There was no need for advanced analytics or algorithms.
No need for any public relations campaigns.
Simply, Carlos Beltrán and Andruw Jones were elected to the Baseball Hall of Fame on Tuesday night the old-fashioned way.
The Baseball Writers’ Association of America had elected only two center fielders the past 45 years – Kirby Puckett and Ken Griffey Jr. – but this pair born only a day apart, were voted in on the same night. Beltrán received 84.2% of the vote in his fourth year on the ballot while Jones received 78.4% in his ninth appearance.
Beltrán, who was a winner of the prestigious Roberto Clemente Award, becomes only the sixth player from Puerto Rico to be elected, while Jones is the first player from the island of Curaçao.
“There’s no doubt that today my life has really changed being named to the Hall of Fame and what this really means to me, to Puerto Rico, to our family …’ Beltrán said. “I’m humbled. Just look at my story, coming up as a Latino player, and coming from a humble family, and now I have a plaque in Cooperstown next to all of those great players.’
Jones thanked former slugger Hensley Meulens for inspiring future players from Curaçao to make the big leagues, and believes that closer Kenley Jansen will be the next player from the island to be elected to Cooperstown.
“We grew up playing baseball, and that’s all we did,” said Jones, who will manage Team Netherlands in the World Baseball Classic. “Hensley Meulens was the first guy to open the door for us, and gave guys after him to give us a chance. There were so many guys who helped me in so many ways.
“To be the first player to make it from Curaçao is a great honor.”
If you saw Beltrán and Jones play, you knew these two center fielders were Hall of Famers.
If you asked their former teammates, managers, coaches and opponents, you knew these two players were Hall of Famers.
All you had to do is watch. And listen.
Hall of Famer Willie Mays told Jones one day by the batting cage in San Francisco that he was the best center fielder he’s ever seen. Atlanta’s dynasty included six Hall of Famers and every single one said the Hall wouldn’t be complete until Jones joined them.
“I didn’t play this game to be a Hall of Famer, but to win,” Jones said. “We built teams to win championships. We won our division 14 years in a row. I was proud to be part of that.’
Jones was a meteor who burst onto the scene in the 1996 World Series, won 10 Gold Glove awards in his first 10 seasons, and was widely considered not only the greatest defensive outfielder of his era, but one of the greatest ever.
Mays and Roberto Clemente are the only outfielders in history to win more Gold Glove awards. If his career didn’t crater after 11 years with Atlanta – hitting just .210 with a .740 OPS and 66 homers his last five seasons covering 434 games – he might have been a first-ballot Hall of Famer.
Beltrán was a fabulous five-tool player and had some of the greatest baseball acumen of anyone in the game. A nine-time All-Star and three-time Gold Glove winner, Beltrán hit .279 with 435 homers and 1,587s RBI in 20 seasons. He also had one of the greatest resumes in postseason history (.307, 16 homers, 42 RBIs).
“To be linked to Roberto Clemente, Roberto Alomar, Pudge Rodriguez,’ Beltrán said, “really means a lot. I will continue to do what I love and that’s to promote the game and continue to help the kids here on the island. Hopefully, we can create more opportunities for the Latino players.’
If Beltrán had retired just one year earlier and didn’t play for the 2017 Houston Astros, who were later caught illegally stealing signs during the entire season, he likely would have been a first-ballot Hall of Famer.
“People share or people talk about what happened with the Astros,’ Beltrán said, “but I feel a lot of times there are agendas that are not positive. But when I look at my career, you’re going to go through ups and downs in life. You’re going to make good decisions and so-so decisions. You’re also going to make bad decisions. …
“Being back in the game of baseball, I still receive a lot of love from the players, the teammates that I had inside the clubhouse. They know the type of person that I am, but at the same time, understand that’s also a story I have to deal with.’’
After being fired as the Mets manager in 2020 without managing a single game in the wake of the Astros scandal, Beltrán says he’d be open again if someone gives him an opportunity. For now, he’s content working in player development for the Mets.
The election certainly took longer than each hoped, but the wait made the center fielders appreciate the honor even more on this day, with Beltrán even FaceTiming Jones after the results were announced.
Besides, once you’re in the Hall of Fame, all that matters is that you’re in baseball’s most prestigious club. There are no designations on your plaque for how many years it took for election. All that matters is that you’re hanging in the gallery alongside Babe Ruth and Bob Gibson.
“As a baseball player, we know how hard it is just to get into the Baseball of Fame, and once you do, it’s one of those things you’ll never forget,’ Jones said. “So to be in a class with all of those greats, all of those legends that you watch videos, the guys that you followed for a long time, to be on the same [stage] with them is such a great honor.’
Jones and Beltrán each had warts on their resumes, but really, it’s no different than anyone else in the Hall of Fame. Yankees closer Mariano Rivera remains the only player the baseball writers thought was perfect, giving him 100% of the vote.
Their inclusion may open the door for others behind them.
Now that Beltrán is the first player to be elected into the Hall of Fame from the Astros’ cheating scandal, how can All-Star second baseman Jose Altuve be blocked from the Hall when his time arrives, or anyone else from that team?
And now that Jones is in the Hall of Fame, could this assist Torii Hunter’s candidacy with his nine Gold Gloves, 353 homers and 2,452 hits ( 519 more than Jones)? Certainly, it has to be a boost for Kenny Lofton (six-time All-Star, four-time Gold Glove winner, 2,428 hits) who was off the BBWAA ballot after one year, but remains eligible for election on the contemporary era committee when it meets again in three years.
We’ll discover the ramifications of their inclusion in future Hall of Fame elections.
All that matters today is that Beltrán and Jones are Hall of Famers now and forever.
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