Greg Maddux, Tom Glavine and Frank Thomas Elected to the National Baseball Hall of Fame by the

By Francisco Romero

Photo Credit: Johathan Daniel, Jed Jacobson, Mike Fiala/Getty Images

Tucson, AZ – The Baseball Writers’ Association of America (BBWAA) elected three players to be inducted into the National Baseball Hall of Fame. Pitchers Greg Maddux and Tom Glavine and designated hitter / first baseman Frank Thomas all received more than 75 percent of the votes needed.  

It was only the second time in the history of the Hall of Fame that the BBWAA elected three players in their first year of eligibility.  In total 36 players were eligible for the Hall of Fame this year.  Former Houston Astros player Craig Biggio missed the 75-percent cutoff point of 429 by two votes.  Former starting pitcher Roger Clemens and former slugger Barry Bonds did not receive enough votes to make it to Cooperstown.   

The three players will officially be inducted into the Hall of Fame in ceremonies July 25 – 28 at Cooperstown, N.Y.  

Maddux and Glavine were longtime teammates with the Atlanta Braves.  In 23 seasons Maddux finished with a record of 355-227 and a 3.16 ERA, he won four consecutive Cy Young Awards from 1992-95, he played with Atlanta, Chicago, the Dodgers and San Diego. He was an eight-time All-Star.  Glavine a two-time Cy Young winner finished with a record of 305-203. A two-time AL MVP.  Thomas hit .301life time batting average and ended his career with 521 homers and 1,704 RBIs in 19 seasons with the White Sox, Toronto and Oakland.  

The BWAA had not elected three players in one vote since Nolan Ryan, George Brett and Robin Yount were elected to the Hall of Fame back 1999.  

Maddux, Glavine and Thomas will join Bobby Cox, Joe Torre and Tony La Russa, who were elected last month by the expansion-era committee. Maddux and Glavine played for Cox while he was the Atlanta Braves manager, for most of their careers.