Bonds, Clemens and Schilling are the most notable and long-discussed of the group. All three fell off the writers’ ballot last winter after failing to reach 75% of the vote for a 10th consecutive year, thereby exhausting their eligibility. They’ll immediately garner renewed consideration, this time from the Era Committee after their progress on the writers’ ballot stalled — or in Schilling’s case, dropped after he attempted to remove himself from the ballot as his support dwindled following a number of controversial public statements — towards the end of their time under consideration.

Clemens and Bonds, of course, have slam-dunk Hall of Fame statistics but were left outside the Hall due to their ties to performance-enhancing drugs. Both were named as alleged steroid users in the 2007 Mitchell Report. Palmeiro’s HOF candidacy was also derailed by PED ties, in his case a 2005 suspension for a failed test that came a few months after he denied ever taking steroids during Congressional testimony the preceding spring. Palmeiro spent four seasons on the writers’ ballot but fell off in 2014 after receiving less than the 5% of the vote needed to remain under consideration.

Belle lasted two seasons on the writers’ ballot, falling below the 5% threshold in 2007. Mattingly, McGriff and Murphy all spent the maximum allotted time under consideration by the BBWAA but never crossed the necessary 75% threshold. Mattingly’s vote share peaked at 28.2% in his first year on the ballot. Murphy topped out at 23.2%, while McGriff’s vote share hit its apex at 39.8% during his final year in 2019.

The Era Committee’s purpose is to induct players who may have slipped through the cracks on the BBWAA ballot. It has historically cast a wider net for induction than has the Writers Association. This year’s crop of players are part of the “Contemporary Baseball Era,” which considers players whose primary contributions to the sport have come since 1980. Voting will be conducted on December 4.

Bonds and Clemens have two of the greatest statistical resumes in major league history and would’ve been first-ballot Hall of Famers had it not been for their ties to performance-enhancing drugs. Bonds is the all-time leader in career home runs (762). Among position players, he ranks second all-time behind Babe Ruth in FanGraphs measure of Wins Above Replacement. Baseball Reference has Bonds and Ruth tied for first in career position player value (before accounting for Ruth’s contributions as a pitcher). Bonds won seven MVP awards and was a 14-time All-Star.

Clemens, meanwhile, has a strong case as the most accomplished pitcher in the game’s history. An 11-time All-Star and seven-time Cy Young award winner, he appeared in 24 MLB seasons and won seven ERA titles. He ranks third in career strikeouts (4,672), ninth in pitcher wins (354) and is third among pitchers (excluding Ruth) in BRef’s WAR metric.

Each of Bonds and Clemens have a laundry list of accolades, but their non-inductions are obviously not about any flaws in their numbers. Both players, instead, are left outside the Hall because of their ties to performance-enhancing drugs. Both players were named as alleged steroid users in Senator George Mitchell’s 2007 report. Each of Bonds and Clemens were summoned to testify as part of Congressional hearings on PED usage in baseball; Bonds was later convicted on an obstruction of justice charge for giving an evasive answer during his testimony.

Whether to include alleged steroid users in the Hall of Fame has been a subject of (often bitter) debate amongst fans and writers. “Sportsmanship” and “character” are among the factors the Hall includes in its instructed criteria for voters, and those terms have been leveraged to make both moral arguments and questions about the authenticity of those players’ numbers to support steroid users’ exclusions from the Hall. Enough voters remained steadfast in their objection to including those implicated with PED’s to keep either Bonds or Clemens from accruing enough late-ballot momentum to get across the 75% threshold for induction. Both players finished in the 65% – 66% range on their final years on the ballot — a small but obviously insufficient bump relative to last season’s 61% – 62% marks.

Schilling appeared in parts of 20 MLB seasons. A six-time All-Star, he never won a Cy Young but finished as a runner-up on three separate occasions. Schilling “only” won 216 career games, but he owned a 3.46 ERA over 3261 innings. His 3116 strikeouts place 15th on the all-time list. Among the top 14, Clemens is the only player not enshrined in the Hall of Fame.

Yet Schilling has seen dwindling support in recent years in the wake of a series of controversial public statements. As it became clear he was unlikely to be elected by the BBWAA, Schilling requested to have his name removed from this year’s ballot. That wasn’t granted, although he did see a 12-point drop in vote share between 2021 and 2022 after his push to be removed from consideration. Schilling appeared on 58.6% of ballots this year.

