Delgado calls it quits, but will he get the call?

Carlos Delgado announced his retirement from baseball last week after trying to come back from a hip injury that kept him out of the DMBL last season.

A native of Puerto Rico, Delgado last appeared in the DMBL in 2009 with the Carolina Mudcats, which means he'd be eligible for the DMBL Hall of Fame beginning in 2014. The 38-year-old could make a compelling case for enshrinement, ranking among the all-time leaders in home runs and runs scored. Only 11 players have appeared in more DMBL games.

Delgado played 14 consecutive seasons, breaking in with the Norfolk Ewes in 1997. The converted catcher played in no fewer than 128 games from 1997 until 2007. He played for five different franchises  in the DMBL, mostly with the Hillsborough (two different franchises, the Destroyers and Hit Men), though he won his only Kevin Mitchell Award in 2001 with the Vatican City Cardinals when he put career highs with a monster season: .345/.455/.653, 208 hits, 41 home runs, 138 RBIs, 59 doubles, 153 runs, 122 walks. He matched his career high in home runs the previous year when he was with Hillsborough, and hit 39 homers when Vatican City relocated to Wanaque in 2002.

Taken in the second supplemental round in 2008 by Sardine City but released before the start of the season, Delgado signed later that year with Carolina. He contributed somewhat to the Mudcats that year, appearing in 25 games, but had one more season in him. In 2009, he had 34 home runs and 98 RBIs (to put him over 1,000 for his career, only the 22nd player to do so) while batting .280 and slugging .502.

A look at Delgado's career stats, with all-time ranking in parentheses -- do they read "Hall of Fame"?

Games: 1,701 (12th)
Batting: .265
OBP: .355
SLG: .516 (17th)
OPS: .871
AB: 6,035 (28th)
H: 1,597 (35th)
2B: 361 (20th, tied with Ray Durham)
HR: 370 (16th, recently passed by Albert Pujols)
RBI:  1.075 (21st)
Runs: 1,027 (11th, soon to be passed by Pujols)
Strikeouts: 1,571 (10th)
Walks: 844 (18th)