Adrian Beltre has been elected to the Baseball Hall of Fame in his first season on the ballot. Joining him in being elected by the BBWAA in this year’s class are catcher Joe Mauer and first baseman Todd Helton.
Beltre spent 21 years in the major leagues, with a career slash line of .286/.339/.480, 3166 career hits, and 477 career home runs. Beltre won five Gold Gloves, and his 93.5 bWAR is third all time among third basemen in the major leagues. He spent the final eight seasons of his career with the Texas Rangers, and it was during that time that he really began to receive the national recognition for his greatness that he deserved.