Sports and the Hall of Fame: A Reflection on Forgiveness
How will we feel next summer at Cooperstown if Roger Clemens, Barry Bonds, and Carlos Beltrán stand on stage holding Hall of Fame plaques?
Concerns Across Sports Halls of Fame
There is also uncertainty about how the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame will respond if Chauncey Billups, an inductee, is convicted in connection with a gambling and money laundering scheme.
In football, O.J. Simpson was never expelled from the Pro Football Hall of Fame. Alan Eagleson remains the only individual removed from the four major sports Halls of Fame. In hockey, Bobby Orr’s corrupt agent resigned from the Hockey Hall in 1998, just before the board planned to expel him.
The Climate of Forgiveness in Baseball
At present, baseball appears to embrace a forgiving stance. A notable example is Fenway Park’s dugout, where Alex Cora, regarded as one of the Red Sox’s greatest managers, has seemingly moved past his involvement in the 2017 Astros cheating scandal.
Major League Baseball suspended Cora, then a bench coach for the Astros, and Houston manager A.J. Hinch for one year. Both have since returned to managing playoff teams, and the controversy has largely faded from public discussion.
"MLB suspended Cora (a bench coach then with the Astros) and Houston manager A.J. Hinch for a year, but both are back in the dugout with playoff teams and nobody really brings it up anymore."
Author’s summary: Sports institutions, especially in baseball, show a growing tendency toward forgiveness despite scandals, raising questions about the future integrity of their Halls of Fame.