Newly-Minted Hall of Famer Part of Unique Baseball History
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On Tuesday night, third baseman Adrian Beltre earned election into the National Baseball Hall of Fame in Cooperstown. Beltre earned more than 95 percent of the vote to become a first-ballot Hall of Famer and will enter Cooperstown alongside Joe Mauer, Todd Helton and Jim Leyland.
One of the most accomplished players of the 21st Century, Beltre spent 21 years in the big leagues with four teams. He came up with the Dodgers, playing seven years in Los Angeles, then went to Seattle, where he played five more. He spent one year in Boston and then finished out with eight stellar years in Texas.
He had a very interesting career arc, doing most of his best work in the back half of his career. He won five Gold Glove Awards, but didn't win his first until the 10th year of his career and third with the Mariners. Though he did lead baseball in home runs in 2004 with 48, he didn't make his first All-Star Game until he was 31 with the Red Sox.
All in all, Beltre was a .286 hitter with 477 career home runs. He drove in 1,707 runs and was a four-time All-Star. He also has 3,166 career hits, which is the most ever for a third baseman.
Furthermore, Sarah Langs of MLB.com provided some context about where Beltre sits with regards to baseball history.
Adrián Beltré is 1 of 12 players with 3,000+ hits and 400+ HR, along with:
Henry Aaron
Albert Pujols
Alex Rodriguez
Willie Mays
Rafael Palmeiro
Miguel Cabrera
Eddie Murray
Stan Musial
Dave Winfield
Carl Yastrzemski
Cal Ripken Jr.
She added the following note as well:
most seasons with 20+ HR, primary 3B:
Eddie Mathews: 14
Mike Schmidt: 13
Adrián Beltré: 12
Chipper Jones: 12
[played at least 50% of games at 3B in said season]
Beltre's induction ceremony will be July 21.
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