Todd Helton

At 51 years old, Todd Helton physical status not available right now. We will update Todd Helton's height, weight, eye color, hair color, build, and measurements.

Todd Lynn Helton (born August 20, 1973) is an American former professional baseball first baseman who played his entire 17-year career for the Colorado Rockies of Major League Baseball (MLB).

A five-time All-Star, four-time Silver Slugger, and three-time Gold Glove Award winner, Helton holds the Colorado Rockies club records for hits (2,519), home runs (369), doubles (592), walks (1,335), runs scored (1,401), runs batted in (RBI, with 1,406), games played (2,247), and total bases (4,292), among others.Each season from 1999–2004, Helton met or exceeded all of the following totals: .320 batting average, 39 doubles, 30 home runs, 107 runs scored, 96 RBI, .577 slugging percentage and .981 on-base plus slugging.

In 2000, he won the batting title with a .372 average, and also led MLB with a .698 slugging percentage, 59 doubles, 147 RBI and the National League with 216 hits.

Helton amassed his 2,000th career hit against the Atlanta Braves on May 19, 2009, and his 2,500th against the Cincinnati Reds on September 1, 2013.

Personal life

Helton's jersey number, 17, is a tribute to former Chicago Cubs first baseman Mark Grace.

Helton and his family — wife Christy and two daughters — reside in Knoxville, Tennessee. They previously lived in Brighton, Colorado, but sold the property in 2018. Helton and his family are good friends with Helton's former Tennessee Volunteers football teammate and former National Football League (NFL) quarterback Peyton Manning.

In 2013, Helton was arrested in Colorado for driving under the influence of alcohol. He was fined $400, received a year of probation, and was ordered to undergo 24 hours of community service. In 2019, Helton was cited for another DUI after crashing his car. He subsequently entered a treatment program.

Source

MLB career

Helton was the eighth overall pick of the 1995 Major League Baseball draft, selected by the Colorado Rockies in the first round, and signed on August 1, 1995. He spent the next two years in the minor leagues, playing for the Asheville Tourists, AA New Haven Ravens, and AAA Colorado Springs Sky Sox before moving to the majors. Helton made his major-league debut in 1997 on August 2, defeating the Pittsburgh Pirates 6–5 on a road loss. He started in left field, singled out in his first at-bat, and struck a solo home run off Marc Wilkins.

Helton ran.280/.337/.484 (batting average, on-base percentage, slugging percentage, and slugging percentage) in 35 games played during the 1997 season. Helton, the Rockies' first baseman, made the move to Atlanta in 1998, becoming the first baseman at first base for Colorado. In 1998, the Rockies named Helton as their club representative, the first time the team had ever sent a rookie to play. In 152 games played, he hit.315/.380/.530 with 25 home runs and 97 RBI. Helton led all major-league rookies in average (3.15), home runs (25), RBI (97), multi-hit games (49), total bases (281), and extra base hits (63). He also led all National League rookies in runs (78), hits (167), and on-base percentage (.380). Only Mike Piazza (35), David Justice (28) and Darryl Strawberry (26) had more home runs as an NL rookie since 1972, and only Piazza had more RBI (112). In the national League Rookie of the Year poll, Helton came in second, second to Kerry Wood of the Chicago Cubs. Helton was named as the year's best Athlete of the Year by the Tennessee Sports Hall of Fame in 1998.

Helton had a.320 batting average,.395 on-base percentage, and a.587 slugging percentage in 1999. In addition, he had 35 home runs and 113 RBI, while taking 68 walks. Helton hit for the cycle on June 19, 1999, beating the Florida Marlins 10–2 in a 10–2 Rockies home victory. During the 1999 season, he fell short of achieving his second cycle on four occasions, making him his second player since 1900 (Babe Herman was the first to do so in 1931) to reach two cycles in a season.

Helton had one of his best seasons in 2000, leading the major leagues in batting average (3.72), RBI (147), doubles (59), total bases (405), and OPS (1.162). He led the National League in hits (216) and on-base percentage (.463). Helton finished third in the National League in road batting average of.391 and third in the National League in road batting average (.353). Helton's MLB-leading 103 extra base hits for his fourth most in MLB history and the second most in NL history. The "perpetual crown" was given to him by his National League-best on-base percentage, slugging percentage, and batting average. Helton became the second Rockies player (Larry Walker in 1999) to do so. Helton and Walker made the Rockies the first team in MLB to win in consecutive seasons with different players. Helton was the fourth player in National League history to lead the NL in both batting average and RBI. He was the first player in National League history and the fifth in MLB history (Babe Ruth, Lou Gehrig, Jimmie Foxx, and Hank Greenberg are among the others) to have at least 200 hits, 100 runs, 100 extra base hits, 100 runs, 100 runs, 100 runs, 100 runs, 100 bases, 100 runs, 100 runs, 100 runs, 100 runs, 100 bases, and 100 walks in a season.

