Barry Bonds and Roger Clemens gained momentum, but once again failed to garner enough votes for election into the Baseball Hall of Fame.

The two are forever entwined in their Hall candidacies, which began in 2013. While they've enjoyed incremental gains over seven years on the ballot – Clemens debuted at 37.6 percent and rose to 57.3 percent last year and Bonds began with 36.2 percent and was at 56.4 percent in 2018 -- the results from Tuesday's announcement indicate a slog toward the 75 percent needed for induction that likely will come down to the wire.

Clemens was named on 59.5 percent of ballots cast by the Baseball Writers' Association of America, falling 66 votes shy of the 319 needed for induction. Bonds received 59.1 percent of the votes (251).

While the two have Hall of Fame-worthy statistics and were by far the best players in their generation -- if not in the modern era -- their careers have been clouded by their association with performance-enhancing drugs. Bonds is the all-time home run king with 762 and a seven-time MVP. Clemens won 354 games, which ranks third all-time, and is a seven-time Cy Young winner.

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Bonds was involved in the Bay Area Laboratory Co-Operative (BALCO) doping scandal in the latter part of his career, but he denied any link. Clemens, who was named by his personal trainer Brian McNamee as a steroid user, denied PED use during a congressional hearing and, later, a federal trial.

Both are down to their last three strikes before their eligibility expires in 2022. After that, their chances are referred to an appointed electorate --- the Today’s Game Era Committee -- for consideration. Last month, the committee elected candidates Harold Baines and Lee Smith.

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