No excuse, no defense for these ballot balks

Help! I am consumed with guilt by association.

Yes, I am currently carrying card No. 151 in the Baseball Writers Association of America. Yes, I voted in the most recent Hall of Fame election. And, yes, I am deeply ashamed because, once again, two obvious candidates were denied the honor of being a unanimous choice of the voting body to receive baseball's highest honor. What if someone actually thought I were one of the eight who didn't deem Cal a legit Hall of Famer or the 13 who didn't think Gwynn had done enough to get in? I may not leave the house without a bag over my head.

Neither Tony Gwynn nor Cal Ripken should feel too insulted. No one has ever been voted unanimously to the Baseball Hall of Fame: not Babe Ruth, not Ty Cobb, not Ted Williams, not Stan Musial, not Willie Mays, not Hank Aaron, not Warren Spahn, not Mike Schmidt, not Tom Seaver (the highest percentage inductee at 98.84) -- no one.

There are Hall of Famers and there are Hall of Famers. We all know that. There is a reason why the aforementioned 11 men went in on the first ballot while such candidates as Jim Rice, Andre Dawson, Dale Murphy, Goose Gossage, Bert Blyleven, Jack Morris, and others are debated and analyzed annually. They are all borderline candidates, as good, some say, as many already in the Hall, so why aren't they included? The simple truth is that we're just not sure. Somewhere along the way, standards were relaxed. Read Bill James's seminal tome "Whatever Happened To The Hall of Fame?" if you care to be educated on the matter.

But also along the way there has been an abrogation of basic common sense among the voters. There are candidacies beyond discussion. I just gave you 11 of them. There are more, a lot more. In fact, I will now provide you with the full list of 60 players who should have been unanimous choices to become members of the Hall of Fame based on an affirmative answer to the following question:

"Can you honestly look me in the eye and say that this man should not be in the Hall of Fame? Yes or no?"

This is a list of men who, with the exception of Honus Wagner and Cy Young, had playing careers in the 20th century. Hence, no Cap Anson. The list does not include Negro league players because I can form a valid opinion about only a select few. Of course, Satchel Paige, Josh Gibson, Oscar Charleston, Martin Dihigo, and Cool Papa Bell belong in. Beyond that, I cannot say. It does not include Lou Gehrig or Roberto Clemente, the only two men enshrined by acclamation. Pete Rose? This is not the time for that discussion. But here, in alphabetical order, are the 61 men who should have gone in unanimously, No Questions Asked:

Hank Aaron, Grover Cleveland Alexander, Ernie Banks, Johnny Bench, Yogi Berra, Wade Boggs, George Brett, Lou Brock, Roy Campanella, Rod Carew, Steve Carlton, Ty Cobb, Mickey Cochrane, Eddie Collins, Dizzy Dean, Joe DiMaggio, Bob Feller, Carlton Fisk, Whitey Ford, and Jimmie Foxx.

Charlie Gehringer, Bob Gibson, Lefty Grove, Tony Gwynn, Harry Heilmann, Rogers Hornsby, Carl Hubbell, Reggie Jackson, Walter Johnson, Al Kaline, Harmon Killebrew, Sandy Koufax, Napoleon Lajoie, Mickey Mantle, Juan Marichal, Eddie Mathews, Christy Mathewson, Willie Mays, Paul Molitor, and Stan Musial.

Mel Ott, Jim Palmer, Cal Ripken Jr., Brooks Robinson, Frank Robinson, Jackie Robinson, Babe Ruth, Nolan Ryan, Mike Schmidt, Tom Seaver, George Sisler, Ozzie Smith, Warren Spahn, Tris Speaker, Bill Terry, Pie Traynor, Honus Wagner, Ted Williams, Carl Yastrzemski, Cy Young, and Robin Yount.

Go ahead. Look me in the eye and tell me that these men aren't all Hall of Famers.

So why hasn't anyone ever been a unanimous selection?

The primary reason, we are often told, is that some members of the voting body have a personal policy not to vote for someone the first year he is eligible. I cannot begin to comprehend the depths of such idiocy. I fear a few of these Neanderthals are still entrusted with a vote, and it's their intellectual company I do not wish to keep. Please be advised that I am not one of them. In fact, I am certain no Globie is. We may have our faults, but clinging to a foolish policy such as that one is not one of them.

The other reason not to vote for an obvious candidate on the first ballot is judgment. If one is not demonstrating obstreperousness by simply refusing to vote for a man in his first year of eligibility, then he does not vote for someone because he honestly feels the man is not worthy of inclusion.

The foolishness began in the very first election back in 1936 when neither Ty Cobb nor Babe Ruth was voted in unanimously. Who can possibly imagine what was going on inside the heads of the four gentlemen who did not vote for Cobb, or, even more amazingly to me, the 11 who declined to vote for Ruth, who, one year into retirement, was the single most influential player in the history of the game and who remains so even today, 71 years after playing his last game and 58 years after his death?

So the standard of obstinacy and/or ignorance was set. Why did 20 people not vote for Ted Williams in 1966? Why did 23 people not vote for Willie Mays in 1979? Why did nine men not vote for Hank Aaron in 1982? Why did nine men not vote for George Brett in 1999? And yes, while Tom Seaver did get a rousing 98.84 percent of the vote in 1992, what legitimate reason was there for five voters to say "no"?

It's almost enough to invoke a Groucho-like dictum: Do I really want to be a member of a club that harbors such nefarious people? It's appalling to think these people may hold valid driver's licenses and be allowed to vote for president if they cannot recognize as simple a proposition as Tom Seaver, Tony Gwynn, or Cal Ripken being a drop-dead, first-ballot Hall of Famer.

But please don't think I'm one of them. I did the right thing. I swear.

Bob Ryan is a Globe columnist. His e-mail address is ryan@globe.com.