Adrian Beltre’s plaque at the National Baseball Hall of Fame and Museum will bear the player wearing the cap of the Texas Rangers.
Beltre will be enshrined in Cooperstown, N.Y., along with Joe Mauer, Todd Helton and retired manager Jim Leyland as part of the Class of 2024.
There was no suspense as to which logo would adorn the caps of Mauer and Helton when the Hall made the announcement on Friday.
Mauer played only for the Minnesota Twins and Helton spent his career with the Colorado Rockies, and they will represent those teams.
Beltre, however, played for four teams over 21 seasons and he chose the Rangers for his Hall of Fame plaque. He played his final eight seasons in Texas, and in that span, he was selected an All-Star three times and won three of his five career Gold Gloves. His only World Series appearance came in 2011 with Texas.
“I am grateful for the time I spent with all of my teams during my career,” Beltre said. “Looking back, I played more years in Texas than anywhere else and I believe my time with the Rangers represents the peak of my career, individually and from a team standpoint. But I could not have made this journey to Cooperstown without the Los Angeles Dodgers, Seattle Mariners, Boston Red Sox, and their fans, and I am proud that each of the teams I played with will be listed on my Hall of Fame plaque.”
As for Leyland, his cap won’t bear a logo. He managed the Pittsburgh Pirates, Florida Marlins, Rockies and Detroit Tigers for 22 seasons, winning the 1997 World Series with the Marlins. He decided to go without a team cap.
“I will always appreciate the teams that gave me the opportunity to be their major league manager,” Leyland said. “We had some great moments with every one of those ballclubs, and I’m proud that they all will be mentioned on my Hall of Fame plaque. I want to make sure I show each of those teams respect, and this does that.”
–Field Level Media