ST. LOUIS — The Cardinals have served up another crop of deserving candidates for induction into the team's Hall of Fame in 2021.
This year's fan ballot includes:
- Steve Carlton
- Keith Hernandez
- Matt Morris
- Edgar Renteria
- Lee Smith
Fans can vote from Monday, March 1, to Saturday, March 17 at cardinals.com/HOF.
The one player with the most fan votes on April 17 will be inducted into the Cardinals Hall of Fame on Saturday, Aug. 21 alongside Tom Herr, John Tudor and Bill White. Those members of the 2020 class were not able to be inducted last season, because of the COVID-19 pandemic.
“Although the pandemic has created many challenges for our sport and organization, we will continue to celebrate and honor our team’s history by inducting another Cardinals player into our Hall of Fame during the 2021 season,” Cardinals Chairman and CEO Bill DeWitt Jr. said in a statement.
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Here's a quick overview of each of this year's candidates:
Steve Carlton
Began his career with the Cardinals from 1965-1971 before being traded to Philadelphia.
In 190 games started, Carlton was 77-62 with a 3.10 ERA, 1.28 WHIP, 66 complete games, 16 shutouts and a World Series title in 1967.
He is a member of the National Baseball Hall of Fame in Cooperstown.
Keith Hernandez
Hernandez also began his career in St. Louis, playing with the Cardinals from 1974-1983 before being traded to the New York Mets.
In 1,165 games as a Cardinal, Hernandez hit .299/.385/.448 with 1,217 hits, 265 doubles, 81 home runs and 595 RBI.
He won six consecutive Gold Glove Awards at first base from 1978-1983 and was the National League co-MVP in 1979. Hernandez was also a two-time All-Star with the Cardinals and helped the team to the 1982 World Series title.
Matt Morris
Morris started 206 games for the Cardinals from 1997-2005 going 101-62 with a 3.61 ERA, 1.27 WHIP, throwing 18 complete games and eight shutouts in 1,377.1 innings.
Morris was second in Rookie of the Year voting in 1997 and a National League All-Star in 2001 and 2002.
In eight seasons in St. Louis, Morris won 11 games six times, helped win four division titles and started 11 postseason games. His 986 strikeouts are sixth most in Cardinals history.
Edgar Renteria
One of the most dominant offensive shortstops in Cardinals history, Renteria played in 903 games for the team from 1999 to 2004.
During that time he hit .290/.347/.420 with 451 RBI, 207 doubles and 148 stolen bases.
Renteria was a three-time All-Star with the Cardinals and also won two Gold Gloves and three Silver Slugger Awards in St. Louis.
Lee Smith
Smith is already a member of the National Baseball Hall of Fame and is revered as one of the most dominant closers in baseball history.
During his time as a Cardinal from 1990-1993, Smith compiled 160 saves and a 2.90 ERA. He led the National League in saves in 1991 and 1992.
He was a three-time All-Star with the Cardinals and finished in the top four of Cy Young voting twice in St. Louis.
He was the franchise's all-time saves leader with 160 until Jason Isringhausen passed him in 2007.