Baseball Tonight kicked off its Day 1 coverage of the Winter Meetings today. Manning the Desk at 11:30 PT:, from left to right Jayson Stark, Buster Olney, anchor Karl Ravech, Tim Kurkjian and Keith Law. Next show: 6:30 PT.

Kevin Cash, Welcome To the Winter Meetings' Mgr. Scrums

Kevin Cash, new manager of the Tampa Bay Rays, led off the annual roundup and interview scrum for the men on the dugout's hottest seat. He appears to the right of Rays Baseball Ops President Matt Silverman.

The only news made here: Cash said all the right things, and he appears to be 15 years old. I feel rather ancient today!

No Room for Dick Allen, Tony Oliva As Both Fall Short

Only one percent of the professionals who played in the Major Leagues are in the Hall of Fame. It is a tough road, as well it should be. It is the Hall of the greatest, not the Hall of the Very Good, as Jim Kaat once said.

Well, today, the Hall's 16-member Golden Era Committee considered more than a handful of their

contemporaries and decided that none rose to the category of Hall of Famer. No nominee reached the required 12 votes (75 percent). Still, the announcement drew emotions as it was announced that Dick Allen and Tony Oliva each received 11 votes from the panel.

So, so close. Allen's son, Richard; on hand and hoping, showed the human side of such decisions, valiantly answering questions about his father's near-miss. 

Jane  Forbes Clark, CEO of the Hall, fielded questions on the Veterans Committee procedures in light of another shutout of candidates. She said the staff ad board continuously examine the procedure. She said "it's not a matter of a trigger, it's matter of our general operating procedure."  

Veterans Committee Decision Looms

Here in San Diego, it is the quiet  before the storm at Baseball’s Winter Meetings. John Lester continues to occupy the lead role in the ever-wonderful free-agent drama this off-season. But the first orcer of business is but 30 minutes away as we await the Hall of Fame’s Veterans Committee announcement on whether any former legends have been selected to join the immortals in Cooperstown.

The list of candidates:

Dick Allen

Ken Boyer 

Maury Wills

Gil Hodges 

Jim Kaat

Billy Pierce

Tony Oliva

Minnie Minoso

Luis Tiant

Who, if anyone, will emerge as a Hall of Famer? Time will tell!