Is Philadelphia Phillies Legend Underrated by Hall of Fame Voters?

Why isn't this Philadelphia Phillies shortstop and former MVP getting more respect from Cooperstown?

May 4, 2019; Philadelphia, PA, USA; Former Philadelphia Phillies shortstop Jimmy Rollins is honored during his retirement ceremony. / Evan Habeeb-Imagn Images

On the surface, former Philadelphia Phillies shortstop Jimmy Rollins has almost everything one could want from a Hall of Fame candidate.

He had longevity, playing 17 seasons and accumulating over 10,000 plate appearances. He finished with 2,455 hits, 511 doubles, 231 home runs and 470 stolen bases, making him the only shortstop in MLB history with over 200 homers and 400 steals.

He wasn't merely a compiler, either.

Rollins received MVP votes in five different seasons, winning the NL trophy in 2007. He good power for a shortstop, made three All-Star teams and won a Silver Slugger.

He was an elite fielder as well, winning four Gold Glove awards. The defensive metrics back it up, as he twice led NL shortstops in total zone runs and paced the league four times in fielding percentage.

Rollins also spent most of his career with one franchise, which is rare in today's game.

He played 15 of his 17 seasons for the Phillies, setting franchise records in hits and doubles before moving on to the Los Angeles Dodgers and Chicago White Sox in his final two years.

Rollins was a key cog in Philadelphia's dynasty from 2007 to 2011.

Serving as the team's leadoff hitter and everyday shortstop, he helped lead the Phillies to five straight division titles, two pennants and a World Series championship.

The speedy switch-hitter accomplished a lot, and in an earlier era, he probably would have been considered a strong Hall of Fame candidate.

The first graph is where Jimmy Rollins would rank in counting stats among the shortstops already in the Hall of Fame.

The second graph is where he would rank if we only considered everyone's stats for the time they spent at Short.https://t.co/SfOeBD4SEH

__@TheGoodPhight pic.twitter.com/mC2dLGE3Pk

— schmenkman 🇺🇦 (@tgpschmenk) December 1, 2023

However, Rollins has not gotten the support for Cooperstown that his resume seemingly deserves.

He's been on the ballot three times and has yet to capture 15% of the vote, falling well short of the 75% needed for induction.

There's still time, but Rollins seems unlikely to make the massive jump needed to earn a plaque in Cooperstown.

While he rates well by traditional metrics and benchmarks, he falls short in the analytics department.

His career 47.6 WAR is 20 shy of the average shortstop in Cooperstown (67.7), and his 95 OPS+ is below average.

Rollins simply didn't get on base enough or hit for enough power. He never batted .300 in a full season, finished with a .324 OBP and had only one season (2007) with a slugging percentage over .500.

With a relatively short peak and not enough longevity to offset it, Rollins' career wasn't quite Hall of Fame-caliber, however, it's still worth remembering and discussing, especially alongside the career of his double-play partner Chase Utley.