Derek Jeter, Larry Walker newest members of Baseball Hall of Fame

Derek Jeter was a shoo-in for this year’s Hall of Fame ballot.  The question for him wasn’t if he was going to get in, but by how much?  For whatever reason, Jeter received 396 of a possible 397 votes.  There always has to be one Hall of Fame voter that takes it upon themselves to be different.

Regardless, ‘El Capitan’ is the newest member of the Baseball Hall of Fame.  Jeter’s stats are as follows;  3,465 hits, 260 home runs, 544 doubles, 358 stolen bases, five Gold Gloves, 14 All-Star games, four World Series wins and a World Series MVP to boot.

Jeter will always be known for his postseason heroics, posting nearly identical batting averages from regular season (.310) to postseason (.308).  ‘Mr. November’ is one of the most beloved figures in Yankee history and is well deserved of the Hall of Fame nod.

He is joined, finally, by Larry Walker.  Walker is one of the more underrated superstars in MLB history and despite playing in the midst of the Steroid Era, never tested for any banned substances.  The knock on Walker was that he only compiled his numbers because he played in the friendly confines of Coors Field, a stadium that’s essentially a launching pad for home runs.

Either way, Walker finally made it on his 10th year on the ballot.  Walker’s stats are as follows;  .313 lifetime average, 383 home runs, 230 stolen bases, five All-Star games and seven Gold Gloves.  Walker split his time between the now defunct Montreal Expos, Colorado Rockies and St. Louis Cardinals.  He will always be known as a Rockie and will most likely head into the Hall as a Rockie.

Some notable names that just fell short of the 75.0% needed for the Hall of Fame;  Curt Schilling (70.0%), Roger Clemens (61.0%), Barry Bonds (60.7%) and Omar Vizquel (52.6%).  The only one out of that group that will most likely make the Hall is Schilling.  Clemens and Bonds will most likely never make it due to their known steroid abuse.