The Hall of Fame Induction Ceremonies happen this weekend, and four new members will officially be welcomed to the legendary museum. Today, I honor Todd Helton. Helton is one of those players whose career occurred at a time that I wasn't collecting, so I only own a single card of his. So, I filled in the rest of my Top 5 with a sample of cards that I enjoy.
1999 Topps #52 (ASR)
This has to be one of the all-time great Rookie Cup cards, doesn't it? How often to you get candid shots of a player waiting around trying to stay dry during a rain delay? Helton took over first base for Colorado in 1998, and led all rookies in either league in most of the major offensive categories. He would have been a slam dunk choice for Rookie of the Year if it had not been for the historic season by Cubs pitcher Kerry Wood.
2001 Upper Deck Victory #532
This is the only card I own of his. When this card came out, Helton was coming off an amazing 2000 season that resulted in a Top 5 MVP finish as well as the first of 5 straight All-Star selections and 4 straight Silver Slugger awards.
2003 Stadium Club #59
In addition to being a great hitter, Helton was regularly regarded as one of the best fielding first baseman in the Majors. He won 3 Gold Gloves over the course of his career.
2014 Topps #253 (BH, CL)
Technically, I once owned this card too. It was part of the Time Travel Trading stack and has since moved on. Helton announced his retirement in 2013, an impressive 5 years after he was diagnosed with a degenerative back condition. He is one of only 11 retired players in Major League history with at least a .300/.400/.500 AVE/OBP/SLG slash line and 350 home runs.
2019 Topps Update
- 150 Years of Professional Baseball
#150-42
Let's talk about that 2000 season again, because it truly was something special. He won his first and only batting title, and also led the National League in hits, OBP, SLG (and thusly OPS), doubles, RBI, extra base hits, and total bases. Only hits and OBP didn't lead the Majors. He became the 11th player in MLB history to surpass 100 extra base hits, only the second time that happened since 1948. (Fun fact: In 2001, that mark was surpassed 4 more times, including by Helton again, but has not been done since!) Despite all this, Helton only finished 5th in the MVP race, thanks to the Rockies's 4th place finish and the stigma of the "thin Colorado air".
I'm very happy for Helton and Rockies fans. Not a big fan of penalizing Rockies hitters... since they can't control where they play. Don't remember anyone penalizing Yankees sluggers for their short distances to the wall along the foul lines all of those years :D
ReplyDeleteExcellent point Fuji! :D
DeleteI know that I'm out of the loop, but I had been under the impression that he had already got in a couple of years back.
ReplyDeleteHappy to see Helton finally get inducted. That Stadium Club card is a nice one I hadn't seen before.
ReplyDeleteAlways respected his game, but he was another player I didn't think was HOF worthy till the end of his playing days.
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