How did the voters do with their Hall of Fame selections this year? There were only three players chosen, two by the BBWAA (Carlos Beltran, Andruw Jones) and one by the Era (formerly Veterans) Committee, Jeff Kent. Two of the three were on my previous post of the Top 15 Players Not In The Hall of Fame (Beltran, Kent). Two others on my list finished in the top 8 of the writers vote this year (Chase Utley, Bobby Abreu). I reviewed everyone that was on at least 5% of the writers ballots and all of the Veterans Committee nominees. Here are some of my thoughts and observations on this year’s Hall of Fame vote…
CARLOS BELTRAN
A slam dunk pick for the Hall. Only the 2017 Astros cheating scandal kept him from being voted in sooner than on his fourth try. Carlos is the eighth ranked center fielder and 75th ranked position player of all time for career HOF value. There’s really not a lot more to say here. If you’re reading this then I’m sure you saw him play and know he had a great career. He was a 5 tool player with an outstanding combination of power, speed and defense.
JEFF KENT
I had Jeff 12th on my list of best players not in the Hall. He’s a no brainer pick in my book. Score one for the Contemporary Era Committee. If they had to choose one player this year then they got it right. Kent is the only one on this year’s Contemporary Era ballot that I would’ve definitely voted for. I only had him fourth on my list among second baseman, behind Lou Whitaker, Bobby Grich and Chase Utley in that order. But that doesn’t take away from the fact that Jeff belongs in the Hall. It’s simply that the other three do too. Read my post Top 15 Players Not in The Hall Of Fame for more details about Kent’s Hall of Fame worthiness.
ANDRUW JONES
Some think Andruw Jones was an easy pick for the Hall, but there is a reason he didn’t get voted in until his ninth year on the ballot. For starters, this year’s ballot was not a deep one. Only Carlos Beltran was pretty much a shoe in. Also, players that are nearing the end of their eligibility on the writers ballot tend to trend up in the voting in their last couple of years, especially if they’re close to the required 75% for election (as with Billy Wagner last year).
I’m not going to say he doesn’t belong, but Andruw is a lot closer to the borderline than you might think. His HOF Value is 21st all time among center fielders. The CFs not in the Hall ahead of him in career HOF Value are, in order, Willie Davis, Kenny Lofton, Jim Edmonds, Vada Pinson, Johnny Damon and Jim Wynn. Jones is ranked 14th in CF total WAR (62.7) because he gets a huge boost from his defensive WAR (24.4) where he ranks as first all time CF. However he only ranks 50th in offensive WAR (39.8), between Mike Cameron and Chili Davis. Note that a couple of the players ahead of Jones in HOF Value get a big boost in WAR from their defense as well (Davis, Lofton). I find that WAR tends to give a little too much value to fielding both positively and negatively, but that’s a discussion for another time.
Andruw’s lifetime OPS+ was 111, third lowest for a HOF center fielder (only Lloyd Waner & Max Carey are lower). This is on the low side because his OBP was only .337 and he played the prime of his career during the prime of the steroid era. To his credit, he was never implicated in any PED usage and was known to be a clean player. This certainly enhanced his case for being elected. That, along with 434 home runs and a well deserved 10 Gold Gloves.
CHASE UTLEY
Glad to see Utley trending up in his third year on the ballot. He finished third, behind Beltran and Jones with 59.1% of the vote. Rated 16th all time in Hall of Fame Value at second base, I had Chase at 11th on my list of top 15 players not in the Hall, just ahead of Jeff Kent.
BOBBY ABREU
Bobby finished 8th in his 7th year on the ballot with 30.8% of the vote, the highest he’s ever gotten, up from his previous high of 19.5% in 2025. He just doesn’t get enough love from the writers. Another clean player from the steroid era, Abreu’s career Hall of Fame Value is 16th all time among right fielders. I had him at #7 on my top players not in the Hall list. Although he’s trending up, he would need a big surge from the writers in the next three years to get voted in. It’s more likely it will have to be as an Era Committee selection. I found an excellent article about his Hall of Fame resume at this link: https://www.cooperstowncred.com/dont-laugh-bobby-abreus-hall-of-fame-case/
ALEX RODRIGUEZ & MANNY RAMIREZ
A-Rod and Manny finished sixth and seventh in this year’s BBWAA vote. This was Alex’s fifth year and Manny’s tenth and final year on the writers ballot. The steroid users who would otherwise be sure Hall of Famers always get around 30 to 40 percent of the vote. You can be pretty certain that’s not going to change much and at this time it doesn’t appear they’ll have much of a chance to get elected once these guys move on to the Era Committee.
