Tony Gwynn and Cal Ripken Jr. were named to the National Baseball Hall of Fame Tuesday but voters rejected Mark McGwire because he refuses to answer questions about steroid use during his career.
Gwynn and Ripken were voted in by 10-year-or-more members of the Baseball Writers' Association of America.
McGwire's refusal to discuss his past during a 2005 U.S. congressional hearing damaged his reputation among the members who cast ballots -- resulting in him receiving only 23.5 per cent of the vote (128 of a record 545 ballots).
Induction into the Hall of Fame requires 75 per cent approval from voters.
Ripken received 537 votes, appearing on 98.5 percent of ballots. That was not enought to pass Tom Seaver's 1992 vote percentage record of 98.84. Gwynn was just behind Ripken with 532 votes, 97.6 percent.
McGwire ended his career with 583 home runs, seventh on the career list, and hit 70 homers in 1998 to grab the season record. Barry Bonds broke the record three years later.
Both Gwynn and Ripken spent their entire major league careers with one team.
In his 20-year career with the San Diego Padres, Gwynn won eight NL batting titles to tie the NL record and was a member of 15 All-Star teams. He retired with a .338 career average and won five Gold Gloves as an outfielder.
Ripken played in 2,632 consecutive games, breaking Lou Gehrig's ironman record of 2,130. He spent 21 seasons with the Baltimore Orioles, hitting .276 with 431 home runs and was a 19-time All-Star.
Ripken also won the AL Rookie of the Year award in 1982, the AL MVP award in 1983 and 1991 and was a two-time Gold Glove shortstop.
A player stays on the ballot for a maximum of 15 elections as long as he gets 5 per cent of the votes every year.
The induction ceremonies will be held July 29 at the Hall in Cooperstown, N.Y., along with anyone elected from the Veterans Committee vote, which will be made public on Feb. 27.
With files from The Associated Press
