Big Papi represents baseball’s best hope to avoid a second straight Hall of Fame shutout.

David Ortiz, a first-year entry on the Hall’s ballot for the Baseball Writers Association of America, hovered around the 83 percent mark Monday morning, in the data compiled by Ryan Thibodaux, giving some leeway in advance of Tuesday evening’s official announcement of the ballot’s results on the MLB Network (at 6 p.m.). Players require 75 percent support for election.

Historically, players associated with illegal performance-enhancing drugs such as Ortiz (by virtue of his 2003 positive survey test) drop from their public number when the final count comes out. For instance, last year, Barry Bonds and Roger Clemens both fell over 11 percent from their pre-announcement count. That’s why, even as Bonds and Clemens stood at slightly over 75 percent on Monday, little hope existed that they would get in on their 10th and final chance on this ballot.

The writers elected no one last year, Curt Schilling coming closest at 71.1 percent, although that goose egg didn’t stand out as much because 2020 electees Derek Jeter and Larry Walker enjoyed their inductions in Cooperstown last September, after the novel coronavirus compelled the Hall to cancel its ceremony in the summer of ‘20. While another zero would draw additional attention to the writers and their role in the selection process, the Hall already is ensured of a robust induction day (although not as robust without Red Sox Nation flooding upstate New York to cheer on Ortiz) thanks to the work of two Era Committees. The Golden Days Era Committee honored Brooklyn Dodgers icon and 1969 Mets manager Gil Hodges as well as Jim Kaat, Minnie Minoso and Tony Oliva, while the Early Baseball Era Committee chose Bud Fowler and Buck O’Neill.

Schilling, also in his final shot, has plummeted to the 60 percent neighborhood, the obvious result of his going to war with the process after last year’s showing. The controversial former pitcher, who regularly posts comments promoting hate on myriad platforms, requested that his name be removed from the ballot for 2022. The Hall denied that request.

In a less discussed but more dramatic tumble, former shortstop Omar Vizquel is poised to go from last year’s 49.1 percent to the 10 percent area in the wake of accusations of domestic violence by his ex-wife Blanca.

Ortiz’s fellow first-year candidate Alex Rodriguez, who sat out the 2014 season for his involvement in illegal performance-enhancing drugs, won’t come close to the 75 percent line, although he’ll easily exceed the 5 percent threshold necessary to return to the ballot next year; he’s trending at about 40 percent. Rodriguez’s Yankees teammate Andy Pettitte, meanwhile, continues to hang out in the 10 percent area in his fourth year on the ballot.

While neither third baseman Scott Rolen nor center fielder Andruw Jones will land the big prize this season, both appear poised to make considerable jumps from their most recent showings, with Rolen (52.9 percent last year) close to 70 percent and Jones (33.9 percent last year) almost at 50 percent. Both in their fifth year of eligibility, they are trending very positively. The same goes for longtime Rockies first baseman Todd Helton, in his fourth year, who is around 58 percent after tallying 44.9 percent in 2021.

1998 National League Most Valuable Player Sammy Sosa, who slugged 609 career homers, joins Bonds, Clemens and Schilling as 10th-year candidates. Assuming none gain election, all immediately will become eligible for the Today’s Game Era Committee, which is scheduled to convene this December.