missed it by … a lot

Dave Parker fell considerably short today in his latest bid to become the first Mississippi native elected by the writers association to baseball’s Hall of Fame. (Negro Leagues star Cool Papa Bell was picked by a special committee, and Red Barber is in the broadcasters wing.) Parker, a power-hitting outfielder who retired in 1991, got 81 votes from the writers who guard the Hall gates; you need 405 to get in. Parker will appear on the writers’ ballot for two more years, then he’ll have to count on the veterans committee. It’s unlikely he’ll get much support there either. (See Dec. 2, 2008, post.) Former Jackson Met Jesse Orosco got one — count ’em one — vote in his first and last year on the ballot.