Vote: Do Barry Bonds and Roger Clemens deserve to be in the Hall of Fame?

ByESPN.COM
January 18, 2017, 8:21 PM

— -- In their fifth year on the ballot, both Barry Bonds and Roger Clemens saw a notable increase in support from Hall of Fame voters.

Needing 75 percent of the vote to be enshrined, Bonds finished at 53.8 percent and Clemens received 54.1 percent. Last year, Bonds was at 44.3 percent and Clemens was at 45.2 percent, meaning both saw their totals increase by nearly 10 percent.

Suspicion of performance-enhancing drug use is what has held up the induction of both superstars. Bonds is Major League Baseball's all-time home run leader at 762 and also ranks third all-time in RBIs (1,996). Clemens won a record seven Cy Youngs in his 24 MLB seasons that saw him total 354 wins and the third-most strikeouts of all time (4,672).

Of note, the only player to receive at least 44 percent of the vote (as Bonds and Clemens did in 2016) in any year and then fall off the ballot without being elected in the past 20 years is Jack Morris, whose last year on the ballot was 2014.

That said, do Clemens and Bonds belong in Cooperstown? Has enough time passed to ease the tension surrounding their steroid suspicion? Cast your vote now!

Voting results for the 2017 Hall of Fame ballot were announced Wednesday, with Jeff Bagwell, Tim Raines and Ivan "Pudge'' Rodriguez being elected.