Derek Jeter Calls Out The One Writer Who Didn't Vote For Him for Hall of Fame

When Derek Jeter was elected into the Baseball Hall of Fame last year, he received 99.7% of the votes—he was named on 396 of the 397 ballots. Yes, that is the highest percentage ever for a position player (surpassed only by his former teammate Mariano Rivera's 100%). But Jeter couldn't help calling out the one dissident writer during his induction speech on Wednesday:

For all those who say it doesn't matter to the players whether they are unanimously selected to the Hall of Fame. https://t.co/OTAj8BXc6W It does matter -- and will matter for Pujols, Cabrera, Kershaw, Scherzer, etc.

— Buster Olney (@Buster_ESPN) September 8, 2021

In 2019, Jeter's New York Yankees teammate, closer Mariano Rivera, received votes on all 425 ballots cast, becoming the first player ever with a unanimous selection. But Jeter fell one short in the 2020 election, and decided to throw shade at that still-unknown voter, by announcing "Thank you to the baseball writers, all but one of you, who voted for me,” leaving the crowd, and even Jeter himself, in laughter. 

But as they say, where there's smoke, there's fire. Jeter is no doubt a bit peeved that he didn't get that unanimous vote. It remains unlikely that the hold-out will ever reveal themselves, especially after the shade they got from "the captain" today. 

In fact, the Baseball Writers Association of America (BBWAA) had voted in recent times to require voters to reveal their ballots publicly, but the Hall of Fame overruled that decision. 

This year's induction ceremony was for the 2020 Hall of Fame class, which also included former players Larry Walker and Ted Simmons. 

Derek Jeter, Larry Walker and Ted Simmons pose with their plaques during the Baseball Hall of Fame induction ceremony at Clark Sports Center in Cooperstown, New York. #baseball #HOF2021 📸: Jim McIsaac pic.twitter.com/36OrcZqnuY

— Getty Images Sport (@GettySport) September 8, 2021

As for the Class of 2021... well, there isn't one. For only the 9th time in the history of the National Baseball Hall of Fame voting, no candidates received the required 75% of the vote to get in. 

The players who came the closest, Curt Schilling, Barry Bonds and Roger Clemens all came up short once again, due to the controversy surrounding them all, either for their extreme political views (Schilling), or highly suspected steroid use (Bonds & Clemens). For each of those three, they have only one year of eligibility remaining. 

Photo Credit: Gregory Fisher-USA TODAY Sports