Report: HOF vetoed BBWAA vote to make ballots public

Prior to the ballots being sent out to Baseball Writers' Association of America members, there was a vote to decide whether to make their ballots public. Despite resounding support in favor of voter transparency, the Hall of Fame rejected the notion, according to Mike Petriello of MLB.com.

The vote was 80-9 in favor of public votes, per Jeff Fletcher or The Orange County Register.

Writers may still release their own ballots, but Cooperstown vetoed the forced transparency, according to Mark Feinsand of MLB.com

Related: Chipper Jones, Jim Thome highlight 2018 HOF ballot

Baseball Hall of Fame Vote Tracker works to curate ballots from the BBWAA Hall of Fame voters every year, counting more than 300 last year.

The electorate has until Dec. 31 to complete and return their Hall of Fame ballots before the 2018 class is officially announced.