Six former Phillies eligible for 2021 Hall of Fame honors
By Matt Rappa
3. Scott Rolen, 4th year eligible
Seventeen-year veteran Scott Rolen received 35.3 percent of the vote in 2020, and would need a near-40-percent increase to enter the Hall of Fame in his fourth year of eligibility in 2021.
Rolen began his career with the Phillies from 1996 to 2002, before being dealt to the St. Louis Cardinals as part of the deal that brought Placido Polanco to Philadelphia.
The Indiana native was regarded as the club’s best third baseman since Mike Schmidt, and rightfully so. Spanning 844 games in red pinstripes, he slashed .282/.373/.504 with 207 doubles, 150 home runs, 559 RBI, 71 stolen bases, and 426 walks.
In 1997, Rolen received Rookie of the Year honors after logging 21 home runs and 92 RBI across 156 games. He would also earn several Gold Gloves as a Phillie before being dealt to the National League Central division.
In just his fourth full season with the Cardinals, Rolen notched his only career World Series championship; during that 2006 season, the third baseman earned his seventh of eight career Gold Gloves, as well as fifth of seven career All-Star nods. He hit an impressive .421/.476/.737 in the Fall Classic against the Detroit Tigers, but fell short of MVP honors to David Eckstein. Rolen faced the Phillies in the 2010 NLDS, and logged just one hit and struck out eight times across 11 plate appearances.
Rolen played in St. Louis through 2007; he would also play for the Toronto Blue Jays (2008-09), and Cincinnati Reds (2009-12) to finish out his successful career that had a combined 316 home runs and 1,287 RBI.