“Arriba” was Roberto Clemente‘s nickname and an apt one it was. TheFreeDictionary.com defines the idiom as “an expression of pleasure, approval or elation”, a sentiment that Clemente inspired in most who saw him play.

I only saw Clemente at the tail end of his career, but his skill and passion for the game were still plainly evident. I have quite vivid memories of the 1971 post-season when Clemente, with an 18-hit barrage good for a .383/.420/.596 slash, carried his team to a World Series championship, capped by a game 7 home run off Mike Cuellar that stood until the 8th inning as the only run of a taut pitchers’ duel ultimately decided by a 2-1 score.

Even among the pantheon of all-time greats who graced baseball’s stage in the 1960s, Clemente holds an honored place. Indeed, a compelling case can be made that he was among the two or three most dominant players of his time.

More on Clemente after the jump.

Clemente becomes the 45th player inducted into the Circle of Greats. He and Bob Gibson led the voting from start to finish, each mentioned on more than half of the ballots cast. Among players introduced to the ballot in this round, only Roger Maris received even a single vote. That allowed a number of players in their last round of eligibility to attract sufficient support to survive to the next round of COG balloting.

The full spreadsheet showing this round’s vote tally is here: COG 1934 Part 2 Vote Tally. The vote summary for recent Circle of Greats voting rounds is here: COG Vote Summary 2 .  An archive with fuller details of the earlier, 1968 through 1939, rounds is here: COG 1968-1939 Vote Summary .  In both of the Vote Summary workbooks, raw vote totals for each past round appear on Sheet 1 and the percentage totals for each past round appear on Sheet 2.

Some superlatives on Clemente’s career:

• 1966 NL MVP. 4 times in top 5, 8 times in top 10, 11 times in top 15, in MVP voting.
• 12-time All-Star. 12 consecutive gold gloves in RF (1961-72)
• 94.4 career WAR, 25th all-time and 3rd among right-fielders (behind Hank Aaron and Mel Ott)
• 83.9 WAR for 1960-72, second in period to Hank Aaron. Nine consecutive 5 WAR seasons (1963-71), only player to do so in that period.
• 3rd highest WAR per PA rate aged 30+, behind only Babe Ruth and Barry Bonds
• 6th all-time in WAR aged 30-37, behind only Ruth, Mays, Wagner, Bonds and Aaron
• .300 batting and .450 slugging in 12 of 13 seasons (1960-72). No other player had more than 8 seasons in that period.
• .362/.383/.534 in two victorious World Series, separated by eleven seasons

Trivia time. How does Clemente get included among this unlikely collection of players (including two of his teammates) who, alone among National Leaguers since 1961, accomplished a certain seasonal batting feat?

Second bit of trivia: Clemente appeared in this game, the first ever played with what distinguishing characteristic.