Beltre’s 3,000th hit was everything great about the game: family, milestones, history
Editor’s note: The latest in a countdown of the most memorable moments in Globe Life Park history. The Texas Rangers will play their final game there Sept. 29 before moving into Globe Life Field next season.
Nothing holds the fabric of baseball together like its history. From one generation to the next, stories and memories are passed down.
Milestones and records are one of the best ways in which the game stays interesting. All-time record holders help us put a player’s greatness in context, if not perfectly, at least with how the game is measured in terms of statistics.
One of the most important of these player milestones is 3,000 hits. Only 32 players in the history of the game have accomplished the feat. It takes skill and longevity to pull off.
When Adrian Beltre ripped a double down the left-field line on July 30, 2017, at Globe Life Park, he joined the elite club at age 38 and four months. Beltre and the Rangers had been building to the moment, and it will always remain one of the greatest in the ballpark’s 25-year history.
It will always be one the fan favorites, not only because it was a historic personal achievement that slammed home the fact that Beltre will be a first-ballot Baseball Hall of Fame inductee, but the way in which the moment was celebrated right then and there at the ballpark.
Beltre was joined by his kids, AJ, Cassie and Camilla, on the field after they unveiled a banner in the outfield celebrating the milestone. The images and video footage of Beltre kneeling down to hug his son, AJ, will always remain special and forever tied to Beltre’s baseball achievement.
It doesn’t hurt, either, that Beltre is one of the most beloved players in club history.
The moment encapsulates the best of baseball — family, fathers and sons, history and pageantry.
This story was originally published September 28, 2019 at 9:00 AM.
