Got the Call to Cooperstown

Congratulations to Tim Raines (above), Jeff Bagwell and Ivan Rodriguez, the Cooperstown Class of 2017.

  • Raines, who starred for a dozen seasons with the Expos, was the second best leadoff man of his era and ranks just behind Rickey Henderson as a basestealer. He led the NL in steals four straight years -- and swiped 70 or more six years in a row. A seven-time .300 hitter, he joins Gary Carter and Andre Dawson as Hall of Famers whose careers were primarily spent in Montreal. (The photo above was taken at the 2011 Pinstripe Passions collectibles show.)
  • Bagwell, who played all 15 of his seasons in Houston, was a great all-around hitter. He totaled 449 home runs while batting a career .297 -- and, thanks to walking 75 or more times in 12 seasons, posted a lifetime .408 on-base percentage.
  • Rodriguez set the standard for defensive catchers during the 1990s. The 13-time gold glove winner threw out at least 50% of attemped base stealers nine times in his 21 seasons. He was also a key cog in the Texas Rangers offense, hitting .296 lifetime with 311 home runs.
They'll be inducted into the Baseball Hall of Fame on July 30th.

Trevor Hoffman and Vladimir Guerrero came close, both pulling over 70% support, and can be considered favorites to get over that 3/4 threshhold in 2018.

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