Larry Walker (Maple Ridge, B.C.) will be inducted into the National Baseball Hall of Fame on September 8. Photo: Associated Press

August 22, 2021

His home province of British Columbia is sure proud of him, and so are baseball fans all across Canada. To celebrate Maple Ridge, B.C., native Larry Walker becoming the first Canadian position player to be elected to the National Baseball Hall of Fame in Cooperstown, we will be running a series of tribute articles from many who have known and been inspired by him - including former teammates, managers, coaches and even his dad - leading up to the September 8 ceremony. We will also be publishing tributes to Walker's fellow 2020 inductees Derek Jeter, Ted Simmons and Marvin Miller.

Larry Walker’s dad pays tribute to his son ||||| Steve Rogers pays tribute to Marvin Miller

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By Clint Hurdle

Former Rockies hitting coach

Larry Walker was a special. He would be in Cooperstown without any help from me.

Larry was the most all-around skilled player I ever coached or managed (17 years managing in the majors, plus seven coaching).

Larry expected excellence from himself always.

He could beat you five ways:

Glove.

Arm.

Legs.

Bat.

Power.

Plus he was a very, very smart player as well, who paid attention

The thing about him, he was crazy about the No. 3. We hit him in the No. 3 hole, he wore No. 33 and always took three practice swings when he was on deck.

He was a Gold Glove and Silver Bat winner, an MVP and now a Hall of Famer. It is all well deserved.

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Clint Hurdle was a former No. 1 pick of the Kansas City Royals in 1975 and was a Sports Illustrated cover boy. After a 10-year playing career with the New York Mets, Cincinnati Reds, St. Louis Cardinals and the Royals, he began his managerial career with the class-A St. Lucie Mets. He also managed the double-A Jackson Mets, double-A Williamsport Bills and the triple-A Tidewater/Norfolk Tides.

Joining the Colorado Rockies organization in 1994 as the minor league hitting instructor, he was named the Rockies hitting coach in 1997 -- Larry Walker’s MVP year -- and took over as manager in 2002. The Rockies reached the 2007 World Series but were swept in four games. He joined the Texas Rangers as hitting coach in 2009 and the next year they reached the World Series.

He was then hired by the Pirates after the 2010 season. Under Hurdle, the 2013 Pirates secured their first playoff berth since 1992. They reached post-season play the next two seasons as well. He managed 2,615 games in 17 seasons.

CBN HOF Series: Clint Hurdle on Larry Walker