Name the most fun non-Cubs player in baseball.
I’m not sure who immediately comes to mind for you, but I know who it was for me: Adrian Beltre. The long-time third baseman was made for the GIF era, consistently showing joy for the game of baseball in digestible, 10 second bites that we could enjoy throughout a season.
But the thing is, it wasn’t just that Beltre was frequently silly out there that made him the most fun non-Cubs player. It was also the fact that he was incredibly good. The guy played in 21 seasons, and just three of them – his rookie year when he was 19, his third full season when he was 22, and his final season when he was 39 – saw him post a WAR below 2.0! Elite on defense, and frequently at the plate, too, Beltre is a no-brainer first-ballot Hall of Famer in my book.
And, sadly, he’s hanging ’em up:
#ThankYouAB pic.twitter.com/wZO9K18yVJ
— #ThankYouAB (@Rangers) November 20, 2018
What a career. Dang. We are worse off for Beltre exiting the game, but thanks for the fun and the impressive results.
I could literally grab 50 Beltre GIFs I love, but here are three of my favorites that immediately came to mind:
For the countless laughs. #ThankYouAB pic.twitter.com/GigcEzgEOr
— #ThankYouAB (@Rangers) November 20, 2018