HALL OF FAME – RULES OUTLINE
1 General Overview
1.1 The MWBL Hall of Fame (MHOF) will be composed of two sections: (1) Hall of Fame & (2) Exhibits Section. The MHOF Committee and the Veterans’ Committee will administer the MHOF.
1.2 The MHOF Committee is a three-person body composed of two MWBL owners appointed by the Commissioner (one serving as Chair) with the third member being the Commissioner. The MHOF is currently Casey Hoch (Chair), Steve Cutler (Assistant Commissioner), and John “Stray” Corrado (Commissioner). MHOF Committee Chair will Chair the Veterans Committee.
1.3 Each MWBL Franchise will accumulate MHOF points on the following basis:
Each year of ownership 100 points
Future’s top 25% 20 points
Future’s mid 50% 10 points
Future’s low 25% 5 points
1.4 Each year on November 1st, each MWBL Franchise MHOF point total will be multiplied by the following factor:
.550+ winning % = 1.15
.450 – .549 winning % = 1.10
.449 & lower winning % = 0.95
1.5 When an MWBL Franchise reaches 404 MHOF points, they receive a permanent MHOF Exhibit and eligibility for a Veterans’ Committee seat for no fewer than 12 months.
1.6 When a permanent MHOF Exhibit and a Veterans’ Committee seat are awarded, 404 MHOF points are deducted from the MWBL Franchise’s current balance.
1.7 MWBL Franchise MHOF points are frozen when an owner leaves the league.
2 Hall of Fame
2.1 Induction to the MHOF may occur through Voted Induction via the General Ballot or Veterans’ Committee Induction.
2.1.1 Voted Induction – Any owner who does not have at least 1 full year of prior MWBL experience is prohibited from voting – previous owners returning from a hiatus are eligible to vote, as long as they have at least 1 full year of MWBL experience in their current stint in the MWBL.
2.1.1.1 General Election
2.1.1.2 The MHOF Committee maintains the MHOF General Ballot.
2.1.1.3 MHOF General Election voting will commence each year, on or around November 1st.
2.1.1.4 Each MWBL Franchise receives one ballot and may vote for a maximum of 10 players.
(changed in 2018 from 7 to 8) & (changed in 2022 from 8 to 10)
2.1.1.5 In order to be elected, a player must receive votes equal to 2/3 (66.7%) of the total number of eligible voters.
2.1.1.6 No more than 5 players may be elected each year. If more than 5 players achieve the required 2/3 majority vote, the top 5 in vote totals will be elected. If multiple players achieve the required 2/3 majority vote and receive enough votes to tie them among the top 5 in vote totals, then all such players will be elected to the Hall of Fame exception for the stated maximum of 5 players.
2.1.1.7 A player must have participated in a minimum of 10 MWBL seasons to be eligible for the MHoF General Ballot. An eligible player will be placed on the General Ballot after two consecutive years without a card. A player may be temporarily withheld from the General Ballot if there is a reasonable possibility of that player returning to the game, such as a player missing two years due to injury or suspension.
2.1.1.8 Any player receiving no votes in their first year of eligibility will be removed from the General Ballot and will be ineligible for Veterans’ Committee consideration. Any player on the General Ballot receiving at least one vote in the first year of eligibility but no votes in any subsequent year of eligibility will be removed from the General Ballot and will be eligible for Veterans Committee consideration.
2.1.1.9 A player will be removed from the General Ballot after 4 years unless he received votes equal to at least 5% of the number of eligible voters in the most recent election. Upon removal from the General Ballot, the player will be eligible for the Veterans’ Committee consideration.
2.1.1.10 All players will be removed from the General Ballot after 10 years. Upon removal from the General Ballot, the player will be eligible for the Veterans’ Committee consideration.
2.1.2 The Veterans’ Committee (VC)
2.1.2.1 The Veterans’ Committee has three functions within the MHOF: to consider MHOF induction for players eligible for Veterans’ Committee consideration, to consider MHOF induction for managers, and to settle disputes concerning which franchise hat a player wears for their induction.
2.1.2.2 The MHOF Committee will administer the Veterans’ Committee and Waiting List.
2.1.2.3 The Veterans’ Committee is composed of 9 MWBL owners.
2.1.2.4 The Commissioner, Assistant Commissioner & Hall of Fame Chair permanently comprise 3 of the 9 Veteran Committee owners.
2.1.2.5 An owner is placed on the Veterans’ Committee Waiting List when they receive 404 MHOF Points.
2.1.2.5.1 On November 1st, the 9 owners on the Waiting List the longest are placed on the Veterans’ Committee. Priority on the Waiting List is determined by tenure, then by most MHOF Points when listed.
