For third straight election, Veterans Committee admits no one

Cal Ripken Jr. and Tony Gwynn were elected to the Hall by the Baseball Writers' Association of America in January. They will stand alone at the induction ceremonies July 29 in Cooperstown.

The 84 eligible voters on the Veterans Committee included 61 Hall members, 14 broadcasters, eight writers and one holdover from the previous panel.

Morgan said he voted for the maximum 10 players.

"I feel there are some guys out there that belong in the Hall of Fame," he said. "The writers voted on these people for 15 years and they weren't elected. Why are we being criticized because we haven't elected someone?"

Maury Wills, Joe Torre, Roger Maris, Luis Tiant and Bobby Bonds were among the 27 candidates on the players ballot.

"Noboby got in? That's too bad. I'm sorry to hear that," Torre said. "I'm not exactly sure what process they use. Don't forget, you've got the old guard and the young guard. People with different interests."

Torre drew 32 percent of the votes based on his playing career. The New York Yankees manager -- and former NL MVP -- is expected to be elected when his time in the dugout is considered.

"Joe Torre, when he retires and he has 8,000 wins or whatever, I think that people would vote for him," Morgan said.

Dick Williams, Whitey Herzog, Walter O'Malley and Charlie O. Finley also were among the 15 names on the composite ballot. Morgan said it was hard to pick from those candidates.

"It is difficult for some of the players or me to evaluate their performance on a Hall of Fame level. It is much easier for me to evaluate the players," Morgan said.

Miller received 63 percent, moving up from 44 percent in the previous election.

"Personally, I would love to see him get in," Torre said at the Yankees' spring camp in Tampa, Fla. "He's made such an impact on this modern player and the game itself."

Union head Donald Fehr said it was "profoundly disappointing" that Miller did not get enough support.

"Given the increased number of votes for Marvin this time, there is certainly reason to believe that the votes will be there in the future," he said.

Two years ago, Santo and Hodges each came within eight votes of election in drawing 65 percent.

Santo was a five-time Gold Glove winner and hit 342 home runs. Hall member Billy Williams was rooting hard for his old Cubs teammate.

"I kind of felt sorry for him because he was so looking forward to getting the call," he said. "I really thought the credentials that he has, he deserves to be in the Hall of Fame."