Andre Dawson, the Hall of Fame outfielder, suggested on Monday it should remain the task of baseball writers — at least for now — to decide the legacy of players tainted by steroids.

The new veterans committee would rather avoid the issue.

“I just don’t think that this is the time that should be moved forward,” Dawson, a member of the committee, said. “I can echo the sentiments of a lot of the Hall of Famers themselves: At some point, it may transpire, but I don’t think this was the proper committee to set that in motion, with that whole thing.”

The veterans committee that voted this year is one of several created by the Hall of Fame, but it is the one charged with overseeing the period since 1988, thus leaving it to consider potential steroid users that have not been elected by writers.

None of the players on the most recent veterans committee Hall of Fame ballot, revealed on Sunday, received even five votes from the 16 members of the panel. The group of candidates included Mark McGwire, who hit 583 home runs but admitted to using steroids for much of his career.