Just in their first year on the ballot, the Dominican Adrián Beltré and Joe Mauer, as well as Todd Helton in his sixth election, were elected as part of the 2024 Class of the 2024 Hall of Fame in the MLB.
The three retired players will be inducted along with Jim Leyland, chosen by the Contemporary Era Committee, they will be inducted during a special ceremony in the Hall’s courtyard on July 21.
Beltré received 95.1 percent of the 385 possible votes to enter the Hall of Fame, the highest amount among all candidates to enter the Cooperstown hall. Helton, in his sixth year on the ballot, was elected on 307 ballots (79.7 percent) and Mauer, like Beltré, who made it to the ballot for the first time, earned 293 votes (76.1 percent).
Finally, several players were chosen by vote after the Class of 2022 and 2023 only produced David Ortiz and Scott Rolen, respectively.
Adrian Beltre
Beltré becomes only the fifth player born in the Dominican Republic to reach the Hall of Fame, being considered the wide favorite to be inducted.
Adrián Beltré mounted an impeccable case to be inducted into the Hall of Fame, which, unusually, had greater momentum at age 30. His powerful bat and magnificent glove were constants at a stage in his career when many others falter, and that left him with the round numbers, accolades and fame to easily enter Cooperstown. He is the only infielder other than Derek Jeter to have 3,000 hits and win five Gold Gloves.
In total, in 21 seasons with the Dodgers, Mariners, Red Sox and Rangers, Beltré had 3,166 hits, 477 home runs and the third-highest number of Wins Above Replacement (93.5 percent in WAR, for its acronym in English) of any third baseman in history. He finished in the top 10 in MVP voting six times, including a second-place finish with the Dodgers in 2004.
Todd Helton
Helton played his entire 17-year career with the Rockies, a fact he was held against early in his election eligibility due to the offensively favorable conditions at Denver’s Coors Field. In his first year on the 2019 ballot, his name was chosen on just 16.5 percent of ballots.
But over time, voters recognized that while Helton posted a phenomenal .345/.441/.607 line with 227 home runs in 4,841 plate appearances at Coors, he was no slouch on the road either. In 4,612 road appearances, he hit .287/.386/.469 with 142 home runs. The .855 road OPS is higher than Hall of Famers like Dave Winfield (.841), Eddie Murray (.838) and Tony Gwynn (.835).
Helton, a five-time All-Star and four-time Silver Slugger, also earned praise for his glove work at first base, winning three Gold Gloves. He led the majors with a .372 average in 2000. He had back-to-back seasons with 100 extra-base hits in 2000 and 2001. And he finished his career with more walks (1,335) than strikeouts (1,175).
Joe Mauer
Although his case was more complicated than that of his teammate Beltré, Joe Mauer managed to enter the Hall as possibly the best receiver of his generation.
The kid from St. Paul, Minnesota, cashed in his 2001 draft pick with his hometown Twins to become a six-time All-Star, five-time Silver Slugger, three-time batting champion and Most Valuable Player. of the American League in 2009. He was a member of four division-winning Twins teams.
Although his career as a catcher was cut short by concussions and five seasons as a first baseman, Mauer made enough of an impact at his primary position to rank among the greats. His career .306 batting average is tied for sixth-highest among catchers with at least 3,000 plate appearances, and his .388 on-base percentage is tied for third-most. He is the only catcher with three batting titles.
In his MVP year, Mauer led the American League in average (.365), OBP (.444) and slugging percentage (.587), while hitting a career-high 28 home runs. He finished his career with 2,123 hits, 143 home runs, 428 doubles and 923 RBIs.
2024-01-24 05:28:45
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