Tag: Baseball Hall of Fame

Peyton Manning congratulates Todd Helton on Hall of Fame nod

“Was an honor to be your backup, an honor to be your fan, and it’s an honor to be your friend,” Peyton Manning told Todd Helton.

From one Hall of Famer to another, game recognizes game. For Hall of Fame quarterback Peyton Manning, his former cross-town Colorado Rockies first baseman Todd Helton’s election to the Baseball Hall of Fame, it means a little bit more.

Helton and Manning were football teammates at the University of Tennessee. Believe it or not, Helton was actually Tennessee’s starting quarterback for a brief time in 1994, before suffering an injury that would pave the way for Manning to take the starting job — and a Hall-of-Fame career career from that point on.

Helton went on to have a stellar 17-year career with the Colorado Rockies, who selected him eighth overall in the 1995 MLB draft. After Manning took the reins as a starter for the Volunteers, he was selected first overall by the Indianapolis Colts in the 1998 NFL draft.

Manning and Helton shared a sports home again when Manning signed with the Broncos prior to the 2012 season. Helton finished his playing career with the Rockies in 2013.

Manning congratulated Helton on Instagram when Helton passed the 75% threshold needed to be elected into the Baseball Hall of Fame in Cooperstown.

Social media reacts to Todd Helton elected to Baseball Hall of Fame

Social media reacts to Todd Helton elected to Baseball Hall of Fame.

Former Vol Todd Helton was elected to the Baseball Hall of Fame on Tuesday.

Joe Mauer and Adrian Beltré were also elected to the Baseball Hall of Fame alongside Helton.

Helton played baseball and football at the University of Tennessee before a career with the Rockies (1997-2013). He was the No. 8 overall selection by Colorado in the 1995 Major League Baseball draft.

Helton’s career batting average was .316, while totaling 2,519 hits, 369 home runs, 1,406 RBIs and 1,401 runs.

He was a five-time all-star (2000-04), a three-time Gold Glove Award winner (2001, 2002, 2004) and a four-time Silver Slugger Award winner (2000–2003). His No. 17 is retired by the Rockies.

PHOTOS: Todd Helton through the years

Below is social media reaction to Helton being elected to the Baseball Hall of Fame.

Baseball Hall of Fame voting: Who’s a lock for the 2024 class and who’s on the cusp?

Who could make it into the Baseball Hall of Fame? Here’s a look at the voting tracking.

Tuesday marks a big day in the baseball world: At 6 p.m. on MLB Network, the BBWAA will announce who got voted into the Hall of Fame in Cooperstown as part of the Class of 2024.

Last year, it was just one player — third baseman Scott Rolen — who was voted in, which frustrated fans. But thanks to public voting numbers collected by the great Ryan Thibodaux who uses his Ballot Tracker to project who could be voted in, we have some idea of the trends ahead of the announcement on Tuesday night.

With that in mind, we decided to use that info to fill you in on who could be in, who could be on the cusp of getting in, and who could be just out:

The Baseball Hall of Fame remains one of the silliest things in all of sports

It remains hard to take this museum all too seriously.

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Tuesday was the day of the year when the baseball people make an announcement about former players (or player) who were lucky enough to be voted into a museum in upstate New York called the National Baseball Hall of Fame and Museum.

It was also the time of year for lots of baseball fans to be reminded that the the voting process isn’t really one that should be taken too seriously and that the museum doesn’t mean as much to fans these days because of the list of amazing players who will never get the call to the Hall.

Scott Rolen was the only player voted in this year, as he got just over the threshold of 75 percent of the votes that it takes to make it. Rolen was a fantastic third baseman during his career and won a World Series with the Cardinals.  He was a 7-time All-Star in his 17 years and in his final five years he played 88, 40, 133, 65, and 92 games.

Does Rolen deserve to be a Hall of Famer? Sure. That’s not really my argument here, but I guess it does have some impact on what I’m going to say.

Here are two names from yesterday that didn’t get voted in – Manny Ramirez, and Alex Rodriguez. They once again join a group of other all-time greats like Barry Bonds and Roger Clemens (who are no longer on the ballot) that will likely never get their named called and it’s why we shouldn’t take this Hall of Fame thing all that seriously.

Those guys listed above aren’t getting in because of their involvement with the steroid era, which was a pretty fun era of baseball but that’s besides the point. We all know the arguments about why they aren’t getting in and why the should get in.

Scott Rolen was a great player. Manny, A-Rod, Bonds, and Clemens were a whole lot better and have legacies that will never be forgotten.

