Adrian Beltre, Joe Mauer and Todd Helton earned election to the Baseball Hall of Fame on Tuesday night. The trio will be inducted into the Hall of Fame on July 21st as part of a great ceremony in Cooperstown, N.Y.
Beltre was the biggest vote getter in the group, receiving more than 95 percent of the vote. After his election was announced, fellow baseball legend Albert Pujols gave Beltre an awesome tribute post on social media. He posted four pictures, including one as teammates for the Dominican Republic in the World Baseball Classic.
Felicidades, hermano! I am so proud of everything you have accomplished on and off the field! Such an incredible moment for you, your family and our country! God bless!
Beltre spoke with MLB Network after the announcement and said that he and Pujols are good friends and recently went golfing together in the Dominican, so it wouldn't be shocking to see Pujols appear at the ceremony in July.
Pujols is one of the best players in baseball history and will be destined for Cooperstown soon enough. He just retired at the end of the 2022 season with a lifetime .296 batting average and 703 career home runs. He registered 3,384 career hits and was a three-time MVP.
As for Beltre, he 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.
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