The National Baseball Hall of Fame announced on Tuesday night that Scott Rolen received the necessary 75% of the vote from the Baseball Writers Association of America (BBWAA) to gain entry into the hallowed grounds of Cooperstown.
He’s the only player selected by the BBWAA, attaining 76.3% of the vote in his sixth year on the ballot while becoming just the 18th third baseman ever to be elected into the Hall of Fame.
Rolen is considered one of the greatest two-way third basemen in baseball history, batting .281 with a career .855 OPS with 316 home runs and 2,007 hits during his 17-year career with the Philadelphia Phillies, St. Louis Cardinals, Cincinnati Reds, and Toronto Blue Jays from 1996-2012. He also won eight Gold Glove Awards, which ranks third-most in MLB history behind only Brooks Robinson (16) along with Mike Schmidt and Nolan Arenado (10).
A seven-time All-Star, Rolen had three seasons with at least 30 home runs and 100 RBI and 10 campaigns with at least 20. His career Wins Above Replacement (WAR) of 70.1 ranks ninth amongst all third-basemen in MLB history.
Falling just short of joining Rolen in Cooperstown is former Colorado Rockies first baseman Todd Helton, who accrued 72.2% of the vote — just 11 votes short of that magic 75% mark. With this being his fifth year on the ballot, the path is clear for his induction next year.
Scott Rolen received 76.3% of the votes to be elected to the Hall of Fame. Todd Helton finished just short with 72.2% of the votes.
Full voting totals below. pic.twitter.com/ojFeWniBQb
— Kyle Glaser (@KyleAGlaser) January 24, 2023
Rolen join Fred McGriff during 2023 induction weekend on July 23. McGriff, who slugged 493 home runs in his career, was voted in unanimously by the 16 members of the Contemporary Baseball Era committee last month.
