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Eight-time Gold Glove 3B Scott Rolen was inducted into the Baseball Hall of Fame

Scott Rolen was elected to the Baseball Hall of Fame, avoiding a BBWAA election lockout for the second time in three years.

None of the other 27 players on the Hall’s 2023 ballot crossed the 75% election threshold, though there were a few near misses. The poll results were announced Tuesday during a broadcast on MLB.com.

Rolen, a longtime third baseman, was selected to earn the honor with 76.3% of the votes cast in his sixth year of eligibility. Just missing out was former Rockies frontman Todd Hilton, who received 72.2% of the vote in his fifth attempt.

Players may appear on the ballot for 10 seasons after a five-year waiting period after their retirement, provided they are named for at least 5% of the ballots during the voting cycle.

“Don’t even think about it,” Rollin told MLB Network. “You think about doing your best, playing for your team and playing the best you can and there’s still a long way to go. I never thought the Hall of Fame would be the answer.”

Rollin was an All-Star seven times during his 17-year career and played for the Phillies, Cardinals, Blue Jays and Reds. His eight Gold Gloves rank fourth for a third baseman. The 1997 NL Rookie of the Year was a member of the Cardinals when the club won the 2006 World Series.

Rollin, who ranked fifth among the third basemen in World War II according to Baseball-Reference.com, was selected in his first election year in 2018 with just 10.2% of the vote but quickly gained support with each passing election cycle.

The same uptick was true for Helton, who started 2019 with a 16.5% Glover winner. His work is on the first base.

Other players named with at least half of the votes were Billy Wagner (68.1%), Andrew Jones (58.1%) and Gary Sheffield (55%).

One of the most popular relievers of his day, Wagner has steadily gained support. He received support from 51% of the polls last year. Next year will be his ninth season.

Rolen’s close election means the BBWAA has refused to elect new members just nine times in its electoral history. The Writers didn’t vote for anyone in 2021 either. Last year, only David Ortiz was named a Red Sox Great by the Writers.

The three-year period in which the BBWAA has elected only two players represents an all-time low. Ever since the annual vote became permanent in 1966, writers have never failed to choose at least two players over a three-year period. They also chose only two players during the three-year tenure that ended in 1968, and in each season from 1996 to 1998.

Ironically, the rarity of the chosen ones comes only a few years after a certain fertile period of voting by writers. During the three-year period ending in 2019, the BBWAA elected 11 new Hall of Famers and during the five-year period 2015-2019, 17 new Hall of Famers were inducted by the authors.

Unlike 2021, when for the first time since 1960 no new Hall of Famers will be elected by writers or an era committee, at least two inductees will deliver speeches in Cooperstown during induction ceremonies on July 23. The soft-spoken Fred McGriff will enter the hall alongside Rolen after being selected by the Era committee at December’s San Diego winter meetings.

Progress has been slow for some controversial candidates whose performance meets traditional Hall of Fame criteria but whose cases have been undermined by associations with PEDs.

Alex Rodriguez, who had a career total of 3,115 hits, 696 home runs and 2,086 RBI, was selected in his sophomore year with 35.7% of the vote, up from 34.3%. Rodriguez missed the 2014 season, which was suspended for violating MLB’s PED guidelines.

Similarly, Manny Ramirez, who hit 555 batsmen while posting a career-high .312 but was suspended twice for PED violations, has a slight lead on his seventh time on the ballot. After a 28.9% drop last year, Ramirez is up 33.2% this time.

Conversely, the feared Sheffield basketballer gained little traction in his ninth year of eligibility. Last year it was 40.6%. Sheffield, which injured 509 homeowners but was named in the 2007 Mitchell report, was not penalized for using PED. Next season will be his tenth and final chance to win the Writers Choice election.

Of the 14 first-time voters on the ballot, only two had the 5% support necessary to carry over to the next test.

Carlos Beltran was among the first to receive 46.5% of the vote. Beltran Hall’s case is solid on the merits of a career that has seen 435 home runs, 312 steals, 2,725 hits and one of baseball’s most brilliant postseason records.

Beltran was a central figure in the controversial signal theft scandal that marred the 2017 World Series title for the Houston Astros, with whom Beltran played. His association with the controversy later led to his resignation as manager of the New York Mets ahead of his first season in that role.

While it’s uncertain what role the scandal played in Beltran’s first round of voting, his level of support bodes well for the future and perhaps for candidates along the line for other Astros appearances.

Another high-ranking timer who would remain on the ballot is Francisco Rodriguez, whose 437 saves were enough to earn 10.8% of the vote.

While voters have been stingy in recent years, next year could see a more active induction week as a number of interesting candidates become eligible. Leading the list of new additions are third baseman Adrian Belter, catcher Joe Mauer and second baseman Chase Utley.

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