Larry Walker thinks Coors Field is keeping him out of Hall of Fame and it shouldn't

Walker says he played clean and it's almost like Coors Field was his PED being used against him

Former Rockies and Expos star (who had a good turn with the Cardinals as well) Larry Walker looks like he'll need to get into the Hall of Fame far down the road via a Veterans Committee, if he ever makes it at all. 

Sure, Walker has momentum with the ballot becoming less crowded and he's coming off a 12.2 percent rise to 34.1 percent of the vote this time on the BBWAA ballot, but he's barely past halfway to the 75 percent he needs and there are only two years left before he falls off the ballot. 

In discussing his candidacy with TSN 690 Montreal recently, Walker had some interesting comments on the matter, specifically how he's being unfairly downgraded for playing a big chunk of his prime in the high altitude of Coors Field. Some of the highlights. 

"I can't fault myself. I played for a major league team that happened to be in Denver. If that's a problem and if that's going to be an issue for them, then get rid of the team and move it elsewhere if it's going to be that big of an issue."

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"No needles went in my ass. I played the game clean, but I played in the ballpark and it's almost like Coors Field is my PED."

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"It's frustrating, but at the same time, I get it."  

Coors Field is such a hitter-friendly park that there should be some adjustment, especially through the bulk of Walker's career there in the pre-humidor era. The problem is going overboard. With Walker, I think part of the problem here is some people going overboard. 

The career .313 hitter has an OPS+ of 141, which adjusts for the league and ballpark environment. It still says Walker was 41 percent better than average through his career at getting on base and hitting for power. When he was on the Rockies, his OPS+ (147) was actually better than with the Expos (128) and Cardinals (134). Again, that's ballpark adjusted. 

Obviously, Walker's career slash line is greatly held up by Coors Field, as he hit .383/.462/.710 there in 2,501 plate appearances. Still, keep in mind the ballpark adjustment element of OPS+ and Walker's career mark in that stadium was ... 141! 

If we want to get into this, here's Walker's slash line outside Coors: .271/.372/.501 (141 OPS+). The context there is Walker loses all his home games through his prime and pretty much everyone hits better at home than on the road. That's still a damn fine line. 

I understand Walker doesn't have 563 home runs or the postseason prowess, but Hall of Fame right fielder Reggie Jackson was a career .262/.356/.490 (139 OPS+) hitter. 

We also need to consider Walker was an exceptional fielder (Coors is rather spacious in the outfield, so if we're gonna dock his offense, he should be bonus points for good defensive range) and stole 230 bases at a 75.1 percent success rate. 

Perhaps the raw numbers fall short for some, such as 2,160 hits, 383 home runs, 1,311 RBI and 1,355 runs. 

On a rate basis (along with WAR and JAWS), though, Walker was a Hall of Famer. He shouldn't be punished due to where he played home games for 9 1/2 years. Kudos to him for saying he gets it, but that doesn't make the situation right.