The Baseball Writers Association of America elected longtime New York Yankees captain Derek Jeter and former Montreal Expos and Colorado Rockies standout Larry Walker to the National Baseball Hall of Fame on Tuesday. Jeter received all but one of 397 BBWAA votes (99.7 percent). Walker was named on 304 ballots (76.6 percent). Full voting results can be found here.
Jeter finished his 20-year playing career with a .310/.377/.440 slash line, compiling 3,465 hits (sixth all-time), 544 doubles, 66 triples, 260 home runs, 1,311 RBIs, 119 wRC+, an 8.6% walk rate, 14.6% strikeout rate, 72.4 wins above replacement (88th all-time; Baseball-Reference.com), and 73.1 wins above replacement (48th all-time among hitters; FanGraphs).
While his fielding metrics don’t exactly scream elite (-152 defensive runs saved, -6.2 UZR/150 from 2002 through 2014; 6,605 assists, 3,820 putouts, 254 errors in 10,679 career chances at shortstop), a trophy case stuffed with a 1996 American League Rookie of the Year Award, five World Series titles (1996, 1998, 1999, 2000, 2009; .308/.374/.465 over 158 postseason games), and 14 AL All-Star appearances will help those stats slide under the radar.
Larry Walker, a 17-year MLB veteran, spent the first six years of his career in Montreal (1989 to 1994; .281/.357/.483, 128 wRC+) after being signed as an amateur free agent by the club in 1984.
Following the 1994 players’ strike, the then-28-year-old signed a four-year, $22.5 million contract with the Colorado Rockies. Here, his game soared. During his time in Denver (1995 through August 2004), Walker hit .334/.426/.618 with 258 home runs, 297 doubles, 44 triples, a 147 OPS+, and 147 wRC+.
When all was said and done (following a one-and-a-half-year stint in St. Louis), the Canadian native (Maple Ridge, British Columbia), finished his career with a .313/.400/.565 slash line, 383 home runs, 471 doubles, 1,311 RBIs, 140 wRC+, 72.7 bWAR (86th all-time) and 68.7 fWAR.
Curt Schilling fell just short of enshrinement, tallying 278 votes (70 percent). Roger Clemens (61 percent), Barry Bonds (60.7 percent), and Omar Vizquel (52.6 percent) appear to be inching closer, and Billy Wagner (31.7 percent), Gary Sheffield (30.5 percent), and Todd Helton (29.2 percent) put up strong showings as well.
