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Phillies’ former SS Jimmy Rollins deserves to be in the Hall of Fame

By Andrew Cereghin

SAN FRANCISCO, CA - AUGUST 16: Jimmy Rollins #11 of the Philadelphia Phillies bats against the San Francisco Giants in the top of the eighth inning at AT&T Park on August 16, 2014 in San Francisco, California. (Photo by Thearon W. Henderson/Getty Images)
SAN FRANCISCO, CA - AUGUST 16: Jimmy Rollins #11 of the Philadelphia Phillies bats against the San Francisco Giants in the top of the eighth inning at AT&T Park on August 16, 2014 in San Francisco, California. (Photo by Thearon W. Henderson/Getty Images) /
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PHILADELPHIA – MAY 20: Shortstop Jimmy Rollins #11 of the Philadelphia Phillies swings the bat during the game against the Toronto Blue Jays on May 20, 2007 at Citizens Bank Park in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. The Phillies defeated the Blue Jays 5-3. (Photo by Drew Hallowell/Getty Images) /

Jimmy Rollins’ case for the HOF: Traditional stats

Hits: Jimmy Rollins currently ranks 14th all-time among shortstops with 2,455 hits, putting him one spot behind Bill Dahlen and one ahead of Miguel Tejada. Rollins is also the all-time hits leader for the Philadelphia Phillies.

Home Runs: Rollins currently ranks 9th all-time in home runs among shortstops with 231, putting him between Vern Stephens and Nomar Garciaparra.

Steals: Rollins currently ranks 11th all-time in stolen bases among shortstops with 470, putting him between Luis Aparicio and Donie Bush.

RBI: Rollins currently ranks 23rd all-time in RBI among shortstops with 936, putting him between Dave Concepcion and Nomar Garciaparra.

Jimmy Rollins is also one of only ten players with at least 200 home runs and 400 stolen bases and the only player in baseball history to have at least 200 home runs, 400 stolen bases, and 100 triples.

Jimmy Rollins’ case for the HOF: Accolades

Next, let’s look at Rollins from an accolades perspective. Some people will argue that this is the best way to determine a player’s true worth; if you were one of the best hitters, how many Silver Sluggers did you win? An elite defender? How many Gold Gloves? Were you able to elevate your team to a championship?

Well, it turns out Rollins accomplished almost everything a player could achieve at least once. Rollins was a 3x All-Star, 4x Gold Glove winner, 1x Silver Slugger, 2007 MVP, and he helped his team win the world series in 2008 and claimed a second NL pennant in 2009.

Rollins is one of only 15 players in MLB history to achieve at least one Gold Glove, Silver Slugger, MVP, and World Series, the other 14 being Mike Schmidt, George Brett, Cal Ripken Jr., Willie McGee, Rickey Henderson, Barry Larkin, Ivan Rodriguez, Alex Rodriguez, Albert Pujols, Dustin Pedroia, Buster Posey, Jose Altuve, Mookie Betts, Cody Bellinger, and Freddie Freeman. Rollins is also one of two primary shortstops to accomplish this feat.

Notice something? Six current Hall of Famers, three future Hall of Famers, three guys that are strongly making a case for the Hall of Fame, and Rollins, a guy who can barely reach 5% on the ballot.

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