Maintaining The Brotherly Bonds

There is currently a vibrancy at the lodge that I haven’t seen for some time. I have been fielding emails and calls for weeks wanting more information about different programs, dates of when events are scheduled, offers to assist me with some of the initiatives underway, and some are just interested in meeting and learning more about the fraternity. Many of the brothers at the lodge are either active or looking for some way to increase their contributions. I can’t recall a time like this happening over the past few years but I am glad to be a part of it and fortunate enough to see the desire to contribute displayed by the brethren. And I have found that one of the best ways for those brothers to actively participate is to reach out to other brothers.

It is a given that this time of year will bring about names of those which we haven’t seen at lodge in months or years (NPD time) but that tally keeps getting smaller and smaller every time I check the mail and for every brother I find on that list, there are ten brothers willing to reach out to find out what is going on. And that is a big change from the last couple of years. Now we have brothers wanting to be active and wanting to share this masonic experience with other brothers that may have, for one reason or another, lost their connection with the fraternity.

This is a hugely important endeavor for any lodge as we should make sure that all of our brothers should experience the feeling of inclusion that many of us take away from our monthly and weekly gatherings. Furthermore, the effort should also be put forth in reconnecting with brothers that, for one reason or another, have been suspended in recent years. While there are explanations given at the time of suspension, we should never assume that we know the reasons behind our brother ceasing to be included in the membership rolls.

Lastly, and most importantly, we need to maintain constant contact will each and every member of the lodge. This is an undertaking too large for one brother to manage himself but, as a lodge, it can easy be accomplished. Whether a brother moved out of the jurisdiction or is simply of advanced age, they are still our brothers and members of the lodge, and they should be treated as such. The last thing that I ever want to see happen is a brother showing up to lodge and not know anyone. While I don’t expect them to have the same connection that many of the regular attendees enjoy, they are still our brother and they should be familiar as a member of our fraternal family.

I Have No Proof But I Still Think You’re Guilty!

On Wednesday, the Baseball Writers Association of America announced the three inductees to the Baseball Hall of Fame for 2014: Greg Maddux, Tom Glavine, and Frank Thomas. All three men are well deserving of their place in the hall and I congratulate each one of them. However, this year further demonstrated the flaws that exist in the election process. With the exception of the years during the Hall’s inception, there has never been such a long list of candidates that deserve enshrinement in Cooperstown, New York. Because of the process currently in place, the misdeeds of many in the game in the past twenty years, and the idea that emotion outweighs talent in the minds of voters, there are many candidates that will either have to wait for a few years or will simply never see their bust of bronze.

The process has become a game of finger pointing and accusation. Evidence is no longer a factor in determining whether someone committed a crime against the character of the game. In fact, in some instances, outstanding talent and performance has hurt the chances of a few while steady performances year over year has proven an obstacle for at least one candidate still on the waiting list. For me, as someone who grew up watching man of the players now coming on the ballot, it is a shame that I will not be able to celebrate the talent that I spent so many years watching on the field.

I grew up watching and playing baseball. I never really demonstrated any talent for the game beyond a strong arm but I still enjoyed the spring and summer games. It was also one of the few sports, and still is, that I can watch on television that will hold my interest. This may be an oddity to some but my mind is constantly working, pitch by pitch, play by play, whenever a game is filling the pixels on the screen. Many of those players I watched for so many years are, most likely, never going to stand on that stage with some of the all-time greats of the game.

The problem with the assumptions, accusations, and general stubbornness of the voters is the fact that they see this tainted era as being something that is finite. We will never be able to determine the beginning or the end of the steroid/PED era and if you think you can you are wrong. While, undoubtedly, performance enhancers were more prevalent during certain years but so were greenies and cocaine during other time periods.

Heck, no one accused Roger Maris of having an unfair advantage for smoking like a chimney in 1961 in order to calm his nerves. In general, no one really knows if players received any benefit from tobacco use over the years. Granted, it did not make them bigger, stronger, or faster but maybe it helped some relax or focus. To those who respond with the fact that most players used tobacco my response is simple… exactly.

Players should be evaluated for their performance on the field in competition against their peers. Barring any illegal activity or evidence that they have broken written rules, all players should be based on performance. Even if it seems likely that they used something (i.e. Bonds and Clemens) we can’t exclude based on something that wouldn’t hold up in court. And, more importantly, we can’t put roadblocks in front of players who played in the same era where no evidence has ever been found of any wrongdoing (i.e. Piazza, Biggio, Bagwell, Walker, and numerous others). The BBWAA are an emotional bunch to the point that they have allowed there disappointment of a few during an era to cloud their judgment of the truly talented men who played the game during that time.

Something needs to change. Objectivity needs to find its way back into the process. And, while I don’t agree with how Deadspin went about it, the fans should have some say, maybe just a single symbolic ballot cast for the other voters to see ahead of time, in the process. Now that the voters have seen the ballot the fans have cast, thank to Dan Le Batard, maybe they will finally listen. However, based on the overreaction of the BBWAA, I seriously doubt it and it looks as though a generation of great players, some of the greatest of all time, will languish on the ballot finally giving way to the similarly temperamental and flawed veteran’s committee.