We baseball fans know who the best players of all time were and we don’t need some museum to give the names on that list any type of validation.

Though it would give the place a lot more credibility.

Quick hits: Brady acting lame about fine… Chiefs fans mad about Super Bowl ref… Joe Burrow thirst videos are raging… And more. 

– Tom Brady is being super lame about being fined for his dirty move against the Cowboys in their NFC wild card game.

– The Chiefs aren’t in the Super Bowl yet but their fans are already mad about who is going to be the ref in that game.

– The Joe Burrow thirst videos on TikTok are RAGING right now.

– This mic’d up moment before the Giants-Eagles game is too good.

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MLB fans fumed over a Hall of Fame voting process that inexplicably saw just 1 player picked

Baseball Hall of Fame gonna Baseball Hall of Fame.

The Baseball Hall of Fame’s selection process returned on Tuesday to stupefy and enrage baseball fans across the world.

While there were many deserving candidates eligible for 2023’s class, only former Philadelphia Phillies third baseman Scott Rolen crossed the 75-percent voting threshold to earn a spot in the sport’s prestigious hall.

The Hall’s Contemporary Era Committee selected former first baseman Fred McGriff in December. He’s the only other player that will join Rolen in this year’s class.

Rolen also played for the St. Louis Cardinals, Toronto Blue Jays and Cincinnati Reds during his illustrious career. He’s a seven-time MLB All-Star, eight-time Golden Glove winner and 2006 World Series champion.

While Rolen more than earned his spot in the hall, baseball fans wondered why he was the only one selected of his grouping.

Former Colorado Rockies first baseman Todd Helton, former Houston Astros relief pitcher Billy Wagner and former Atlanta Braves outfielder Andruw Jones were among those who received attention from the voters. Although, it was not enough to earn a spot in the Hall of Fame this time.

The sole fact that it takes a player at least 292 votes to be named to the Hall of Fame continues to irk many baseball fans.

The Baseball Writers’ Association of America continuing to shun players who admitted to using performance-enhancing drugs (like Barry Bonds and Mark McGwire) in its voting doesn’t help quell outrage, either.

Baseball Hall of Fame: Todd Helton’s 2023 voting results

Baseball Hall of Fame: Former Vol Todd Helton’s 2023 voting results

Former Colorado first baseman Todd Helton appeared on the Baseball Hall of Fame ballot for the fifth time in 2023.

Helton received 72.2% of votes on 2023 ballots. He needs 75% for election into the Baseball Hall of Fame.

Helton played baseball and football at the University of Tennessee before a career with the Rockies (1997-2013). He was the No. 8 overall selection by Colorado in the 1995 Major League Baseball draft.

Helton’s career batting average was .316. He totaled 2,519 hits, 369 home runs, 1,406 RBIs and 1,401 runs.

He was a five-time all-star (2000-04), a three-time Gold Glove Award winner (2001, 2002, 2004) and a four-time Silver Slugger Award winner (2000–2003). His No. 17 is retired by the Rockies.

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Auburn set to honor Frank Thomas with statue at Plainsman Park

Auburn Baseball will honor the SEC’s lone member of the Baseball Hall of Fame with a statue this upcoming season.

When college sports fans associate legends with Auburn University, their minds usually go to the three B’s… Bo, Barkley, and the Big Hurt.

[autotag]Bo Jackson[/autotag], who won the Heisman Trophy in 1985, has a statue at the entrance of Jordan-Hare Stadium alongside the program’s other two winners, [autotag]Pat Sullivan[/autotag] and [autotag]Cam Newton[/autotag].

Soon after Jackson’s statue was unveiled, a statue was constructed to honor [autotag]Charles Barkley[/autotag]. That statue now welcomes scholarship donors to Neville Arena on Auburn Basketball game days.

The only statue missing is one honoring [autotag]Frank Thomas[/autotag]. Those days are now numbered.

Thomas, who played baseball and football at Auburn in the late 1980s before enjoying an MLB career that spanned from 1990-2008, will have a statue unveiled at Plainsman Park in his honor on April 8, 2023, according to officials with Auburn Baseball.

Thomas was selected No. 7 overall by the Chicago White Sox during the 1989 Major League Baseball draft and would play for the White Sox from 1990-2005. He spent the final three seasons of his career with the Oakland Athletics and the Toronto Blue Jays.

During his 19-year career, Thomas hit 521 home runs and drove in 1,704 runs while batting .301. He was also a five-time all-star and a two-time winner of the Most Valuable Player award. He was elected to the Baseball Hall of Fame as a first-ballot selection in 2014, and remains the SEC’s lone member.

