BASEBALL NOTES : ANOTHER HALL OF FAME SHUTOUT?

Byline: Ken Daley Dallas Morning News

Will baseball writers play Scrooge again this month, or will they fling open the doors to the Hall of Fame in the New Year?

Ten-year members of the Baseball Writers Association of America have until Dec. 31 to return this year's ballot listing 30 players eligible for induction into the National Baseball Hall of Fame and Museum in Cooperstown, N.Y. Results will be announced Jan. 6. Last year, a record 470 ballots were returned, but no former player received the minimum 75 percent support (353 votes) required for election.

It was the first time the writers had pitched a shutout since 1971. Only a four-man nomination by the Veterans Committee - which added Jim Bunning, Earl Weaver, Ned Hanlon and Bill Foster to the Hall - allowed for an induction ceremony to take place last August.

The top three vote-getters from that 1971 shutout - Yogi Berra (67 percent), Early Wynn (67 percent) and Ralph Kiner (59 percent) - were subsequently elected in 1972, 1972 and 1975, respectively. That gives hope to the top three vote-getters who fell short of the necessary 353 votes last year - Phil Niekro (321 votes), Tony Perez (309) and Don Sutton (300).

Also hopeful - to varying degrees of realism - are eight first-time nominees. They are Dwight Evans, Ken Griffey, Terry Kennedy, Dave Parker, Terry Puhl, Rick Reuschel, Mike Scott and Garry Templeton.

Of the first-timers, seven-time All-Star Parker seemingly has the strongest credentials. But since the first election in 1936, only 26 players have been elected in their first year of eligibility, the most recent being Mike Schmidt in 1995.

Parker's 2,712 career hits rank 46th all-time, his 339 home runs tie for 48th, and his 1,493 RBI place him 31st, right between Hall of Famers Mickey Mantle (1,509) and Billy Williams (1,476). ``The Cobra'' was a .290 hitter over his 19-year career, spent mostly with Pittsburgh and Cincinnati.

Evans played 20 years (19 with Boston, one with Baltimore), batting .272 with 385 home runs and 1,384 RBI, and was known for one of the best throwing arms of his era.

Reds pitchers signed: The Cincinnati Reds signed three pitchers to minor-league contracts Saturday, including veterans Stan Belinda and Billy Brewer. Right-handers Belinda, former Dodger Felix Rodriguez and the left-handed Brewer signed Triple-A contracts and will be invited to spring training.

Belinda, 30, was 2-1 with a 6.59 ERA last season for the Boston Red Sox. Brewer, 29, was 1-0 with a 9.53 ERA in 5-2/3 innings for the New York Yankees.

The Reds had claimed Rodriguez, 24, on waivers from the Dodgers on Friday. This year, with the Dodgers' Triple-A team in Albuquerque, Rodriguez was 3-9 with a 5.53 ERA in 27 games, including 19 starts. He was with the Dodgers briefly in 1995.