ANDY PETTITTE
In Andy Pettitte’s 8th year on the ballot, he made a big jump from a high of 27.9% to 48.5% with the fourth highest vote this year. The reasons for this increase is due to a relatively weak field of candidates in 2026 and that he’s nearing his final year of eligibilty. The controversy about his use of PEDs doesn’t seem to have much effect on his vote, mainly because he came out about his use of HGH in 2008 to help recover quicker from injuroes. His career pitchers WAR (60.7) puts him between Rube Waddell & Jim Bunning, both in the Hall.
A lot of people argue about Andy’s post season record 19 wins. It’s certainly a plus to be a good post season pitcher (19-11, 3.81). In eight World Series (one as an Astro, the rest with the Yankees) he was 5-4 4.06. However, he did have the advantage of pitching his entire career in an era with three rounds of playoff series which gave him more opportunities to compile more wins than his predecessors. He also pitched for teams that gave him plenty of run support to help him attain those wins. I’m not taking anything away from his accomplishments, I’m just saying.
Of note is that Pettitte was only named to the All Star team three times. He got Cy Young votes in five seasons, finishing second once to Pat Hentgen in 1996. The other four years he received no more than a 6% share of the vote. He ranked in the league top 10 in ERA & ERA+ just three times each. His career ERA+ was a solid 117 and only once was it under 100 in 2008 (97), so he was consistent for a very long time. Therefore I’m giving him a mixed review. Here’s another interesting article, this time about Pettitte: https://www.cooperstowncred.com/andy-pettitte-complicated-hall-of-fame-case/
FELIX HERNANDEZ
Felix finished fifth in his second year on the ballot at 46.1%. There is a strong argument for his induction. He was a six time All Star, earned two ERA titles and a Cy Young Award. During his 10 year peak from 2007 to 2016 only Clayton Kershaw had a higher HOF Value. He had the third best pitchers WAR (behind Kershaw & Justin Verlander) and the most pitching win shares in that span. Where he he comes up very short is on career value. Among pitchers in the modern era (since 1900), Hernandez ranks 112th in HOF Value. He does better in pitching WAR at #90 (49.9).
Of course with starting pitchers throwing fewer and fewer innings every year, it is much more difficult to compare recent hurlers against their earlier counterparts. It is necessary to adjust standards, not just for traditional statistics, but for statistics such as WAR, Win Shares and HOF Value as well. Taking this into consideration, Felix rates quite well relative to his contemporaries, but I’m not sure it’s enough to get him voted in, at least not yet.
JIMMY ROLLINS
Chase Utley’s Phillies keystone partner is an interesting case. He’s 21st in SS HOF Value at 495.0 between Hall of Fame shortstop Joe Sewell and Bert Campaneris. With an approximate minimum Value score of 500 being Hall of Fame worthy, Rollins is actually right on the Hall borderline. He won the NL MVP in 2007 when he had one of the seven seasons in MLB history with 20 or more doubles, triples and homers. Was a 3 time All Star, won 4 Gold Gloves, a silver slugger and the 2008 World Series with the Phils. In addition, he led the NL 4x in triples, once each in steals and runs scored, reaching 100 runs six times. On the flip side, his career OPS+ was only 95. He didn’t walk a lot, his lifetime OBP was only .324. As a leadoff hitter that played every day, he led the NL in outs made four times and was in the top 10 ten times. He was in the top 10 in times on base only once, finishing ninth in 2007.
This was Jimmy’s fifth year on the HOF ballot with a new high of 25.4% of the vote which placed him 9th, up 7.4% from last year. Every year he’s been slowly trending upward and I expect that to continue next year. At this point, it doesn’t seem likely that he’ll build up enough momentum to get close to 75%, but there’s always that possibility. Shortstops in the Hall that rate similarly to Rollins are all marginal selections (i.e. Rabbit Maranville, Joe Tinker, Dave Bancroft, Phil Rizzuto). He’ll probably end up being reviewed by the Era Committees. I wouldn’t be shocked if he was eventually elected by them, although I don’t think it’s likely.