Sosa, somewhat curiously, never had the same level of support as any of Bonds, Clemens or Schilling. He received just 18.5% of the vote this year and never threatened election during his time on the ballot. Despite being one of just nine players to exceed 600 career home runs, Sosa’s career .273/.344/.534 slash line “only” checked in 24 percentage points above the league average by measure of wRC+. Moreover, he wasn’t a highly-regarded defender. But Sosa was one of the sport’s most famous and productive sluggers at his peak, hitting an astounding 332 home runs between 1998-2003 (more than 55 per season).

No doubt contributing to his dearth of support is that Sosa reportedly failed a 2003 survey test for performance-enhancing drugs. As Jay Jaffe of FanGraphs recently explored, though, MLB commissioner Rob Manfred later cast some doubt about the reliability of those results (which had been intended to remain anonymous). Ortiz also reportedly failed that same survey test, but enough voters looked on those results with skepticism to elect him on the first ballot. Sosa was never suspended for a PED test in his career, although he was hit with an eight-game ban in 2003 for corking his bat.

Each of Bonds, Clemens, Schilling and Sosa will need to rely on one of the Era Committees if they’re now to gain induction. Those committees have tended to be more favorable to candidates than has the BBWAA, although it remains to be seen how they’ll approach this particular group of highly controversial candidates.

As far as returning candidates go (full results available here), Scott Rolen jumped from 52.9% to 63.2% in his fifth year. Todd Helton (4th year) and Billy Wagner (7th year) each eclipsed 50%. Andruw Jones and Gary Sheffield both landed in the low-40% range, while Jeff Kent, Manny Ramirez, Omar Vizquel, Andy Pettitte, Bobby Abreu, Mark Buehrle and Torii Hunter received less than 30% of support. (Vizquel’s vote share was cut nearly in half after separate domestic violence and sexual harassment allegations were levied against him within the past thirteen months).

Among first-time candidates, only Alex Rodriguez (34.3%) and Jimmy Rollins (9.4%) received more than the 5% necessary to remain on the ballot for future consideration. As with Bonds and Clemens, Rodríguez has obvious Hall of Fame statistics but PED ties that’ll hamper his path to induction. Joe Nathan, Tim Lincecum, Ryan Howard, Mark Teixeira, Justin Morneau, Jonathan Papelbon, Prince Fielder, A.J. Pierzynski, Carl Crawford and Jake Peavy fell shy of the 5% threshold and dropped off the ballot, as did second-year candidate Tim Hudson.

Everyone wants to leave on a high note, but that’s easier said than done.  In 2004, Clemens inked a one-year deal to join up with the Astros.  In 2005, Clemens once again toyed with the idea of retirement, but was coerced to return to Houston with a one-year, $18MM deal.  After yet another World Series appearance, that was believed to be the end of the road for Clemens.

On this date in 2006, Clemens signed a deal to pitch for the Astros for the remainder of the season.  The pact was technically a record-setting one-year, $22MM deal, but because it was a prorated contract, Clemens received a little over half of that.  Even in his age 43 season, Clemens showed that he had plenty in the tank.  In 19 starts, the veteran pitched to a 2.30 ERA with 8.1 K/9 and 2.3 BB/9.  Had he pitched that way starting in April, there’s little doubt that the right-hander would have earned his fourth consecutive All-Star appearance.

Of course, this wasn’t Clemens’ final comeback.  In 2007, the Rocket showed up in George Steinbrenner’s box at Yankee Stadium to let everyone know that he’d be joining the Bombers.  “Thank y’all,” Clemens said to the Bronx crowd. “Well they came and got me out of Texas, and I can tell you its a privilege to be back. I’ll be talkin’ to y’all soon.”  Clemens would reemerge with the Sugar Land Skeeters in 2012, but the ’07 season would mark his last in Major League Baseball.

• General manager Jeff Luhnow told reporters, including MLB.com's Brian McTaggart, that the team's bullpen can't take much more of the past week's trends: "We can't take too many more hits before we have to go out and make some moves."
• Luhnow has no plans to trade Bud Norris anytime soon, reports McTaggart. Luhnow told McTaggart that Norris is a "critical part of the team" and noted that the constant rumors are unfortunate for all parties involved. Norris hasn't been on the trading block for quite some time, according to Luhnow.
• Luhnow also said that Erik Bedard is basically "going through the finishing touches of Spring Training" (Brian T. Smith of the Houston Chronicle reporting via Sulia). The Astros have limited Bedard to four innings per appearance thus far, which has contributed to the aforementioned 15 1/3 innings stat.
• McTaggart reports that the Astros have sent Roger Clemens out to scout potential No. 1 overall draft picks (Twitter link). The Astros seem to be focused on college players, as McTaggart goes on to list right-hander Mark Appel (Stanford), right-hander Jonathan Gray (Oklahoma), left-hander Sean Manaea (Indiana State) and third baseman/outfielder Kris Bryant (San Diego) as players of interest.