In 2000, Helton was invited to his first Major League Baseball All-Star Game. He has also been named National League Player of the Month for May and August. In the running for the MVP award, he came in fifth. However, Helton was named Player of the Year by the Associated Press, The Sporting News, USA Baseball Alumni, and Baseball Digest. The Walter Fenner "Buck" Leonard Legacy Award was presented to Helton by Buck O'Neil and the Negro Leagues Baseball Museum. Helton was also given the Roberto Clemente Man of Year Award for his service to Eastern Tennessee, according to a team-honored author. In addition, he was the National League champion of the second annual Hank Aaron Award. Every year, from 2000 to 2003, he was named the Rockies Player of the Year. Helton was rewarded with a nine-year, $141.5 million deal in April 2001, which went into operation in 2003, in recognition of his growth.

Helton hit a career-high 49 home runs in the following season (22 of which occurred away from Coors Field). Larry Walker, a 49 home runs, tied for the most home runs by a Colorado Rockies player in a single season. Helton also had a.336 batting average,.432 on-base percentage, and a.685 slugging percentage. He had 105 extra base hits, making him the first player in MLB history to have at least 100 extra base hits in back-to-back seasons. Helton also hit 402 total bases, making him the fourth player to do so in a row (Chuck Klein, Gehrig, and Foxx are among the others).

In 2001, Helton appeared in his second straight All-Star game — his first as a starter. He captured his first Gold Glove at first base and was once more a top candidate for MVP, but Sammy Sosa and Barry Bonds overshadowed him.

Helton had a.329 batting average, 30 home runs, 109 RBI, 98 walks, 107 runs, 78 slg %, and 319 total bases in 2002. He was the first player in Rockies history to hit at least 100 runs in four straight seasons. During the month, he was named Player of the Month for May, hitting.347 with six doubles, one triple, 10 home runs, and 28 RBI. Helton was named in his third straight All-Star game, his second straight as a starter. He also received his second gold medal for the second time.

Helton played in the best NL batting race in history in 2003, he finished first with a.35871 batting average, while St. Louis Cardinals first baseman Albert Pujols finished first with a.35849 batting average. Helton also had 33 home runs, 117 RBI, 135 runs, 49 doubles, and five triples during the season. During the month of April, he earned his fourth Player of the Month award, hitting.337 with six home runs, 27 RBI, 28 runs, 11 doubles, and 24 walks. In his fourth straight All-Star game, he appeared in his fourth consecutive All-Star game.

Helton finished second in the NL batting competition after his record hit.347, while San Francisco Giants left fielder Barry Bonds landed at.362. On the season, Helton had 32 home runs and 96 RBI. In each of his first seven complete seasons in the majors, he became the first player in MLB history to hit at least.315 with 25 home runs and 95 RBI. He was only the third player in MLB history to do so in a seven-year span (Lou Gehrig and Babe Ruth are among the others). In six seasons, he set a franchise record by hitting at least 30 home runs in a row. Helton was named in his fifth straight All-Star game and won his third Gold Glove game of the season.

Helton spent time on the disabled list in 2005 (July 26 – August 9) for the first time in his career with a strained left calf muscle. With 20 home runs, 79 RBI, 92 runs, and 45 doubles for the season, he hit.320. For the first time since 1999, he was under 1.000 OPS (finished with 979 OPS). Helton was also ineligible for the first time since 1999. However, he did end up joining Gehrig and Bill Terry as the only first basemen in MLB history to have at least a.315 average in eight seasons.

Helton was forced to spend time on the disabled list again this season, this time from April 20 to May 4, as he was diagnosed with acute terminal ileitis. He hit.302 with 15 home runs, 81 RBI, 40 doubles, 91 walks, and a.404 on-base percentage for the season. For the first time since being in the league in 1997, he had.880 OPS) but played 35 games that year. Helton finished third on the Rockies in 2006, despite being ranked third in runs (94), hits (165), doubles (40), and multi-hit games (42).

