Former Reds shortstop upsets their fans with huge hat tip to Cardinals' Yadier Molina

It is well known that Yadier Molina is one of the most respected baseball players of all time after putting together a career full of accolades prior to retiring as a St. Louis Cardinal at the end of the 2022 season. Since his retirement, there has been a constant debate about whether he deserves Hall of Fame enshrinement, but there is no doubt he will be welcomed into the Cardinals Hall of Fame as soon as he is eligible.

As fans continue to debate, which to me seems clear, Hall of Fame enshrinement, players who shared the field with him cannot help but continue to sing the catcher's praises. After former Brewers backstop Jonathon Lucroy took to Twitter to defend Molina as a top 3 catcher of all-time, another previous division rival did the same.

Former Reds shortstop Zack Cozart believes Molina is a first ballot Hall of Famer.

Since Lucroy commented on Molina's potential enshrinement, there has been the occasional debate brought up on if the Cardinals catcher is deserving of receiving the call. From us fans who got to watch his entire career in St. Louis, there is little doubt he should be getting a plaque in Cooperstown. The positive words from fans do not hold the same weight when former players, especially former rivals, speak out in support of Molina.

Zack Cozart, who played with the Reds from 2011-2017, saw plenty of Molina from the opposing dugout and does not feel that Molina's inclusion in baseball immortality is even up for debate. After another social media account pulling up Molina's career accomplishments with the question if he is deserving of a first-ballot Hall of Fame induction, Cozart immediately came to his defense.

Although Cozart does not get a vote once Molina hits the Hall of Fame ballot in 2028, the number of former players coming to Molina's support may help to sway the baseball writers who have the pleasure to vote on the eligible players. Of course, some writers believe that their opinion is the only one that matters and could potentially have their minds made up regardless of what news or stats support Molina. Cozart had first-hand experience facing the Cardinals numerous times during his nine-year big league career.

From 2012-2017, Cozart played in 87 games against the Cardinals and outperformed his career numbers while playing the division rival. While never much of a run producer while hitting near the top of the Reds lineup, the shortstop hit .263 with 88 hits and drove in 32 runs and scored 42 more while popping seven homers from the top of the order. Reds fans may not want to hear about how good a former thorn in their side was, but baseball fans should all appreciate what Molina was able to do on and off the field.

It is hard to get a feel for Molina's possibility of being inducted into the Hall of Fame as soon as he is first eligible, but the other first-time players appearing on the ballot in 2028 is not a strong class outside of Molina and legend Albert Pujols. Since voters can only vote for a maximum of 10 candidates and some refuse to use all of their votes, much of Molina's odds of enshrinement depend on the other names who are holdovers from previous voting years.