• Grantland's Jonah Keri wonders if the Diamondbacks lost leverage in Justin Upton trade negotiations after their deal with the Mariners fell through. Keri also examines several trades from the past 30 years in which a well-regarded player who had fallen out of favor with the franchise was traded.
• The Rangers are "keeping the lines of communication open" when it comes to free agent Michael Bourn and trade candidate Justin Upton, tweets Jon Paul Morosi of FOX Sports. If either's price comes down to the liking of GM Jon Daniels, Texas is prepared to take action.
• Jerry Hairston Jr. is in the final year of a two-year, $6MM contract, and he told Dylan Hernandez of the Los Angeles Times that he'll retire if the Dodgers win the World Series this season. Hairston already has one World Series ring, having been a part of the 2009 Yankees and says "you can't get any better" than retiring after a World Series win.
• Roger Clemens sat down with CSN Houston's Steve Bunin to discuss his 2013 role with the Astros and confirmed again that he will not pitch next season. Clemens said he would've had to start training in November to make a serious run at a comeback. Instead, he'll help Houston by mentoring their young arms in Spring Training. For the time being, he's not interested in a full-time role with the organization, however.
• Wendy Thurm of Fangraphs takes a look at a potential Posey extension and notes the risk involved in doling out a massive contract for a player whose career only includes 1255 plate appearances to date.

Clemens, 50, has made two starts for the independent Sugar Land Skeeters in recent weeks. He threw eight shutout innings total and ran his fastball up into the upper-80s. The Astros did scout his outings and team owner Jim Crane did confirm that he's open to signing the veteran right-hander. Clemens is scheduled to appear on the Hall of Fame ballot for the first time next year, but pitching in a big league game would rest his five-year waiting period.

• Owner Jim Crane told reporters, including MLB.com's Brian McTaggart, that the team has begun interviewing managerial candidates. The Astros' list of candidates contains six to eight candidates.
• Crane also added that Craig Biggio, who spent 20 years playing for the Astros, is assisting in the interview process (McTaggart reporting).
• Luhnow told reporters today that the team has scheduled out its rotation for the remainder of the season, and it doesn't include Roger Clemens, who won't pitch in the Major Leagues in 2012 (via McTaggart). Clemens recently told reporters he hopes to be with the Astros in 2013, though he conveniently neglected to specify whether that meant as a coach or a player.
• Paul Sullivan of the Chicago Tribune reports that Crane still wants Clemens to pitch in 2012, but not against a contender. Sullivan adds that Cubs manager Dale Sveum thinks it would be good for his team to face Clemens.

“Well, not this year,” replied Clemens when asked if he'll pitch in the big leagues this season, reiterating what he said a few days ago. “But we’ll see what happens after that. I’m not going to rule anything out. I don’t know what Koby is going to do, where he ends up. I hope to end up probably in February with the Astros, put on a uniform and help those kids. That’s probably next.”

He didn't specify if he would like to wear that uniform as a player or coach, though I think it's fair to assume he would prefer to be an active player. Astros owner Jim Crane is open to signing Clemens and they have been scouting his recent outings, but it doesn't sounds like the two sides have had any dialogue about a contract yet.

"I'd listen to [Crane], but I'd have to do some work again," said Clemens. "I just don’t think I'm close to pitching in a Major League game."

ESPN's Buster Olney says (on Twitter) that Clemens opened last night's outing by throwing 79 mph in the first inning, but that climbed to 84 in the second, 86 in the third and fourth, and then 87 in the fifth. That is obviously way down from his prime, ditto the 90.3 mph he averaged with the Yankees during his final season in 2007.

Returning to a Major League club as an active player (and appearing in a game) would restart Clemens' five-year waiting period for the Hall of Fame. He will appear on the ballot for the first time next year along with Barry Bonds, Sammy Sosa, Mike Piazza, and others. Despite his seven Cy Young Awards and historic playing career overall, Clemens seems unlikely to be inducted into Cooperstown on the first ballot due to the PED shroud. Delaying his candidacy five years could improve his chances for induction.

