The Hall Of Fame Case For Scott Rolen
In this issue, one IBWAA member recaps the impressive career of Scott Rolen and explains why the third baseman deserves to be enshrined in Cooperstown.
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Pregame Pepper
Did you know…
. . . Scott Rolen is one of just four Phillies players to win the National League Rookie of the Year Award, which he earned in 1997. The other three are Jack Sanford (1957), Dick Allen (1964), and Ryan Howard (2005). The same year as Rolen’s rookie coming-out party, his teammate Curt Schilling (who is a notable Hall of Fame candidate on this year’s Contemporary Era ballot) finished fourth for the NL Cy Young Award.
. . . There are currently six players in the Baseball Hall of Fame with Phillies logos on their caps, and none added to that list since Jim Bunning went into the Hall in 1996. However, there have been other notable Philly players inducted since then, most notably Roy Halladay, who was inducted without a cap logo in 2019 to pay tribute to the impact that both the Phillies and Toronto Blue Jays had on his career.
Leading Off
Scott Rolen Deserves A Plaque In The Baseball Hall Of Fame
By Matthew Veasey
The 2023 Baseball Hall of Fame ballot was released last weekend. Under consideration by the voters will be 28 players, 14 newcomers to the ballot as well as 14 holdovers from last year.
Those 14 newcomers have each been formally retired from Major League Baseball as players for five years. The list includes starting pitchers Bronson Arroyo, Matt Cain, R.A. Dickey, John Lackey, and Jered Weaver and relievers Francisco Rodriguez and Huston Street.
Position players being considered for the first time are Carlos Beltrán, Jacoby Ellsbury, Jayson Werth, J.J. Hardy, Jhonny Peralta, Mike Napoli, and Andre Ethier.
Those returning to the ballot each received at least five percent of the vote a year ago. They are Scott Rolen, Andruw Jones, Jeff Kent, Andy Pettitte, Mark Buehrle, Todd Helton, Gary Sheffield, Manny Ramirez, Jimmy Rollins, Torii Hunter, Billy Wagner, Alex Rodriguez, Omar Vizquel, and Bobby Abreu.
Initial industry speculation has Beltrán and K-Rod as the newcomers who will receive the most support from voters. However, neither is likely to reach the 75 percent threshold needed to be enshrined at Cooperstown.
Among the holdovers, Rolen reached the 63.2 percent mark in his sixth year on the ballot. He was the highest vote-getter a year ago who is returning to the ballot this year. Only David Ortiz, who received 77.9 percent support, was elected from last year’s candidates. Both Barry Bonds (66 percent) and Roger Clemens (65.2 percent) fell short in their 10th and final year on the BBWAA ballot. Each was plagued by allegations of using performance enhancing drugs during their careers.
Rolen played the prime years of his career during what has become known as the PED or Steroid Era in baseball. But he was never linked to using any such substances. One of my all-time favorite players, it is my belief that Rolen deserves a minimum of that extra 11.8 percent support he needs to be rewarded with a plaque in Cooperstown.
The second-round choice of the Philadelphia Phillies at 46th overall in the 1993 MLB Draft out of high school in Indiana, Rolen made his big league debut on Aug. 1, 1996, with the Phillies. Immediately installed as the starting third baseman, Rolen saw his first year cut short by a fractured forearm when he was hit by a pitch in early September.
Returning in 1997, Rolen’s first full season saw him become the unanimous choice in voting for National League Rookie of the Year. At age 22, he slashed .283/.377/.469 with 21 home runs, 92 RBIs, 93 runs scored, and 16 stolen bases.
The following year, Rolen became the best third baseman in baseball. He slashed .290/.391/.532 with 31 homers, 110 RBIs, 120 runs scored, and 14 steals. He was also dynamic defensively at the hot corner, earning the first of eight career Gold Glove Awards.
Rolen’s outstanding play in Philly continued for another three and a half years. He added his first All-Star Game appearance, a Silver Slugger Award, and three more Gold Gloves to his ledger during that period.
With a résumé like that, you would expect Rolen to remain a Phillie for a long time. But it wasn’t to be. Fed up with what he felt was unwarranted criticism by management of his play as well as the club’s inability or unwillingness to add the talent to become a consistent winner, he refused to negotiate a contract extension. The situation ultimately led to divorce.
After nearly being traded to Baltimore and Cincinnati, Rolen was dealt to the St. Louis Cardinals at the 2002 trade deadline with pitcher Doug Nickle in exchange for infielder Placido Polanco and pitchers Mike Timlin and Bud Smith. On his way out the door, Rolen proclaimed that he was happy to be headed to “baseball heaven” in St. Louis. Phillies fans took it as an insult, and many have still never forgiven him for the perceived slight.
In St. Louis, Rolen became a perennial All-Star. He appeared in the Midsummer Classic each year from 2003-06, winning Gold Gloves in three of those four seasons. He finished fourth in National League MVP voting in 2004, when he slashed .314/.409/.598 with 109 runs scored and career highs of 34 homers and 124 RBIs.
The Cardinals captured three straight NL Central division crowns from 2004-06 and capped that magnificent run by winning the 2006 World Series in five games over the Detroit Tigers. Rolen starred in the Fall Classic, batting .421 while leading the club in hits and runs.
On Jan. 14, 2008, headed into his age 33 season, Rolen was traded by the Cardinals to the Toronto Blue Jays for another veteran third sacker, Troy Glaus. Two years younger, Glaus had one more final strong season with St. Louis in 2008.
After a solid year and a half with the Jays, Rolen once again was dealt, this time to the Cincinnati Reds at the 2009 trade deadline for young third baseman Edwin Encarnacion and pitchers Josh Roenicke and Zach Stewart. Rolen helped the Reds win NL Central titles in both 2010 and 2012, making the NL All-Star team in both 2010 and 2011 and winning his final Gold Glove in 2010.
Over his career, Rolen hit .281 with a .364 on-base percentage. He blasted 316 home runs, drilled 517 doubles, and produced 1,287 RBIs while scoring 1,211 runs and stealing 118 bases. He won eight Gold Glove Awards at third base. Only Mike Schmidt, Brooks Robinson, and now Nolan Arenado have won more at the hot corner. He was also a seven-time All-Star.
His JAWS number for Hall of Fame worthiness shows Rolen at 56.9, which is 10th all-time among all third basemen in MLB history. Eight of the nine ahead of him are already enshrined, and the ninth, Adrián Beltré, will surely join them at Cooperstown when eligible in 2024.
Rolen has a career bWAR of 70.1, which is higher than, among others, Hall of Famers Tony Gwynn, Eddie Murray, Ivan Rodriguez, Carlton Fisk, Edgar Martinez, Ryne Sandberg, Roberto Alomar, Craig Biggio, and Andre Dawson.
Rolen and Beltré were the greatest third basemen of their generation, spanning the late-1990s through early-2010s. Both men deserve enshrinement with a plaque at the Baseball Hall of Fame in Cooperstown. Beltré will get his in 2024. Rolen should enter the Hall this time around, enjoying a ceremony in July 2023.
Matt Veasey is retired after serving three decades in Philadelphia law enforcement. You can find him as @PhilliesBell on Twitter providing Philadelphia Phillies news, history, and much more, as well as general baseball items of interest. His email is matthew.veasey@verizon.net.