Will Frank Thomas and/or Greg Maddux be enshrined next year?
Will Frank Thomas and/or Greg Maddux be enshrined next year? (USATSI)

Miller on Hall of Fame: Quiet Cooperstown weekend 'kind of sad'

With Sunday being the Hall of Fame induction ceremony in Cooperstown, NY, baseball fans were treated to a bit of an empty feeling. That is, no living players were enshrined this time around and none from the BBWAA ballot made the cut.

In looking ahead to next year, it appears there won't be a repeat -- though I was pretty sure last time around that Craig Biggio was a sure bet, so you never know.

Some things to consider here.

1. The so-called steroid era. Many voters are refusing to vote for Hall candidates that either a) have admitted steroid use; b) have been connected to steroid use; c) have been speculated to have used steroids; or d) were big and hit for power. That's led to what appears to be an unbelievably loaded ballot.

2. Voters can only vote for a maximum of 10 players. If a voter does not consider the use of juice, one could make an argument for upwards of 20 players worthy of Hall admission, maybe even more. What if voters all pick and choose differently? That makes it awfully tough for an individual to get to 75 percent of the vote.

3. The first-timers. Some people believe there's a distinction between a "first-ballot" Hall of Famer and everyone else. For me, I always thought a Hall of Famer is a Hall of Famer is a Hall of Famer. Still, many disagree. If enough voters do, it's possible they'll view Greg Maddux much differently than, say, Mike Mussina or Jeff Kent.

4. The history of small classes. The BBWAA hasn't inducted as many as three players in a class since 1999 (no-brainers Nolan Ryan, George Brett and Robin Yount). It hasn't inducted as many as four since 1955 (Joe DiMaggio, Ted Lyons, Dazzy Vance and Gabby Hartnett). I count four guys below who I have a hunch will make it, but the history makes me question my guesses.

Here's a look ahead at some of the best candidates to make the cut. We aren't analyzing whether or not I think someone should get in. We are discussing whether or not I think they will in 2014.

Sure bets?

Greg Maddux -- I respect the voting body too much to call for sweeping changes, but if Maddux doesn't get in next year, there's a real problem. He's never been even remotely connected to PEDs of any sort and his body screams clean. With four Cy Young awards, over 350 wins, over 3,000 strikeouts, 18 Gold Gloves, a World Series ring and countless other accolades, I have no earthly idea how anyone could make an argument against voting for Maddux on the first try with a straight face. He should cruise in with over 90 percent of the vote. I look forward to bashing anyone against Maddux's enshrinement this coming January, because he surely won't get 100 percent of the vote.

Frank Thomas -- The Big Hurt boasts two MVPs and an outstanding career triple slash line of .301/.419/.555, good for an absurd 156 OPS+ in an offense-heavy era. He has 521 homers, 1,704 RBI, 1,494 runs and 495 doubles. So the rate stats and counting stats are easily good enough. As to the juice question, Frank is huge. Massive. But he's always been massive. I saw him in person this past year and he's still the same size as when he played, if not bigger. If he was using then, he still is -- and I doubt that. We'll see if 75 percent of the voters agree, but for me he's another no-brainer.

Craig Biggio -- Only 28 players in big-league history have at least 3,000 career hits. All but Pete Rose (banned), Derek Jeter (still active), Rafael Palmeiro (tested positive for banned substance) and Biggio aren't in the Hall. Biggio also ranks fifth in history with 668 career doubles and second with 285 hit-by-pitches. He got 68.2 percent of the vote last year, so that's a good indicator he'll get there this year, unless the first-year guys squeeze him out. Roberto Alomar, for example, went from 73.7 percent in his first year to 90 percent in his second year on the ballot.

Good chance

Jack Morris -- We'll have plenty of time to fight about Morris' merits for inclusion this coming December and January. For now we're only discussing whether or not he'll get in and my hunch is he will. He got 67.7 percent of the vote last year and with this being his 15th and final try, I think he gets enough of a "last try" bump. Then again, will the BBWAA end up with four players having more than 75 percent of the vote? Maybe Thomas gets squeezed out. Maybe Morris falls short. Maybe both. But I really feel like Maddux and Biggio are locks.

