Since you didn't ask... DDGP's 10 choices for the 2011 Baseball HOF

The Baseball Hall of Fame (HOF) announced this week its candidates from which the Baseball Writers of America Association (BBWAA) will select for the 2011 Cooperstown class. Other mouthpieces with slightly more credibility than the Dog Denizens of Genesee Park (DDGP) pop off and offer their unsolicited opinions. Here are our choices:

• Roberto Alomar
• Bert Blyleven
• Jeff Bagwell
• John "Generalissimo" Franco
• Juan Gonzalez
• Barry Larkin
• Edgar Martinez
• Tim "Rock" Raines
• Lee Smith
• Larry Walker

The DDGP made its case for Marinez' selection. This year's HOF is packed with so many worthy candidates that a BBWAA voter would find it challenging to give one "favorite son" first timer -- Charles Johnson (Florida and Colorado), Al Leiter (Florida and New York), Tino Martinez (New York and Seattle before the latter foolishly traded Tino to the Yankees for a handful of beans), John Olerud (Toronto and Seattle), B.J. Surhoff (Milwaukee and Baltimore) -- their moment and consideration.

This year's ballot is chockful of first-time nominees who could find themselves enshrined in Cooperstown. The 1991 Rookie of the Year (ROY) and 1994 Most Valuable Player (MVP), Bagwell (.297 career average, 2,214 hits, 449 HR, 1,529 RBI, .408 SlG .547 OBP) represented one half Houston's "Killer Bs" that brought the World Series to the Astrodome. Four-time All-Star Franco proved to one of the consistent relief pitchers during the 1980s and 1990s (90-87, 2.89 ERA, 424 saves). Two-time MVP Juan Gonzalez made three All-Star appearances and won six silver slugger awards (.295, 388 doubles, 434 HR, 1,404 RBI, .561 SLG). 1997 MVP Larry Walker (.313, 383 HR, 1,311 RBI, .400 OBP, .565 SLG, .986 fielding percentage) made five All-Star rosters and snagged seven Gold Glove awards.

Two ballot sophomore -- Alomar (2.724 hits, .300, .984 fielding percentage) and 1995 National League MVP Larkin (.295, 2,340 hits, 379 stolen bases, eight Silver Slugger Awards, .975 fielding percentage) -- were, respectively, one of the standout second basemen and shortstops in 1990s. Seven-time All-Star Raines (.294, 2,605 hits, 1,571 runs scored, 808 stolen bases) is overdue. Blyleven (287-250, 3.31 ERA, 3.701 strikeouts, 1.198 WHIP) and Smith (478 saves, 3.03 ERA, three-time league Rolaids Relief Man of the Year) are long overdue.

The observant reader noted that we did not include Rafael Palmeiro in our list. Our omission was not inadvertent. The three-time All-Star boasted incredible, HOF-worthy credentials during his two-decade career: .288, .371 OBP, .515 SLG, 3,020 hits, 585 doubles, 1,835 RBIs. Admission to the select circle of Major League Baseball (MLB) sluggers -- Henry Aaron, Willie Mays and Eddie Murray -- who hit 3,000-hit, 500-home club should guarantee HOF admission. (Incidentally and more important, thankfully, Barry Bonds came up short with 2,935 hits.) But, alas, MLB suspended Palmeiro for 10 days after the first baseman tested positive for steroids in 2005. Palmeiro had spent the prior off-season testifying before Congress that he had never used steroids - and admonished those who used performance-enhancing drugs. When a positive drug test said otherwise in 2005, Palmeiro maintained that he inadvertently ingested a supplement that contained steroids.

As Palmeiro hasn't expanded upon his answer in 2005, we don't know if the player's positive test was an aberration in an otherwise stellar career. Pitcher Andy Pettite admitted using human growth hormones (HGH) to recover from an elbow injury during the 2002 season. Alex Rodriguez confessed to using steroids from 2001 to 2003 -- a span that includes 569 hits, 208 homers and 305 RBIs if you take A-Rod at his word. Mark McGwire apologized for ingesting steroids "off and on" for a decade during his 17-year career.

Until Palmeiro comes clean, we can't assess his career stats -- and whether he is HOF worthy.

Are we howling in the woods? Probably. It's park privilege.