Don Baylor, the founder of the St. Louis Cardinals, had "tried the juice" in the 1990s, according to radio broadcaster Wayne Hagin, implying steroid use. Helton vehemently denied the allegations and dismissed a legal lawsuit against Hagin. Hagin later apologizing that he was "referring to vitamins, creatine, not steroids" when he said "juiced." "We talked about creatine, and that was the end of the discussion," Baylor said of his chat with Hagin. Todd Helton's use of steroids was never even a concern to me. [Hagin] has his facts wrong," he says.

Helton's power and RBI numbers stayed relatively steady to his previous year's averages, despite his 2007 season of 17 home runs and 91 RBI. Despite these figures being below his career averages, Helton continued his streak of seven seasons with an on-base percentage above.300, and he had also been walking more times than he had struck out (a record he had set in seven of his first ten complete seasons).

Helton hit Coors Field on June 20, 2007, defeating the New York Yankees 6–1 home win, becoming the fifth active player to have 1,000 career hits in a single ballpark.

Helton scored in 4–2 home victory over the San Diego Padres on September 9, 2007, his 35th double of the season. In at least 10 seasons (1998–2007), he was the only player in MLB history to have scored 35 or more doubles in at least 10 seasons (1998–2007).

Helton won by 13–0 home victory over the Florida Marlins on September 16, 2007, marking his 300th home run in his career. He was the first Colorado Rockies player to reach 300 home runs.

In the second game of a doubleheader against the Los Angeles Dodgers on September 18, 2007, Helton made what was arguably the most pivotal play of the Rockies' 2007 season. Helton hit a two-run walk-off home run off Dodgers closer Takashi Saito in the bottom of the ninth innings, with two outs and two strikes. The home run kept the Rockies alive in the quest to win the wild card or the National League West championships. In a wild card tiebreaker game, the Rockies eventually clinched the National League wild card, allowing Helton to play in the playoffs for the first time in his career. In three games of the National League Division Series, Colorado defeated the Philadelphia Phillies. In the first game against the Phillies at Philadelphia, Helton hit a triple in the first pitch of his first playoff at-bat. In four games of the National League Championship Series, the Rockies also swept the Arizona Diamondbacks, bringing the Rockies their first trip to the World Series in franchise history. In a four-game sweep, the Rockies lost the World Series to the Boston Red Sox.

Helton was diagnosed with a degenerative back disease in August 2008, putting his overall health and potential to play remain uncertain. Helton took his 2,000th hit as part of an 8–1 road loss to the Atlanta Braves on May 19, 2009. Helton scored his 500th career double in a 4–3 home win over the Arizona Diamondbacks on July 22, 2009. He became the 50th player in MLB history to reach 500 career doubles, the first to do so since 1954. Helton also joined Babe Ruth, Stan Musial, Lou Gehrig, and Ted Williams as the only players in MLB history to have at least 500 doubles, 320 home runs, and a.325 average for a career. Helton's contract was extended through the 2013 season on March 11, 2010. The extension between 2012 and 2013 was worth $9.9 million.

In July 2010, Helton's degenerative back disease sent him back to the disabled list. Helton returned from the DL in August and finished.256 with 8 home runs and 37 RBI for the season. Helton, who suffered with cancer in 2010, has said he would return to the Rockies in 2011, following rumors of a possible retirement. Helton announced on February 15, 2011, that he intends to play baseball for three years, preferably for the Rockies. He played his 2,000th game in his career on June 30. Helton's seventh home run of his career came on April 14, 2012. Due to inflammation in his right hip, Helton was admitted to the 15-day disabled list on July 13. He was batting.235 in 63 games. Helton played just 6 games before announcing that he would have season ending hip surgery to prepare for the 2013 season. Helton was better in 2013 after appearing in 124 games and winning 15 home runs with 61 RBIs.

Helton announced on September 14, 2013 that he would not be retiring at the end of the 2013 season. Helton was honored by the Rockies Organization in a pre-game ceremony on September 25, 2013. Against the Boston Red Sox, Helton hit a home run and drove in three runs in the game.

The Rockies retired Helton's number 17 before a 2:05 p.m. game at Coors Field on Sunday, August 17, 2014. Helton is the first Rockies player to have his number retired in the team's twenty-six-year history.

Helton has served on voting for the National Baseball Hall of Fame since 2019, far less than the 75% required for the election but above the 5% minimum is needed to remain on the ballot. His vote has increased to 49% as a result of the 2021 election, his third appearance. A player may vote for a maximum of ten times.

Source