At the time of the infamous steroids trial, Rafael Palmeiro seemed to come off so good.  Of course when you are sitting next to a man who suddenly suffered from amnesia (Mark McGwire), a man who suddenly forgot the English language (Sammy Sosa) and the man who broke the “bro code” (Jose Canseco) a defiant and confident sounding Rafael Palmeiro could not help but look good.  A few months later, Palmeiro was suspended by Major League Baseball for testing positive for steroids.

Ironically, this could hurt Palmeiro’s chances more than anyone else who testified with at Congress.  At that point, he had reached 500 home runs quieter than anyone else ever had and was knocking on the door of 3,000 hits.  Seemingly, anyone else with those numbers would be a celebrated figure beset with endorsements and rabid fans.  Palmeiro had neither as he was playing in the shadow of flashier and more successful power hitters.  As such, he was not regularly in the hunt for MVPs and only appeared in four All Star games which considering his career numbers was relatively low.  Subsequently, he was rarely with great teams and holds the dubious record of having played the most games without a World Series appearance.

Prior to the steroid stigmatism, Palmeiro had the Hall of Fame locked numbers of 500 Home Runs and 3,000 Hits.  Without the allegations, he may not have even been a lock for first ballot induction.  With the PED label, a look at his offense showed a huge upswing at age 34.  McGwire may one day be forgiven as might Sosa.  Palmeiro likely won’t.  As unfathomable as it seemed a decade ago, he was almost a one and done Hall of Fame candidate, and could easily fall of the ballot next year.  This could be a sad reality for one of the most consistent offensive performers of his day.

The Bullet Points:

Country of Origin:

Havana, Cuba

Eligible Since:

2011

Position:

1B, OF

Played for:

Chicago Cubs

Texas Rangers

Baltimore Orioles

Major Accolades and Awards:

4 Time All Star (1988, 1991, 1998 & 1999)

Gold Glove (3) (AL) (1997, 1998 & 1999)

Silver Slugger (2) (AL) (1998 & 1999)

Most Runs Scored (1) (AL) (1993)

Most Hits (1) (AL) (1990)

Most Doubles (1) (AL) (1991)

Other Points of Note:

Sporting News Major League Player of the Year (1999)

Top Ten MVP finishes:

(AL: 1993, 8^th), (AL: 1996, 6^th) & (AL: 1999, 5^th)

5 Top Ten Finishes (Batting Average)

7 Top Ten Finishes (Slugging Percentage)

2 Top Ten Finishes (On Base Percentage)

3 Top Ten Finishes (Most Runs Scored)

5 Top Ten Finishes (Most Hits)

10 Top Ten Finishes (Total Bases)

5 Top Ten Finishes (Doubles)

11 Top Ten Finishes (Most Home Runs)

9 Top Ten Finishes (Most Runs Batted In)

7 Top Ten Finishes (Most Walks)

4 Top Ten Finishes (WAR for Position Players)

7 Top Ten Finishes (OPS)

Notable All Time Rankings:

10.  Total Bases: 5,388

12.  Home Runs: 563

15.  Runs Batted In: 1,835

15.  At Bats: 10,472

15.  Plate Appearances: 12,046

16.  Doubles: 585

17.  Games Played: 2,831

24.  Hits: 3,020

30.  Runs Scored: 1,663

31.  Walks: 1,353

73.  Slugging Percentage: .515

78.  WAR for Position Players: 66

83.  OPS: .885

Vote Percentage Received for the Hall of Fame:

2011: 11.0

Should Be Inducted As A:

Texas Ranger