Alex Rodriguez and Manny Ramirez should have separate 'accused' section if they get HoF honor: MLB analyst

Alex Rodriguez is on the Hall of Fame ballot but faces an uphill battle. He was at the center of one of the biggest steroid scandals not just in baseball but in all of sports. The voters have typically not been kind to those embroiled in PED controversies.

Manny Ramirez faced the same issue and has not been inducted. He doesn't have as strong of a case as Rodriguez; however, he still would've likely fared better had he not been involved with steroids.

MLB insider Ken Rosenthal thinks this issue doesn't have to be so complicated. He won't be voting for those players, but he doesn't think it should necessarily preclude them from induction forever.

"My feeling is, honor them as you would honor them," Rosenthal said on Friday (17:00), via 'Foul Territory.' "Honor Barry Bonds, honor Roger Clemens as part of the larger Hall. Put it on their plaque. This is part of their history. Accused of this, did this, suspended for this, not in Bonds' and Clemens' case, but I'm talking about Arod and Manny [Ramirez]. That's part of their stories, and that to me is the way they should be honored."

Rosenthal added that he doesn't support the idea of a separate "penalty box" wing of the Hall of Fame for PED users and others who've been held out for various reasons. However, he supports denoting whether or not players have accusations in their careers.

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How many votes did Alex Rodriguez, Manny Ramirez get for the Hall of Fame?

Manny Ramirez has one more year of Hall of Fame ballot eligibility. In his ninth year, he fell short again, and the numbers don't look encouraging for his candidacy in the 10th year.

Alex Rodriguez is on the Hall of Fame ballot (Imagn)

In 2025, he received 34.3% support, which is shy of the 75% threshold. Players typically don't jump that much in one year, even their final year, so Ramirez is facing an unprecedented battle.

Alex Rodriguez, in his fourth year, received 37.1% of support. The former New York Yankees star is closer to than Ramirez after less than half the years on the ballot, but he also faces an uphill battle to immortality.