Best of 'outside looking in'

[Note, these are ranked in order of vote totals from last year with the first-year players at the end]

Jeff Bagwell -- His numbers scream Hall of Famer and he has never been strongly, publicly connected to PEDs, but obviously there are questions from within the voting body, as he hasn't gotten in yet. He has gone from 41.7 percent to 59.6 percent in three ballots, so there's momentum. But, again, the ballot is getting crowded.

Mike Piazza -- Similar to Bagwell on the Hall-worthy numbers and PED issue. And crowded ballot, of course. Piazza got 59.6 percent of the vote in his first try.

Tim Raines -- The new wave of stats -- Raines has excellent showings in on-base percentage, WAR and several advanced metrics -- has gotten Raines tons of support the past few years. In six tries on the ballot, he's gone from 24.3 percent to 52.2. It will be interesting to see if that trend continues, but he's not getting to 75 percent this time.

Lee Smith -- Big Lee isn't gonna make it. This will be his 12th year on the ballot, and his voting total dropped from 2012 (50.6 percent) to 2013 (47.8).

Curt Schilling -- He has been incredibly outspoken about being clean and speaking out against juicers, and has over 3,000 career strikeouts with a good (216-146) record, good ERA (3.46, 127 ERA+) and amazing postseason numbers (11-2, 2.23 ERA in 19 starts). Still, he got only 38.8 percent of the vote. So he's not getting in yet.

Roger Clemens -- Career stats say one of best five pitchers ever. The PED connection is what likely held him to 37.6 percent of the vote in his first go-round. If he ever gets in, it'll be several years down the road.

Barry Bonds -- Career stats say one of the best five players ever. The PED connection is what likely held him to 36.2 percent of the vote in his first go-round. If he ever gets in, it'll be several years down the road.

Edgar Martinez -- One of the best DHs of all-time got only 35.9 percent of the vote in his fourth try.

Alan Trammell -- He's not gonna get close. This will be his 13th year on the ballot and he only got 33.6 percent of the vote last time.

Larry Walker -- I'm not sure if it's the Coors Field stigma or if some BBWAA members think he juiced -- or both -- but 21.6 percent is awfully low. That's where he was in his third year on the ballot.

Fred McGriff -- Crime Dog got 20.7 percent of the vote in his fourth try.

Mark McGwire -- He would be an easy yes to the Hall without the PED question, but he's openly admitted he used and has seen voting totals steadily decline to 16.9 percent in his seventh year on the ballot. He's never getting in.

Don Mattingly -- This will be his 14th year on the ballot and he has never gotten more than 28.2 percent of the vote. Last year he got 13.2 percent. He's cooked.

Sammy Sosa -- He has more than 600 career home runs, but he also has the PED connection -- including when he suddenly "forgot" how to speak English in front of Congress. That was enough to get him only 12.5 percent of the vote last year. It's hard to see him ever getting in.

Tom Glavine -- He has 305 career victories. Every pitcher with at least 300 is in the Hall of Fame except Maddux (he will be in soon), Clemens (see above), Glavine and Randy Johnson (not yet eligible). I think that alone gets Glavine in eventually, but I feel like he's behind at least Maddux, Thomas, Biggio and Morris this time around. And a five-man Hall of Fame class is unprecedented, aside from the inaugural class of Ty Cobb, Honus Wagner, Babe Ruth, Christy Mathewson and Walter Johnson. To reiterate: I think Glavine should get in and my prediction is he ends up with the fifth-highest vote total this year. Based upon history, I don't think five guys get over 75 percent of the vote, so I think Glavine has to wait.

Mike Mussina -- A decent case can be made for Moose, but he's far behind the likes of Maddux and Glavine, so he'll have to wait a while. If ever.

Jeff Kent -- He's one of the best offensive second basemen in baseball history, but as we've already established, the ballot is just too crowded now. Kent will have 15 tries and very well may make it in, but it won't be for the next several.