Auburn Baseball head coach [autotag]Butch Thompson[/autotag] says that Thomas’ statue is a testament to the strong history of the program.

“I think it just gives another degree and shows how good our history is with Auburn baseball,” Thompson said in a recent interview with Auburn Undercover. “There are so many other players that I’m not mentioning, but none are bigger than Frank Thomas. For him to get our first statue, I think it’s in line with the other amazing Auburn men and women that have gotten statues.”

Thomas’ statue will be unveiled during a crucial SEC weekend for Auburn Baseball. The Tigers welcome fellow 2022 College World Series participant, Texas A&M, from April 6-8, and the statue reveal will be the icing on the cake.

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Golf fanatic John Smoltz shares that he lost his father just hours before Field of Dreams Game broadcast

John Smoltz has a number of passions — golf, for one, which he got serious about when he was 21.

John Smoltz has a number of passions — golf, for one, which he got serious about when he was 21 with Atlanta Braves teammates Greg Maddux and Tom Glavine as a way to spend time on their days off between starts — but his work ethic comes from his father.

The Hall of Fame pitcher and former National League Cy Young Award winner hasn’t rested on his laurels since retiring from Major League Baseball, digging hard into the celebrity golf circuit, playing in multiple PGA Tour Champions events and working as the lead MLB analyst for Fox Sports.

During Thursday’s Field of Dreams Game between the Cincinnati Reds and the Chicago Cubs, Smoltz revealed on air that he lost his father earlier in the day, yet remained in Iowa to carry through with the national broadcast.

“It’s been an emotional day,” Smoltz said of losing his father, who was 79. “He lived by his faith, he loved family and he would be so mad if I didn’t do this game. I can’t think of another day to honor him, when you think about this park, this movie and how he loved every one of us and anyone he came in contact with. I’m the man I am because of him.”

Aside from his incredible baseball career, Smoltz has made a name for himself on the golf circuit, playing eight PGA Tour-sanctioned events, all on the Champions Tour. His best finish was a T-53 at the Cologuard Classic in 2019. He played in the U.S. Senior Open in 2018.

Smoltz has said that his most memorable round was with Annika Sorenstam, Tiger Woods and his Atlanta Braves teammate Chipper Jones.

He added Thursday that his family received tremendous support after losing John Adam Smoltz.

“I can’t explain the peace I have,” Smoltz said. “That comes from God and the way he lived. I call it the 4 L’s. He lived. He laughed. He learned. He listened. He gave us everything that we needed to fulfill and show up to work.

“And I feel like I’m showing up to work and what a better way for my Mom, my brother and my sister, and the support we’ve gotten today,” Smoltz added. “It’s started this early this morning. I’m sure it will hit me when I get home. But this is the perfect day for him if he was going to leave.

“He was so proud. When I was in high school, he made my first baseball card. And everywhere he went, he just handed them out to people. I didn’t get it then. I was actually begging him to stop doing that. I get it now, because I’ve run into so many people who met my dad and they say, ‘I met your dad.’ And I say, ‘Stop. Did he give you a card?’

“We’ll miss him. I’m going to live every day for him.”

Interestingly enough, Smoltz’s last major golf duel involved a similar scenario. Smoltz lost in a playoff at the 2021 American Century Championship celebrity golf tournament in Lake Tahoe to Vinny Del Negro, who then revealed after the victory that his father, Vincent, had passed just before the tournament began,

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Todd Helton’s 2022 Baseball Hall of Fame voting results

A look at Todd Helton’s 2022 Baseball Hall of Fame voting results.

Former Colorado first baseman Todd Helton appeared on the Baseball Hall of Fame ballot for the fourth time in 2022.

Helton received 205 votes (52 percent) on 2022 ballots, needing 75 percent for election into the Baseball Hall of Fame.

Helton played baseball and football at the University of Tennessee before a career with the Rockies (1997-2013). He was the No. 8 overall selection by Colorado in the 1995 Major League Baseball draft.

Helton’s career batting average was .316, while totaling 2,519 hits, 369 home runs, 1,406 RBIs and 1,401 runs.

He was a five-time all-star (2000-04), a three-time Gold Glove Award winner (2001, 2002, 2004) and a four-time Silver Slugger Award winner (2000–2003). His No. 17 is retired by the Rockies.

Below are 2022 Baseball Hall of Fame voting results. David Ortiz finished with at least 75 percent and will be inducted into the Baseball Hall of Fame. Players receiving less than 5 percent will drop off future ballots.