2.1.2.6 An owner will serve on the Veterans’ Committee for a minimum of 12 months, however, may remain on the Veterans’ Committee for an additional year if there is no replacement on the Waiting List.
2.1.2.7 The Veterans Committee will convene between November 1st and December 1st of each year.
2.1.2.8 Veterans’ Committee Player Vote will occur on odd-numbered years.
2.1.2.9 The Veterans’ Committee Player Ballot is created via a nomination system. At the beginning of the convening of the Veterans’ Committee on November 1st,, each member may secretly nominate one, and only one, player for VC consideration. A VC member must submit their nomination directly to the Commissioner for compilation within seven days of the convention.
2.1.2.10 Each nomination must be supported with an explanation of why the nominee deserves the election. Multiple VC members may nominate the same player, as the nomination process is initially secret. . At least seven Yes votes are required for a Veterans’ Committee Player Induction. If a candidate receives at least seven nominations, that player will be considered inducted and will not need to be voted upon further.
2.1.2.11 After the seven-day nomination submission deadline has concluded, the Commissioner will release the nominations and the supporting arguments to the VC. The VC will have seven days to discuss the nominees and attempt to support or refute the worthiness of the nominees to enter the MHOF.
2.1.2.12 After the seven-day discussion period has ended, the Commissioner will make available a ballot consisting of all nominees. Each VC member will vote Yes or No on each candidate. Thus, each VC member could support all, some, or none of the candidates; and all, some, or none of the candidates may be inducted. The voting will remain open until the December 15 deadline.
2.1.2.13 At least seven Yes votes are required for a Veterans’ Committee Player Induction.
2.1.2.14 Veterans’ Committee Manager Vote will occur on even-numbered years.
2.1.2.15 The Veterans’ Committee Manager Ballot is created via a nomination system. To be eligible, a manager must have had six full years of service in the MWBL. The six full years do not need to be concurrent. A manager who is no longer in the league will remain eligible following their departure until two consecutive voting periods have elapsed in which they have received no nominations, after which they will be removed from Veteran’s Committee consideration.
2.1.2.16 At the beginning of the convening of the Veterans’ Committee on November 1st, each member may secretly nominate one, and only one, manager for VC consideration. A VC member must submit their nomination directly to the Commissioner for compilation within seven days of the convention.
2.1.2.17 Each nomination must be supported with an explanation of why the nominee deserves the election. Multiple VC members may nominate the same manager, as the nomination process is initially secret. No manager may nominate himself/herself.
2.1.2.18 After the seven-day nomination submission deadline has concluded, the Commissioner will release the nominations and the supporting arguments to the VC. The Commissioner will make available a ballot consisting of all nominees. The VC will have seven days to discuss the nominees and cast their ballots.
2.1.2.19 Each VC member may vote for as many managers as they feel are worthy of the HoF, or they may vote “NONE”.
2.1.2.20 At least seven votes for induction are required for a Veterans’ Committee Manager Induction. Managers may vote for themselves during this election.
Only one manager per election may be inducted into the HoF.
2.1.2.21 A minimum of seven votes for induction are required for a Veterans’ Committee Manager Induction. Only one manager per election may be inducted into the HoF. If multiple managers have received the necessary votes, the manager with the most votes will be inducted. If the managers have the same votes, the manager who received the most nominations will be inducted. If the managers have received the same number of nominations, the following tie-breaking criteria will be used:
1. Years in the league
2. Best overall record
3. Number of World Series Championships
4. Number of League Championships
2.2 Once the sole nominee for induction has been selected, the Commissioner will make available a ballot for this nominee. Each VC member will vote Yes or No on the managerial candidate. At least seven Yes votes are required for a Veterans’ Committee Manager Induction.
2.3 MHOF Inductee Hats – Any Franchise that an MWBL – HOF inductee has played for may request that a player inducted to the MHOF wear their Franchise Baseball Hat. If more than one Franchise requests their hat be worn by the same player, the Veterans Committee will make the final determination.
3 MWBL Hall of Fame Exhibits
3.1 When an MWBL Franchise reaches 404 MHOF points, they receive a permanent MHOF Exhibit.
3.2 The MWBL owner may represent any significant event or player to commemorate in their Exhibit.
3.3 The Exhibit can include written content, pictures, quotes, sound files – basically anything the owner wishes to include. Creativity is encouraged.
3.4 The MWBL owner is responsible for providing to the MHOF Committee Chair between January 15th & May 15th of the year that the Exhibit is awarded.
3.5 MWBL Hall of Fame Exhibits are meant to celebrate the individual contributions of each MWBL owner and franchisee.
3.6 Each time a Franchise has an Exhibit submitted and approved, they are awarded 50 MHOF bonus points as a reward for their activity.