More than 80. Including active guys or recently retired guys like Mariano.

I think there are around 60 SP in now with another 5 RP.

I'm sure we could find at least 15-20 guys who are in but don't really belong. RPs Sutter and Fingers and SPs Gomez and Hunter are just four examples.

That's 45ish. Plus the guys who aren't in yet but belong...1 or 2 relievers along with 5 or 6 starters...that's north of 50.

the only one who should be in the HOF is Cy Young-the rest are just filler

I was actually trying to think of "Hall of Famer" and was getting pretty high pretty fast, that's why I went 80+. I had about 25 just off the top of my head and I'm sure there's a lot more than that. I was also accounting for Negro League pitchers in my estimate of 80+.

Posted by MikeT23 on 12/9/2013 8:23:00 PM (view original):
Maybe, rather than say "We need this many because this many has pitcherd!!", we could say "Let's put worthy pitchers in the HOF."

Just a thought.

How do we determine who is and isn't worthy? A Hall derived from an eligible population of 50 is going to look different than one derived from 100,000 eligible players.

Well I voted 30-50 because you specified since 1916. If you go back to the start, and include Negro league, of course it's over 50.

Posted by bad_luck on 12/9/2013 8:57:00 PM (view original):

Posted by MikeT23 on 12/9/2013 8:23:00 PM (view original):
Maybe, rather than say "We need this many because this many has pitcherd!!", we could say "Let's put worthy pitchers in the HOF."

Just a thought.

How do we determine who is and isn't worthy? A Hall derived from an eligible population of 50 is going to look different than one derived from 100,000 eligible players.

Best of the best.  Kind of what an accomplishment like the HOF should be.  

With all-star teams you have a specific roster size and the ol' all teams must be represented requirement.    Not so with the HOF.   There's doesn't have to be a specific number or percentage. 

Posted by MikeT23 on 12/10/2013 8:35:00 AM (view original):

Posted by bad_luck on 12/9/2013 8:57:00 PM (view original):

Posted by MikeT23 on 12/9/2013 8:23:00 PM (view original):
Maybe, rather than say "We need this many because this many has pitcherd!!", we could say "Let's put worthy pitchers in the HOF."

Just a thought.

How do we determine who is and isn't worthy? A Hall derived from an eligible population of 50 is going to look different than one derived from 100,000 eligible players.

Best of the best.  Kind of what an accomplishment like the HOF should be.  

With all-star teams you have a specific roster size and the ol' all teams must be represented requirement.    Not so with the HOF.   There's doesn't have to be a specific number or percentage. 

Ok. But is the best of the best one guy? Or 10? Or 30? Or 300?

Don't know without looking at the players.    If one guy seperates himself from his peers, say like Mariano Rivera, it's pretty easy.     If it's Maddux/Clemens pitching at pretty much the same time, it becomes more difficult.    And, if you throw in the short period that Pedro Martinez better than both, it becomes even more difficult.  I guess that's why these discussions take place.    But I don't think there's any way we should say "7987 pitchers so 79.8 of them should be in the HOF."   Sometimes you just don't make the cut even if you were the best of a sorry lot.

That's kind of the point. There are several pitchers in the hall now that would be kicked out if we started over. There are a few who are eligible and deserving but not elected yet. If we figure out that there are X amount of deserving hall of famers, we now have a standard to apply going forward. Not a hard number but an average that allows us to say, "electing this pitcher raises/lowers the hall of fame standard, he should be in/out."

Then why do you need a specific number?    Figure out who's deserving and you have the number.

When you start with "7,987 pitchers have pitched in at least one major league game" you lead one to believe that a specific number, or percentage, should be in because there have been almost 8000 BL pitchers. 

Start with a set number of innings.   I'd say 2000.   Only Dizzy Dean would be the primarily SP to be removed.    Gossage/Sutter are out, Paige is out, Ruth and O'Day are out as pitchers.    Of course, Gossage/Sutter are RP.    Have to decide if they're HOF pitchers as RP.  Paige, of course, was Negro League.   Ruth isn't in as a pitcher.   O'Day was an umpire(I think). 

But, from this day forward, if you didn't pitch 2000 IP, you're not eligible as a SP.    Special circumstances(meaning RP). 

So, to me, Dean, Gossage and Sutter have to pay to visit the HOF from now on.

And, if you start at 2k IP, that 7987 shrinks considerably.