The steroid controversy which has enveloped baseball in recent years and placed a cloud of suspicion on certain players will for the first time settle on Cooperstown this summer.

Eight-time batting champion Tony Gwynn, four-time home run leader Mark McGwire and two-time Most Valuable Player Cal Ripken, Jr., are among 17 first-year candidates on the 2007 Hall of Fame ballot that will be mailed out later this week to approximately 575 voting members of the Baseball Writers’ Association of America.

They join 15 holdovers from the 2006 balloting in which Bruce Sutter was elected. Outfielder Jim Rice, the American League MVP in 1978, was 53 votes shy of the total required for election last year. One vote behind Rice was two-time Fireman of the Year relief pitcher Rich ``Goose’’ Gossage.

A few years ago, the 2007 Hall of Fame Induction Ceremony was anticipated to rival the 1999 class which included Nolan Ryan, George Brett and Robin Yount.

While the 2007 Class will almost certainly include Ripken and Gwynn, McGwire is no longer a lock.

McGwire, who hit 583 home runs, including a then-record 70 in 1998, placed his Hall of Fame candidacy in jeopardy during a Congressional hearing on steroids last March. When asked by congressional members if he had ever taken steroids, he continually responded ``I’m not here to talk about the past’’ which many fans took as an admission of guilt.

``Mark fits the criteria, just like everyone else," Hall chairman Jane Forbes Clark said. "We’ve been very pleased with the judgment exercised by the writers over the past 70 years of voting.

``The ballot says a player’s record of achievement, contributions to the teams, the game, their character, longevity and sportsmanship should be considered. I think this year’s balloting will be interesting,’’ she said. [an error occurred while processing this directive]