Red Sox legend Jim Rice was elected to the Hall of Fame on his 15th and final time on the ballot today. Former Sox player Ricky Henderson was voted in as well.
Power-hitting Red Sox outfielder Jim Rice, in his 15th and final time on the Baseball Writers' Association of America ballot, was elected to the National Baseball Hall of Fame on Monday along with Rickey Henderson, baseball's all-time stolen bases and runs scored leader. They will be inducted into the Hall July 26 at the Clark Sports Center in Cooperstown, N.Y.
Rice, 55, spent his entire 16-year big league career with Boston. The 1978 American League Most Valuable Player finished in the top five of the AL MVP voting five other times, finishing second to teammate Fred Lynn in the 1975 AL Rookie of the Year voting. He led the American League in homers three times, hit .300-or-better seven times and was selected to eight All-Star Games. He is the only player in history to post three straight seasons of 35-plus home runs and 200-plus hits. He finished his career with a .298 batting average, 382 home runs and 1,451 RBIs.
Players must be named on 75 percent of ballots submitted to be elected. This year, 405 votes were required. Rice was listed on 412 ballots (76.4%) and becomes the third player elected by the BBWAA in his final year of eligibility, following Red Ruffing (1967) and Ralph Kiner (1975). Rice received seven votes more than the minimum needed for election.
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