• Two National League executives had no reservations about spending on Cano. “Pay him what he's worth," one said. The other said Cano has a legitimate case for a $200MM extension.
• The execs praised Granderson as a person but questioned his value on the field. A $100MM contract would be excessive in the view of one executive. Both Cano and Granderson will be eligible for free agency following the 2013 season, assuming the Yankees exercise their '13 club options.
• Similarly, the executives don’t consider Swisher a candidate for a Jayson Werth-type deal (seven years and $126MM). Swisher may look to match Werth’s contract as a free agent this coming winter.
• The Nationals have considered picking up their side of Adam LaRoche’s $10MM mutual option for 2013 and keeping Bryce Harper in center field, Stark reports. Alternatively, they could sign Michael Bourn when he hits free agency, move Harper to a corner spot and trade Michael Morse. I examined LaRoche’s option in detail last week, before his recent hot streak.
• The Phillies are looking at third base and left field options for next year and that search includes players already in the organization. One scout has been impressed by 26-year-old Darin Ruf, who hit 38 home runs at Double-A this year. "He might be Matt Holliday," the scout said, praising Ruf's hitting ability.
• An old friend of Roger Clemens doesn’t believe the seven-time Cy Young Award winner when he says he’s not thinking about playing at the MLB level. The person expects Clemens to sign with the Astros this month.

"I don't see it happening," Clemens told reporters.

The Astros will scout the 50-year-old's next start, but the Rangers and Royals don't appear to have interest. Clemens, who last pitched in the Major Leagues for the 2007 Yankees, could delay his appearances on the Hall of Fame ballot if he appears in an MLB game this year. Astros players have told their friends they think Clemens will sign with Houston, ESPN.com's Jayson Stark reported last week.

• The Dodgers have $181.3MM committed to 17 players for next season, putting them at $3.3MM over the $178MM tax threshold. However, team president Stan Kasten says that he isn't terribly concerned about it.  "I don't know. It's not something we've focused on yet," he said. "To us, that's a secondary issue. First, we want to put the best team on the field now and worry about other things later. We're not focusing on that yet."  In the long term, Dodgers' brass wants to lean heavily on scouting and player development with a payroll close to what other teams in "similar markets" have, according to Kasten.
• The Red Sox are giving agents and other teams the vibe that they aren't in a rush to spend just because of their new found payroll space.  People who have talked with Boston predict that they're more likely to make creative moves this offseason rather than eat an undesirable contract like that of a Joe Mauer or Cliff Lee.
• Speaking of Mauer one exec that checked in on him says trade talk surrounding the catcher lately is "garbage."  As for Lee, Stark writes that he is also likely to stay as the Phillies made it clear earlier this year that they have no interest in moving him.
• Stark asked an AL scout and an NL scout about their thoughts on Dan Haren, who will be a free agent after the Angels buy out his final option year.  Both said that while there are concerns about his velocity and his all-around stuff, he could be an intriguing one-year pickup at the right price. 
• The scouts were also asked about Jeremy Guthrie and neither scout was terribly high on him.  The NL scout pointed out his high volume of mistakes over the plate but said that he would install him in the back of a rotation on a one-year deal.  The AL scout on the other hand said he would rather take his chances with Daisuke Matsuzaka or Haren.

The 50-year-old hurler last pitched in the majors in 2007 for the Yankees and can likely delay his Hall of Fame eligibility for another five years if he returns to the big leagues with Houston.  While the Astros have been linked to Clemens recently, the Rangers and Royals are reportedly not interested in his services.

