January 20, 2017. Cooperstown, NY. Cooperstown will have two new faces on their walls after the ballots were counted. Scott Karl and Ivan “Pudge” Rodriguez have both been enshrined in history. 239-game winner Mark Langston fell one vote short on his 15th try, and can only hope for a veterans committee induction at a later date.
Karl, who was a 23 year old rookie in UBA’s inaugural season of 1995, pitched his entire 12 year career with Portland. A devastating elbow injury in 2005 cut short his dominant career, which he briefly tried to come back from in 2006 but ultimately needed to hang up his cleats for good in 2007. His stats per year are off the charts and are what got him voted in on his 10th try: 15 wins, 161 Ks, 4.6 WAR per season. Karl earned the Cy Young award in 2001 and was a 9 time all star.
Pudge Rodriguez earned his spot on his 8th attempt. The 3 time gold glover and 6 time all star finished his career just under .300 at .299, compiling 2,578 hits, 500 doubles and 1,174 RBI. Pudge was known for his fiery attitude that rubbed some the wrong way, but many of the pitchers that worked with him claimed that help them get better each and every outing.
The full voting results have been published and are noted below:
