What does one write when seemingly everything there is to say about a subject has already been said?
That’s my dilemma with the Rockies’ newly minted Hall-of-Famer, Todd Helton, whose exploits that earned him a place in Cooperstown have been reported over and over.
My answer is trivia.
See how much of the following is new to you. (Answer follows each question.)
Helton was a star baseball player at the University of Tennessee. What national baseball award did he win?
Helton received the Dick Howser Trophy as National Collegiate Baseball Player of the Year following his junior season in 1995. In addition to hitting .370 during his three-year college career, he pitched 193 innings and had a 2.24 earned run average. In 1995 he set a school record with 11 saves and had an 0.89 ERA.
Helton also played SEC football. What were his passing statistics as a quarterback for the Volunteers?
In 12 games, Helton completed 41 of 75 passes for 484 yards. He passed for four touchdowns and threw three interceptions.
Seven players were chosen ahead of Helton in the 1995 Major League Baseball Amateur Draft. Who was the first player chosen, and what did he do in his career?
Darin Erstad (punter on Nebraska’s 1994 national champion football team) went first. He played 14 seasons for three teams, starting with 11 for the Angels; led the American League with 240 hits in 2000; played in two All-Star Games; and had a .282 lifetime batting average.
What Coloradan was chosen nine places after Helton in the first round of that ’95 draft?
The late Roy Halladay from Arvada West High School was chosen 17th by Toronto. Halladay won a Cy Young Award in each league; threw the second post-season no-hitter in history; won 203 games in a 16-year career; was named to eight All-Star Games; and was inducted into the Hall of Fame in 2019. Helton and Halladay faced off 10 times, and Helton went 2-for-9 with a walk and 2 RBI.
When did Helton make his Major League debut, and what did he do in that game?
Helton’s first Major League appearance came in Pittsburgh on August 2, 1997. The Rockies’ starting left fielder that day, he flied out in his first at bat then blooped a single over shortstop. After the first of his 1,335 walks in the sixth, he hit his first Big League home run, to right-center, in the eighth. He finished 2-for-4 in a 6-5 loss to the Pirates.
Which player or players wore Helton’s No. 17 before it was assigned to him?
Only one other player has worn 17 for the Rockies, and it’s historic, too. Pitcher David Nied, the first player taken in the MLB expansion draft when the Rockies and Marlins were formed, wore 17 from 1993 through the end of his career in 1996.
In his first full season, 1998, Helton batted .315 with 25 home runs and 97 runs batted in. Was that enough to win the National League Rookie of the Year award?
Cubs pitcher Kerry Wood, the fourth pick in 1995, who struck out 20 in a one-hit shutout against Houston and had a 13-6 record in 1998, received 16 first-place votes and 128 points, to Helton’s 15 firsts and 119 points.
Where does Helton rank in career games played at first base?
Baltimore’s Eddie Murray has played the most games at first base, with 2,413. Helton is fifth, all-time, with 2,178—41 more than Lou Gehrig, who is ninth.
What rare play did Helton finally make in the last month of his 17-year career?
The Hidden Ball ruse. On September 19, 2013, Matt Carpenter of St. Louis walked to start the game. With two outs, starting pitcher Roy Oswalt threw to first. Helton faked a return toss then tagged Carpenter out after he wandered off first base. Helton also homered in the bottom of the ninth to tie the game, and the Rockies won in the 15th.
Was Helton’s uniform number the first one retired at Coors Field?
Trick question. Jackie Robinson’s 42 was retired by Major League Baseball for all teams on April 15, 1997. Helton’s 17 was the first number retired by the Rockies, on August 17, 2014.
Denny Dressman is a veteran of 43 years in the newspaper business, including 25 at the Rocky Mountain News, where he began as executive sports editor. He is the author of 16 books, nine of them sports-related. You can write to Denny at dennydressman@comcast.net.