Some news and notes from around the baseball world…

• “Every team needs a guy like [Nick] Swisher,” an AL executive tells Mark Feinsand of the New York Daily News.  “You watch him play every day and you can see how much he cares. I wish every player cared that much.”  Feinsand suggests that the Yankees could re-sign Swisher and move Brett Gardner to center field, thus creating room to trade the more expensive Curtis Granderson.  MLBTR's Ben Nicholson-Smith recently looked at Swisher's free agent stock.
• Chase Utley took some groundballs at third base before today's game and he told reporters (including MLB.com's Todd Zolecki) that he had approached the Phillies about getting some reps at third in order to "create some more flexibility as far as the organization is concerned."  Utley spent a season playing third in 2002 in Triple-A before but hasn't played at the hot corner since.
• Phillies GM Ruben Amaro Jr. commented on Utley's trial, noting that "in a perfect scenario," Utley could hold down third base until prospect Cody Asche is ready, theoretically for the 2014 season.  Amaro cautioned reporters (including Matt Gelb of the Philadelphia Inquirer) that it's hypothetical since Asche has yet to play above Double-A.
• Billy Hamilton will "probably not" be called up for September, Reds general manager Walt Jocketty tells MLB.com's Mark Sheldon.  Jocketty noted that the decision wasn't finalized yet, however, and that he was going to watch Hamilton play in person this weekend.
• Mets outfielder Scott Hairston believes the Diamondbacks claimed him off waivers, he tells Adam Rubin of ESPN New York (Twitter link).  The Giants were known to be interested in outfield help and Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports speculated earlier this month that the D'Backs would likely try to block Hairston or Juan Pierre from getting to their NL West rivals.  Rosenthal also reported that the team that claimed Hairston did so as a blocking maneuver.
• Roger Clemens is planning to start again for the Sugar Land Skeeters on September 7, according to a text the pitcher sent Mark Berman, sports director of FOX 26 KRIV (Twitter link).  Clemens, 50, threw 3 1/3 scoreless innings in his first start with the Skeeters on August 25.
• Gordon Edes of ESPN Boston suggests a few moves the Red Sox should make this offseason, including re-signing David Ortiz and Cody Ross and trying to add Justin Upton and a top-tier starting pitcher.
• Major League Baseball is investigating whether agents Sam and Seth Levinson arranged for former client Paul Lo Duca to meet with PED distributor Kirk Radomski, reports Bob Nightengale of USA Today.

Here are some items from the AL West…

• The Angels are unlikely to add a reliever before the waiver deadline, reports MLB.com's Alden Gonzalez, and GM Jerry Dipoto discusses how the new collective bargaining agreement has limited the trade market for relief pitching.
• Despite Dan Haren's struggles and injury issues this season, Fangraphs' J.P. Breen still thinks the Angels should pick up Haren's $15.5MM option for 2013, as Haren provides a better value at $12MM (factoring in his $3.5MM buyout) than possible free agent options.
• Athletics right-hander Graham Godfrey cleared waivers and was outrighted to Triple-A, tweets Susan Slusser of the San Francisco Chronicle.  The A's designated Godfrey for assignment last week.
• Rangers president Nolan Ryan seemed to dismiss the idea of his team having interest in Roger Clemens.  In an interview on the Galloway & Company show on ESPN 103.3 radio, Ryan said "I might call [Clemens], but I don’t think I’ll be calling him about a job.”  Clemens has signed a contract with the independent Sugar Land Skeeters and is rumored to be considering a Major League comeback, though Clemens has said he is "nowhere near" Major League shape yet.

• Alan Blondin of the Houston Chronicle writes that Roger Clemens called his recent performance for the Sugar Land Skeeters a favor to Skeeters manager Gary Gaetti. Clemens told Blondin he doesn't have plans for further pitching performances, but cautioned, "That could change in a couple days." 
• Twins general manager Terry Ryan feels that now is the time for Trevor Plouffe to step up and establish himself as the team's long-term answer at third base, writes Phil Mackey of 1500 ESPN. Mackey quotes Ryan as saying Plouffe "[has] the rest of the year" to show the Twins that third base isn't a position they need to address.
• Diamondbacks manager Kirk Gibson and general manager Kevin Towers told Nick Piecoro of the Arizona Republic that they don’t regret trading Stephen Drew to Oakland, even though Willie Bloomquist experienced a setback in his return from a back injury. “No. We wanted to see what [Jake] Elmore was capable of doing,” Towers said. “He’s held his own, I think, defensively out there.”
• David Ortiz, a free agent this offseason, wants to re-sign with the Red Sox, according to Alex Speier of WEEI.com. “This is what I know and this is something I want to be part of,” Ortiz said.
• The Athletics and Astros have improved their farm systems considerably in the last year, Jim Callis of Baseball America writes in this week’s edition of Ask BA.
• The Blue Jays should have publicly told the Red Sox that manager John Farrell is off-limits long ago, Shi Davidi writes at Sportsnet.ca. The Blue Jays have failed to limit speculation about the possibility of Farrell returning to Boston, Davidi writes. Toronto GM Alex Anthopoulos has said the Blue Jays won’t announce an extension with Farrell, even if the sides agree to one.

Steve Adams contributed to this post.