5 things you need to know about the 2015 Hall of Fame ballot

The Baseball Writers' Association of America released the ballot for next year's Hall of Fame class Monday and, as expected, it's a loaded group of candidates.

There figures to be plenty of debate leading up to January's announcement of new inductees, but in the interim here's a primer on the main storylines you need to know.

Big-time newcomers

Three of the greatest pitchers of their generation - Randy Johnson, Pedro Martinez and John Smoltz - get their first crack at Cooperstown this winter and it should go without saying the trio all deserve first-ballot entrance.

Complicating matters, of course, is the rule limiting each BBWAA elector to voting for no more than 10 candidates - no matter how many players might be worthy of endorsement. That provision, coupled with a new eligibility rule (more on that below), promises to leave several strong candidates on the outside looking in, including ...

Big-time holdovers

Last year's so-called juiced ballot will be looking for sympathy in 2015, but repeat holdover Mark McGwire is proof that the steroid era needs more time to thaw out.

Alleged users Barry Bonds and Roger Clemens - as well as guilty-by-association Jeff Bagwell and Mike Piazza - all struggled to receive the consideration their career numbers suggest they should. Bagwell's candidacy is less bullet-proof than the other three, who can all make a case for being among the best players all-time at their position. 

Bonds' lack of support (34.7 percent in 2014) is especially controversial, given he's the career home run leader and arguably one of the greatest players in baseball history.

Craig Biggio just narrowly missed out on inclusion last year, garnering 74.8 percent of the vote - 75 percent is required for election - while Tim Raines will look to build on the extra boost of support he's managed to muster up since making his debut on the ballot in 2008.

Best of the rest

Mike Mussina somehow received just 20.3 percent of voters' support last year, despite a career that was statistically better than Jack Morris (he's no longer on the ballot but secured 61.5 percent of the vote in his final year of eligibility). 

Mussina, and possibly Curt Schilling, could either benefit from a ballot loaded with suspected PED users, or have their candidacy further exposed with the additions of Johnson, Martinez and Smoltz.

Other notable names who might steal votes from more worthy candidates include sluggers Edgar Martinez, Fred McGriff and first-year eligible Gary Sheffield. 

Sheffield has the strongest case of the three - 509 home runs, multiple top-5 MVP finishes and a career OPS+ of 140 - but his inclusion in the Mitchell Report and inferior power numbers to those of Bonds and Bagwell waters down his candidacy considerably.

One player who could benefit from the juiced ballot is Larry Walker. He received just 10.2 percent of the vote last year, but his career bWAR of 72.6 is higher than Raines, Martinez, Sheffield, Biggio, McGwire and Sammy Sosa.

Eligibility rule

The National Baseball Hall of Fame announced several policy changes last summer, including a significant amendment that promises to affect several fringe candidates.

Moving forward, the maximum length a player who receives at least five percent of the vote can stay on the ballot is 10 years. The previous term was 15. 

Three players - Don Mattingly (entering his 15th year), Alan Trammell (14th) and Lee Smith (13th) - were grandfathered into the new system, meaning they remain eligible for the full 15 years.

Morris and Rafael Palmeiro are among those no longer on the ballot. They are still eligible for consideration by the Era Committee.

The WAR on HOF

Strictly using a counting stat such as wins above replacement to evaluate a player's Hall of Fame candidacy would be short-sighted, but it does offer a nice and tidy number for comparison's sake. 

Here are the top 20 players eligible for next year's class ranked by WAR:

(Courtesy: Baseball-Reference.com)