The Hall of Fame selection is made by sports writers, but players are nominated by fans once they meet a set of criteria, is my understanding of the process.

I agree with Raptor.

Ever read Malamud's "The Natural?" Not see the movie--read the story. It doesn't have a happy ending that Redford tacked on. Sports isn't filled with wise and/or highly educated and highly moral people, it is filled with people who are good athletes who often cut short their education in order to grab that brass ring of wealth and fame via sports. There are some remarkable exceptions to this, of course, and they're the ones who set a standard that few others can follow but the public seems to see through rose-colored glasses as the template for all athletes. As a whole, athletes are probably MORE vulnerable to those human frailties that Rose displayed than many other groups. I cringe every time I hear of a talented young high school athlete signing a multi-million dollar contract, his mother at his side. Money and fame are corrosive influences when bestowed in that way on the very young.

SRS