Texas Rangers Legend Adrián Beltré On Track For Hall of Fame Election
The Texas Rangers are one week away from knowing if they will have another player headed to the Pro Baseball Hall of Fame.
Former third baseman Adrián Beltré is leading all players on ballots made public by members of the Baseball Writers Association of America, who completed voting on Dec. 31.
In fact, his vote count is so significant after 160 ballots that it’s highly likely Beltré will hear his name when the final Class of 2024 is revealed on Jan. 23 on the MLB Network. That would make him a first-ballot Hall-of-Famer.
The induction ceremony is set for July 21 in Cooperstown, N.Y.
Of the 160 ballots made public, Beltré’s name has appeared on 158 of them, per tracking made available on social media. It is expected that 384 total ballots will be cast and that players will need 288 votes to reach the necessary 75% threshold.
Beltré stands at 98.8 percent. For induction, Beltré needs to appear on 130 more ballots.
If elected, he would join two other first-ballot Rangers Hall of Famers: pitcher Nolan Ryan, who was inducted in 1999, and catcher Ivan Rodriguez, who was inducted in 2017. Other Rangers in the Hall of Fame include pitchers Gaylord Perry and Ferguson Jenkins.
Beltré’s No. 19 has already been retired by the Rangers, and he was inducted into the team’s Hall of Fame shortly after his retirement in 2018. He's one of 33 members of the 3,000-hit club with 3,166. He also hit 477 home runs and drove in 1,707 RBI in a 21-year career that included four All-Star Game selections, five Gold Gloves and four Silver Sluggers. He spent the last nine seasons of his career with the Rangers.
While never a league MVP, the lifetime .286 hitter finished in the top 15 eight times, coming closest in 2004 with the Los Angeles Dodgers when he finished second. He hit an MLB-leading 48 home runs that season.
Two other former Rangers are on the ballot, including outfielder Andruw Jones, who is most associated with the Atlanta Braves. He's received 71.9% of the vote. Alex Rodriguez has received 40.6% of the vote.
Based on the results after 160 ballots, Beltré would be joined by Joe Mauer (83.3%), Todd Helton (83.1%), Billy Wagner (79.6%), and Gary Sheffield (75%). Former manager Jim Leyland is already set for induction after he was elected by the Eras Committee in December.
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