MLB Twitter debates whether or not Carlos Beltran deserves a spot in the Hall of Fame: "Simple answer...YES!" "Ruined his legacy"

Carlos Beltran is in his first year on the Hall of Fame ballot. He's made quite the case for himself over his 20-year major league career. He won Rookie of the Year in 1999 and went on to become a nine-time All-Star. Beltran also won three Gold Glove Awards and two Silver Slugger Awards.

However, Beltran was targeted as the ringleader for the Houston Astros' sign-stealing scandal in 2017. This situation has seemed to complicate an otherwise easy Hall of Fame decision.

Is the sign-stealing scandal enough to keep him out of the Hall of Fame? That's going to be the question the Baseball Writers' Association of America voters will have to figure out.

Some fans think Beltran shouldn't be in the Hall of Fame alone for the scandal. Other fans don't see it that way. They see a well-accomplished MLB player. He's one of five players to have 500 doubles, 400 home runs and 300 stolen bases.

Baseball fans on Twitter are pretty split on the topic. Given the sign-stealing scandal, Carlos Beltran remains one of the most interesting Hall of Fame candidates on the ballot this year.

If the baseball writers voting this year are anything like what we're seeing on Twitter, the Beltran vote may be close. It will be interesting to see how much the scandal weighs on the voters' minds.

Carlos Beltran's statistics still hold up

Carlos Beltran remains at the top in terms of his stolen base success rate of all players who have at least 200 career steals. He had an 86.43% success rate. Beltran's ahead of current players like Mike Trout and Trea Turner and retired players like Tim Raines and Jarrod Dyson.

Not only did he perform in the regular season, but he was also a monster in the postseason. Beltran holds the eighth-highest postseason OPS in the history of the league at 1.021. He's sandwiched between George Brett and Albert Pujols, two all-time greats. He performed when his team needed him the most.

Beltran made a great case for himself to be voted into the Hall of Fame. Aside from the cheating scandal, he's had an outstanding career. Will the cheating scandal be enough to keep him out of the Hall of Fame? It's going to be a tough call.

About the author

Jared "Bloomy" Bloom is a journalist covering Major League Baseball at Sportskeeda and a former college baseball pitcher from Illinois, who just graduated with a Master's degree in Sport Psychology.

A writer with over 3 years of experience, Jared is consistently more concerned with quality than quantity, thoroughly checking multiple sources of information, and prides himself in being knowledgeable not just about MLB, but the game of baseball in general. He loves breaking down plays and game-changing moments, as well as looking closer into players' statistics.

Jared is a die-hard Chicago White Sox fan, and one of his earliest memories is seeing his great-grandfather, a huge Sox fan, in his rocking chair watching a game. Jared started playing from the age of 5 with his grandfather coaching him early on.

Jared loved Tim Lincecum for his quirky delivery and looked up to him as a role model when playing. His current favorite is Phillies star Bryce Harper, an exciting player who doesn't let injuries hold him back. Jared's favorite sports moment is Mark Buehrle's opening day between-the-legs glove flip to first base in 2010.

When he is not watching or writing about baseball, Jared can be found racing BMX at his local Rockford BMX track or coaching his local youth travel baseball team.

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