Carlos Beltran becomes Hall of Famer after years as scandal's scapegoat

COOPERSTOWN, NY — Carlos Beltrán’s emotions were in check throughout his press conference Saturday, but afterwards, taking a few more questions from Spanish-speaking reporters, he was asked what his Hall of Fame induction means to his homeland of Puerto Rico.

He began to talk, stopped, shut his eyes, and then hurriedly walked away as tears streamed down his face.

Beltrán, who turned down an opportunity to manage the New York Mets this summer, but would love to have the job if offered again after the season, spoke for 30 minutes about what his induction means to him.

He grew up in Puerto Rico, and believed one day that he’d become a professional baseball player, but never, ever, did he imagine that he’d be a Hall of Famer.

It never really dawned on him until July 26, 1999.

This was the day his Kansas City Royals were in Cooperstown playing a Hall of Fame exhibition against the Texas Rangers in honor of George Brett, who was being inducted along with Nolan Ryan, Robin Yount and Orlando Cepeda.

Beltrán, who was in his first season, was asked by Brett that day if he had ever met Cepeda, his hero.

Beltrán told him no, and that he was too shy to introduce himself, so Brett volunteered. Beltrán even brought a baseball for Cepeda to sign.

They walked up, Brett made the introduction, and says to Cepeda:

“Let me introduce you to the next Hall of Famer from Puerto Rico. His name is Carlos Beltrán."

Beltrán was speechless.

“I’m like, 'What are you doing?' You're introducing me as a Hall of Famer," Beltrán said. “I don't think that's a good statement, George. And George said, 'Well, Carlos, everything is possible in life if you play hard, and if you continue to play good, and if you continue to develop yourself. This is a chance that you could be here.'"

It stuck with Beltrán his entire career.

“That was always in the back of my mind," Beltrán said. “I always thought about what I need to do to get better. So, I always had the attitude of improving every single year. Every year I did an evaluation of how I did it and how I played the game and what I need to improve.

“I worked on it, got better, and here I am.;’’

A Hall of Famer, and star-struck this week seeing Reggie Jackson, Johnny Bench and Juan Marichal in the halls of the Otesaga Hotel.

“It's kind of overwhelming," Beltrán said. “And at the same time, it makes me feel proud about my journey as a baseball player to be able to end up in this position."

And hopefully, Beltrán says, his journey will lead others from Puerto Rico to follow in his footsteps.

“There's no doubt that every generation has responsibility," Beltrán said, “you know, not only to play the game, but also to promote the game and to try to impact the community that you come from. In my case, coming from Puerto Rico, I feel very proud because there were a lot of guys in front of me that really created a better path for me.

“Because of their effort, I hope that I have done the same for others. Being able to inspire them, being able to motivate them."

Beltrán is a hero in Puerto Rico not only because of his baseball career, but his charity foundation and baseball academy, including a high school that he built 15 years ago on the island.

“I feel very proud of the job that I do with my foundation,’’ he said. “We help a lot of people. We believe in the game. We believe in the sport. We believe in opportunities.

“The most important thing that I try to promote is education. It's so hard to have a long career in the game, but we all can have incredible career through education.’’

And when he talks about Puerto Rico in his speech, with his family gathered in front of him, it may difficult to keep his composure.

“I don’t know how it's going to be for me when I get to see my mom and my dad in front of me and get to talk about them," he said. “The Hall of Fame is something that doesn't happen to everybody. God chose me to be in this position, and to use the platform that he's giving me to continue to motivate others, to get involved more in the community, and to continue to promote the game.

“That’s what I care about the most."

This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Carlos Beltran becomes Hall of Famer after years as scandal's scapegoat