Yankees legend Gary Sheffield inches closer to Hall of Fame with first vote

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On Saturday, Gary Sheffield, the former power hitter for the New York Yankees, received his initial vote for the 2024 Baseball Hall of Fame class. This is his 10th and final year of eligibility on the ballot.

Adam Rubin, a BBWAA member and former Mets reporter for ESPN, included Gary Sheffield in his ballot, as revealed by the BBWAA’s Hall of Fame ballot tracker.

Gary Sheffield is a worthy choice for the 2024 HoF

Gary Sheffield enjoyed a 22-season MLB career, playing for eight different teams. His tenure with the New York Yankees spanned the 2005 and 2006 seasons. In 2005, he earned his final All-Star Game selection and Silver Slugger award, boasting a .294 batting average, 34 home runs, and 123 RBI.

Throughout his illustrious career, Gary Sheffield was a nine-time All-Star, a five-time Silver Slugger (achieving the award at two distinct positions), and landed in the top 10 of MVP voting on six occasions. With a career batting average of .292, he holds the 21st spot in all-time walks (1,475), ranks 27th in home runs (509), stands 30th in RBI (1,676), and places 35th in total bases (4,737).

Sheffield also secured a World Series championship with the Marlins in 1997.

Notably, Carlos Beltran, Andruw Jones, and Alex Rodriguez also had stints with the New York Yankees. However, he didn’t vote for Andy Pettitte.

The full class is scheduled to be revealed on Jan. 23, and the voting process will conclude by Dec. 31, conducted by members of the Baseball Writers Association of America. In December, a designated panel will decide whether any finalists on the Contemporary Baseball Era Managers/Executives/Umpires ballot will progress to the next year’s ceremony, slated for July 21 in Cooperstown, N.Y.

For induction, a player needs to secure 75 percent of the votes from the BBWAA.

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