [in the regular phase], but are no longer eligible for election in that manner,” according to the club.
Right-hander Kevin Appier and first baseman Mike Sweeney were the last two Royals players to be inducted into the club’s Hall of Fame.
This story was originally published January 18, 2017 at 7:29 PM with the headline "Royals begin fan balloting for club’s 2017 Hall of Fame Class."