(Cooperstown) In Cooperstown, Todd Helton and Joe Mauer will be only the sixth duo from the same cohort to have played for a single club in major baseball.
“A lot of things had to line up,” Helton said at a news conference in the plaque gallery, alongside Mauer and newly elected Adrian Beltre.
“Of course there is the question of contracts and money. Sometimes you bite your tongue a little bit, then you put on the uniform and you play with intensity every day.
“You try to make the team better and be a leader and if they want to keep you, wonderful.
“I am so happy to have spent my entire career with Colorado. I love (Denver), I love the people there. »
The Temple doesn’t get to choose which caps he and Mauer will have on their plaques. Helton played 17 seasons with the Rockies, Mauer 15 with the Twins.
However, the managers will have a choice to make in the case of Beltre: he spent eight years with Texas, seven years with the Dodgers, five years with the Mariners and one year with the Red Sox.
Decisions of this kind have been made by the Pantheon since 2002.
There are only 58 players out of 273 at Temple who have spent their entire careers with one team.
Previous cohort duos that fit this profile have been Mickey Mantle and Whitey Ford (1974), Johnny Bench and Carl Yastrzemski (1989), George Brett and Robin Yount (1999), Tony Gwynn and Cal Ripken (2007) , then Mariano Rivera and Edgar Martinez (2019).
Helton was almost traded to the Red Sox in 2007, the year Colorado went to the World Series, against Boston.
“My understanding is that Keli McGregor, president of the Rockies at the time, objected to it at the last second,” Helton said. I’m glad he did. Going to the World Series with Colorado was more valuable to me than winning it with another club. »
Mauer grew up in St. Paul, Minnesota. He was drafted first overall in 2001 by the Twins.
Mauer and his five-year-old son Chip particularly admired the tribute to the very first cohort: Ty Cobb, Walter Johnson, Christy Mathewson, Honus Wagner and Babe Ruth.
“One of his favorite films at the moment is The Sandlot and they talk about the Great “Bambino,” Mauer said. I’m excited to learn more about baseball history myself, but I’m also excited for him to learn about the great players. This first cohort is a great example, so it’s very special. »
Helton, Mauer, Beltre and Jim Leyland will be inducted on July 21.
“Every corner here is impressive, but the plaque that made the biggest impression on me was that of Juan Marichal,” Beltre said.
“When you’re a young Dominican, that’s the first big name you hear in baseball. He was a god to us. We heard about him all the time. Each young person wanted to imitate his gesture with his leg while throwing. »
Other Dominicans at the Temple are Pedro Martínez, Vladimir Guerrero and David Ortiz.
Beltre credited former manager Felipe Alou, a family friend, and scouts Ralph Avila and Pablo Peguero as those who made it possible for him to sign with the Dodgers at age 15 in 1994.
“They gave me the chance to become a baseball player,” Beltre said. They believed in me. They saw something in me that I didn’t even realize myself at the time. »