Barry Larkin to be Inducted into Hall of Fame

Mid-afternoon on Monday the results of this year’s voting for the Hall of Fame were formally announced by the BBWAA and only one player received the necessary votes for entry – long time Cincinnati Red shortstop Barry Larkin. His name appeared on 86.4% of the ballots, with a player needing to appear on a minimum of 75% in order to be inducted. Larkin will formally be enshrined alongside former Cub third baseman Ron Santo (who was voted on by the Golden Era Committee – which has replaced the formerVeteran’s Committee – earlier in 2011) this coming July in Cooperstown, New York.

This was Larkin’s 3rd time appearing on the ballot. He was named on 62.1% last year and 51.6% the prior year. Larkin was selected to 12 All Star Games, won 9 Silver Slugger Awards, and won 3 Gold Glove Awards during his 19 year career with the Reds after being a 1st Round pick in the 1985 Draft. He was also the National League Most Valuable Player in 1995 and won a World Series with the Reds in 1990.

He made his MLB Debut in August 1986 and aside from a brief two-game rehab stint during the 1989 season, he did not see the minor leagues again. Larkin batted .295/.371/.444 in 9,057 plate appearances over 2,180 career games. He added 198 HR, 960 RBI, 441 doubles, 379 stolen bases, and more walks (939) than strikeouts (817). For more on Larkin’s career and how he compares to some of the other great shortstops in the Hall, head over and read the latest from Blog Red Machine, our Reds partner site here at FanSided.

Larkin retired after the 2004 season, so he never actually faced a Washington Nationals team. However, in his career he did play in 124 games against the Montreal Expos. He batted .272/.340/.409 with 10 HR and 57 RBI in 532 plate appearances against them.

Larkin is a certain Hall of Famer and the honor is extraordinarily well-deserved. It’s a shame he wasn’t named the first time he appeared on the ballot, but ultimately he will take his place right where he belongs this summer.