
Jan 24, 2023
It took six tries, but St. Louis Cardinals great Scott Rolen is heading to the Hall of Fame. Rolen received the news that he would be enshrined in Cooperstown on Tuesday. He is the only member of the 2023 Hall of Fame class voted in by the Baseball Writers' Association of America this year.
Rolen barely got in, receiving 76.3% of the vote. Players need 75% of the vote to be enshrined in Cooperstown.
Rolen's candidacy took a few years to materialize. In his first year of eligibility, he received just 10.2% of the vote, but that percentage quickly rose as people focused more on his case. In 17 seasons in the majors, Rolen put up a .281/.364/.490 slash line with 316 home runs. His OPS+ for his career was 122, meaning he hit 22% better than the league average over that period.
On top of that, Rolen was a wizard in the field. He won eight Gold Glove awards during his career and was one of the best defensive third basemen in the league. Rolen also won the Rookie of the Year award in 1997, made seven All-Star teams, took home a Silver Slugger in 2002 and won the 2006 World Series with the Cardinals.
Making the Hall of Fame as a third baseman is no mean feat for Rolen, as the field position is the least represented in Cooperstown. By the Hall's own count, only 17 third basemen have been enshrined. Rolen is the first to make it since Chipper Jones in 2018; before that, no third baseman had been elected by the BBWAA since Wade Boggs in 2005.
Source: Yahoo Sports