"And it's not hard to come up with an argument for Piazza's credentials"

Sure, he was an incredible clutch power hitter and team player, however he was a mediocre catcher at best. His throwing arm was abysmal-almost Knoblauch-esque, with the exception that base runners almost always took extra bases on his throwing errors while Chucky's errors usually only resulted in a safe at first call and some boos. He couldn't stop the running game and wasn't a threat to do so. Every team took advantage of it. I'll never forget all of the occasions he opted to not even attempt to throw out base stealers for the sake of damage control. I guess it's better to let them have one base, rather than 2+. He wasn't that great of a fielder(especially at first base, which was supposed to be his saving grace), he had no speed and lacked the overall toughness that all catchers should have. He was a big guy but anyone could have mowed him down during a play at the plate or on the mound(Clemens).

Granted, catching is the hardest position in the game but was he a hall of fame catcher? Absolutely not, without a question. Should he be admitted for his overall career stats. My vote is no but it is debatable.