Outside The Confines: Here come the Hall of Famers

Today is a big day for four incredible men associated with baseball. Two have been waiting almost two years for the moment, as the delayed Hall of Fame ceremony put a pause on their inductions. But today, Derek Jeter, Larry Walker, Marvin Miller, and Ted Simmons will all be inducted into the Cooperstown Baseball Hall of Fame.

Miller, who passed in 2012, helped turn the MLB Players Union into a strong group able of defending their rights, and was voted in by the Veterans Committee, as was Simmons, whi is now 72. Jeter and Walker were the 2020 inductees selected by votes from the active BBWAA members eligible to cast a ballot.

It’s a big moment for the players, especially, who will get to bask in the moment of recognition for their accomplishments. The ceremony will begin at 12:30 CT and air on MLB Network.

Some good Hall of Fame reads we haven’t shared yet:

• Jay Jaffe, resident Hall of Fame expert at FanGraphs, shares a look at the delayed road to Cooperstown.
• A look at five players who could have made it to Cooperstown with a simple twist of fate, shares Bradford Doolittle.
• Jon Paul Morosi looks at the incredible career of Derek Jeter.
• We focus a lot on the players who are being admitted to the Hall, but Evan Drellich brings us the story of Marvin Miller and what earned him his place in Cooperstown this year. (The Athletic subscription required.)

Now on to the rest of the links!

• Dan Szymborski laments the Mets crumbling hopes in a season that was supposed to be a success.
• Will Laws looks at how multiple trips to the COVID-related IL have impacted the Red Sox season.
• Albert Pujols made a splash in his first return to St. Louis as a Dodger, writes Juan Toribio.
• Before the big in-game moment, Fabian Ardaya and Katie Woo reported on how Pujols felt returning to his old stomping grounds. (The Athletic subscription required.)
• Jacob deGrom may be “perfectly intact” in terms of his arm, but there still isn’t any real timeline on when he’ll be fit to play.
• Zachary D. Rymer gives us a list of some underrated players from the 2021 season.
• You guys see it too, right?

• Looks like Charlie Morton won’t be retiring next year, as the Braves signed him to a lucrative $20 million contract extension.
• Adam Berry looks at Wander Franco’s continuing on-base stretch which has now surpassed Mickey Mantle.
• Speaking of talented rookies, Ryan Fagan looks at the still wide-open Rookie of the Year class for both leagues.
• Ben Lindbergh does deep reporting, giving us a full breakdown of Juan Soto’s signature shuffle.
• Max Scherzer is a strong contender for another NL Cy Young award, but don’t ask him for the finer details of his outings, he’s too in the zone.
• I don’t mean to alarm anyone, but New Era is at it again, and wow, these are... something. (I’m just linking to the tweet because there’s some colorful language, so fair warning!)
• Derek Jeter might owe the late Bill Freehan a big thank you in his speech today.

And tomorrow will be a better day than today, Buster. Make it so.