On the day Adrian Beltre enters the Hall of Fame

[Vintagedeputy]

I have lived on the East Coast all my life and have watched baseball for 45+ years. Adrian Beltre never struck me as an exceptional player let alone a Hall of Famer. Maybe I missed out on watching his career. Maybe also, it’s just like how they talk about Kershaw being a Hall of Fame pitcher and I just don’t see it.

My loss, I guess.

[Tabe]

Originally Posted by Vintagedeputy

I have lived on the East Coast all my life and have watched baseball for 45+ years. Adrian Beltre never struck me as an exceptional player let alone a Hall of Famer. Maybe I missed out on watching his career. Maybe also, it’s just like how they talk about Kershaw being a Hall of Fame pitcher and I just don’t see it.

My loss, I guess.

477 homers and arguably the best defensive 3B not named Brooks. You definitely are missing something on him.

As for Kershaw, he has the all-time lowest ERA among starting pitchers in the live ball era. By A LOT. Also the only pitcher to lead MLB four straight years. Three Cy Youngs, an MVP, and two CYA runner-up finishes. He's such an obvious HOF pitcher, I'm baffled at how anybody could think he's not.

[G1911]

Beltre never felt like a hall of famer in real time to me either. This is why I to use the math, because it is objective and my perceptions and feelings are very much not.

Beltre is clearly well over the HOF line, he just had a weird career structured to feel like it was less valuable than it was. A league average bat and great defense for his first five years (97 OPS+), a monster year in 2003, then off to Seattle where he was a league average bat (101 OPS+) again for five years. His age 31 through 38 seasons are where he finally racked up offensive value consistently. The first year or two it felt like a fluke again like his 2003 season, and then it felt like it was too late in his career for the blossoming to get him over the line.

Clayon Kershaw has a higher ERA+ than any other pitcher in major league history who threw more than 1,5000 innings. If he is not A HOFer I genuinely cannot think of anyone who is deserving.

[Mike D.]

I will say that Beltre did have one of the shortest "maybe a hall of famer" periods in recent memory. As a later bloomer who played a long time, he went from "non-candidate" to "sure thing" very quickly. You looked up and suddenly he had 400+ HR and was approaching 3,000 career hits.

The Best Rookie & Prospect Cards Of 2024 Hall Of Famer Adrian Beltre

What's your favorite early Beltre card? The Bowman cards are cool, but I'm partial to the '97 Best cards and some of the minor league offerings.

[Aquarian Sports Cards]

Originally Posted by G1911

Beltre never felt like a hall of famer in real time to me either. This is why I to use the math, because it is objective and my perceptions and feelings are very much not.

Beltre is clearly well over the HOF line, he just had a weird career structured to feel like it was less valuable than it was. A league average bat and great defense for his first five years (97 OPS+), a monster year in 2003, then off to Seattle where he was a league average bat (101 OPS+) again for five years. His age 31 through 38 seasons are where he finally racked up offensive value consistently. The first year or two it felt like a fluke again like his 2003 season, and then it felt like it was too late in his career for the blossoming to get him over the line.

Clayon Kershaw has a higher ERA+ than any other pitcher in major league history who threw more than 1,5000 innings. If he is not A HOFer I genuinely cannot think of anyone who is deserving.

Look at the first two home stadiums he played in and then the last two he played in and things get a lot clearer. LA and Seattle were big pitchers parks at those times. Boston and Texas are massive hitters parks.

[G1911]

Originally Posted by Aquarian Sports Cards

Look at the first two home stadiums he played in and then the last two he played in and things get a lot clearer. LA and Seattle were big pitchers parks at those times. Boston and Texas are massive hitters parks.

Hence the use of the parka adjusted OPS+. Adjusting for park, Beltre was still right at league average. There is no mathematical debate about that fact.

[Mike D.]

Beltre did fit a lot of "storylines" into his, err...storied career.

Not many guys can claim to be all of:

• Top prospect
• Young star
• Disappointment
• Breakout star (48 HR year)
• Big FA signing (SEA)
• Reclamation project (BOS)
• Big FA signing (TEX)
• Superstar
• Sure thing future Hall of Famer

[Vintagedeputy]

Originally Posted by Tabe

477 homers and arguably the best defensive 3B not named Brooks. You definitely are missing something on him.

As for Kershaw, he has the all-time lowest ERA among starting pitchers in the live ball era. By A LOT. Also the only pitcher to lead MLB four straight years. Three Cy Youngs, an MVP, and two CYA runner-up finishes. He's such an obvious HOF pitcher, I'm baffled at how anybody could think he's not.

There’s no question that Beltre and Kershaw have the numbers and/or the trophies. All I can tell you is that in my 48 years of being a baseball fan on the East Coast, if I had to pick 25 people that I thought would be Hall of Famers, neither would be on my list. Not sure how to explain that any other way.

[Tabe]

Originally Posted by Vintagedeputy

There’s no question that Beltre and Kershaw have the numbers and/or the trophies. All I can tell you is that in my 48 years of being a baseball fan on the East Coast, if I had to pick 25 people that I thought would be Hall of Famers, neither would be on my list. Not sure how to explain that any other way.

I mean, that's not really an explanation. Beltre I kinda get but not Kershaw.

[Vintagedeputy]

Originally Posted by Tabe

I mean, that's not really an explanation. Beltre I kinda get but not Kershaw.

Not sure what else I can tell you. That’s just my experience.

[ooo-ribay]

Originally Posted by Tabe

477 homers and arguably the best defensive 3B not named Brooks. You definitely are missing something on him.

As for Kershaw, he has the all-time lowest ERA among starting pitchers in the live ball era. By A LOT. Also the only pitcher to lead MLB four straight years. Three Cy Youngs, an MVP, and two CYA runner-up finishes. He's such an obvious HOF pitcher, I'm baffled at how anybody could think he's not.

13-13 postseason, 4.49 ERA.HOF, yeah but not exactly Mr. October.

[Tabe]

Originally Posted by ooo-ribay

13-13 postseason, 4.49 ERA.HOF, yeah but not exactly Mr. October.

Yep - unquestionably a knock on him. Still a very obvious HOFer.