Criticize baseball's Hall, but at least theirs matters

There are four things you can count on at the start of a new calendar year: a never-ending stream of ridiculously-named bowl games -- like the "San Diego County Credit Union Poinsetta Bowl," a regular season hockey game that's actually worth watching, the absolute worst movies Hollywood can produce, and the announcement of the Baseball Hall of Fame's newest inductees. Roberto Alomar and Bert Blyleven are expected to get in this year, since both fell by less than a dozen votes in 2010, and Rafael Palmeiro will make his first appearance on the ballot and may or may not finish with fewer votes than Mark McGwire.
The MLB Hall of Fame is by no means perfect. Lee Smith, who retired with the most saves in history, will never even sniff Cooperstown, nor will players like Harold Baines, Tim Raines or Fred McGriff, whose stats are at least comparable to other Hall of Famers. And that's not even including the Barry Bonds, Roger Clemens and Sammy Sosas of the world, whose implication in steroid use could put them on a perennial waiting list with Joe Jackson and Pete Rose.
The announcement of baseball's immortals has often been met with controversy, especially now, when the people getting in are debatable, borderline inductees such as Gary Carter, Jim Rice and Andre Dawson. But in a way, it's the controversy associated with baseball's Hall that makes their selection process all the more compelling. People will  wonder if this is the year that so-and-so will get in, and argue that he should have been in years ago, and that that other player isn't nearly as good because his WHIP was too low or his batting average stunk. Add to all that the 15-year limit players are allowed to be on the ballot, and you have a system where attention is paid to the balloting both before and after the voting, so that no one slips through the cracks. This is why even though the NFL is twice as popular as Major League Baseball, getting into Cooperstown is still a bigger deal than getting into Canton.
The Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame, where the NBA sends its greatest players, has much to learn from Major League Baseball's.