Scott Rolen elected to Basebal...

Scott Rolen of the St. Louis Cardinals finally made it to the Hall of Fame after six attempts. On Tuesday, Rolen learned that he would be inducted into the Cooperstown Baseball Hall of Fame. He is the only member of the Baseball Writers' Association of America's 2023 Hall of Fame class who was elected this year. Rolen was elected with only 76.3% of the vote. To be inducted into Cooperstown, players must receive 75% of the vote, which Rolen did by five votes out of 389 cast.

Rolen's candidacy took several years to develop. In his first year of eligibility, he earned just 10.2% of the vote, but that proportion gradually increased as more attention was drawn to his case. Rolen had a.281/.364/.490 slash line with 316 home runs in 17 seasons in the majors. His career OPS+ was 122, which means he batted 22% higher than the league average over that time span.

On top of that, Rolen was a field magician. During his career, he won eight Gold Glove awards and was regarded as one of the league's greatest defensive third basemen. Rolen was also named Rookie of the Year in 1997, made seven All-Star teams, earned a Silver Slugger in 2002, and helped the Cardinals win the World Series in 2006.

Alex Rodriguez, Manny Ramirez fall short of induction

Right after Rolen was longtime Colorado Rockies first baseman Todd Helton, who finished just short of the threshold, with 72.2%. That works out to 11 votes short.

New York Yankees slugger Alex Rodriguez and Boston Red Sox outfielder Manny Ramirez also missed the cut. Neither player came close to induction on the publicly released ballots, likely due to their being suspended for using steroids during their careers. Rodriguez received 35.7% of the votes, and Ramirez got 33.2%.

A handful of players outperformed Ramirez and Rodriguez in the voting. In his first year on the ballot, former Kansas City Royals and New York Mets (among other teams) outfielder Carlos Beltran got 46.5% of the vote, though he himself has a cloud over his candidacy due to his central role in the 2017 Houston Astros cheating scandal, when he was the club's bench coach.

Jeff Kent, Huston Street fall off ballot

Hard-hitting second baseman Jeff Kent came well short of making the cut in his 10th and final appearance on the ballot, receiving only 46.5% of the vote. His case will next be heard by the historical overview committee in December 2025, per the BBWAA.

A number of players also dropped off the ballot due to failure to receive 5% of the vote, including first-timers Matt Cain, R.A. Dickey, Jacoby Ellsbury, Bronson Arroyo, John Lackey, Mike Napoli, Jhonny Peralta and Huston Street. Of that group, Dickey, Arroyo, Lackey, Napoli and Street were the only candidates to receive votes.

Rolen joins Fred McGriff in Cooperstown Class of 2023

Rolen's election means he will join Fred McGriff in Cooperstown this summer, after the longtime first baseman was elected by a special committee in December. Players who fall off the BBWAA ballot — such as McGriff — are still eligible to be inducted into the Hall of Fame by a special committee.

McGriff — along with Barry Bonds and Curt Schilling — was eligible for induction this year by the contemporary baseball era committee. Those committees consist of 16 individuals, often former players, executives and media members. Candidates need 75% of the vote to gain induction into the Hall of Fame.

Joe Mauer, Adrián Beltré, Chase Utley headline 2024 Hall of Fame ballot

Helton and Wagner have a shot to get in on the 2024 Hall of Fame ballot, and they could be joined by some other big names. Twins great Joe Mauer, Philadelphia Phillies legend Chase Utley and Texas Rangers and Los Angeles Dodgers standout Adrián Beltré are among the biggest names on the 2024 ballot.

They'll be joined by other prominent players including New York Mets star David Wright, Rockies outfielder Matt Holliday and Detroit Tigers and Cleveland Guardians catcher Victor Martinez.