Longtime Rockies first baseman Todd Helton didn’t try to hide his disappointment after narrowly missing out on being inducted into the National Baseball Hall of Fame.
“I’m disappointed, but it’s something I can’t control,” Helton told MLB.com after voting results were announced Tuesday.
Helton received a vote on 72.2% of the 389 ballots from Baseball Writers’ Association of America voters but was shy of the 75% threshold necessary for induction. It was a large jump from his 52% mark last year, but it didn’t make it hurt any less. When asked if he was nervous ahead of the announcement, he said he was “more nervous than I should’ve been.”
“I’m just thankful for the people that voted for me this year,” Helton said. “I don’t think about one way or the other. Just hope and pray for next year.”
Helton played for Colorado from 1997 to 2013 and was selected to five All-Star Games during that time. He is a three-time Gold Glove winner and a four-time Silver Slugger winner. In ’00, he led the MLB in hits (216), doubles (59), RBIs (147), batting average (.372), on-base percentage (.463), slugging percentage (.698), OPS (1.162) and total bases (405).
Although it wasn’t his year this time around, the writing is on the wall that Helton will be immortalized sooner rather than later.