COLE HAMELS
Another teammate of Rollins and Utley with the Phils, Hamels was the highest ranked newcomer on the HOF ballot this year, finishing tenth with 23.8% of the vote. He is also the only first year candidate that survived to 2027 with more than 5% of the writers votes. During his 10 year peak from 2007 to 2016 (coincidentally the same peak period as Felix Hernandez), Cole had the fifth highest pitchers HOF Value, WAR & Win Shares with Zack Greinke edging him out for fourth in all three categories. Using the same criteria I used for Hernandez, Hamels rates very well in his era, but below Felix. Personally, I don’t see Cole getting into the Hall. I think we’ll need to see how the writers view recent starters over the next few years in order to put pitchers like Hamels in perspective.
DUSTIN PEDROIA
Pedroia looked like he was on his way to the Hall of Fame after winning rookie of the year in ’07 and MVP in ’08. Though he put up very good numbers for a few years and was an outstanding fielder, injuries cut his career short. His HOF Value ranks 31st at second base. WAR is much kinder to him (51.9), ranking him 23rd, just ahead of another Red Sox second baseman, Hall of Famer Bobby Doerr. This year, his second on the HOF ballot, Dustin got the eleventh most votes (20.7%) up from 11.9%. Red Sox fans may not like what I’m about to say, though he will probably continue to trend up, I really don’t see him having much of a chance for election to the Hall because he just doesn’t have the career numbers.
MARK BUEHRLE
Mark Buehrle was a remarkably consistent pitcher. Threw over 200 innings for 14 consecutive seasons (and 198.2 in 2015, his last year). While never spectacular (except when he pitched that perfect game), he was a solid major league starter with a career ERA+ of 117 that was only under 100 twice with a low of 95. Though not a big strikeout pitcher (5.1/9 IP), he had outstanding control (2.0 BB/9 IP). His career HOF Value (460.3) rates similarly to Jerry Koosman and Billy Pierce. Here’s something interesting: For the period he pitched (2000-2015), Buehrle had the highest HOF Value among pitchers, second best pWAR (60.0) and most pitching win shares (220.3). He was a 5 time All Star, won 4 Gold Gloves and a World Series ring with the 2005 White Sox.
Mark’s Hall of Fame voting has been very up and down since debuting in 2021. He started at 11% and then almost fell off the ballot in ’22 with 5.8%. Then he went up and down and up again the next three years. He finally gained some traction in this his sixth year with a big leap to 20.0% from 11.4% in ’25. I predict that his vote totals will continue to increase over the next four years, but he’s got a long way to go to 75%. Another player who’s best chance is with the Era Committees. At the very least, Buehrle deserves some serious consideration.
OMAR VIZQUEL
Omar was trending toward the Hall of Fame when he got 52.6% of the vote in 2020, his third year on the ballot. Then there were allegations of domestic violence in December 2020, followed by a sexual harassment lawsuit in 2021. In three years Vizquel fell to 19.5%. This year, his ninth on the Hall ballot, he got his highest vote in three years (18.4%). There’s obviously no chance he’ll be elected next year and I wonder if the Era Committees will even bother to look at him given his personal issues.
DAVID WRIGHT
A similar case to Dustin Pedroia. An outstanding player whose career was cut short by injuries. With two or three more good seasons they both probably would have made the Hall of Fame. Despite the shortened career, Wright ranks 28th in HOF Value at third base (462.6), coming surprisingly close to the HOF line. He got 14.8% of the vote this year, his third on the ballot. I think he has enough support that the writers will keep him around for awhile.
FRANCISCO RODRIGUEZ
K-Rod finished 15th with 11.8% in his fourth HOF vote, his highest total. He’s sixth on the all time saves list (437), more than Billy Wagner (422) who was inducted last year. However, Wagner was much more dominant in a shorter career than Rodriguez. Francisco’s a six time All Star, 3x AL saves leader and holds the MLB single season record of 62 saves with the Angels in 2008, so one can make a HOF argument for him. There also were some legal issues involving assault with a former girlfriend and her father in 2010 and 2012. Just don’t see him getting enough support for election to the Hall.
TORII HUNTER
A very good ballplayer, Torii rates 33rd among center fielders with many, many CFs ahead of him that are NOT in the Hall of Fame. Rated about the same as Fred Lynn, Al Oliver and Dale Murphy. He’s been on the ballot for six years and never reached 10% of the vote. A couple of those years he barely hung on with just over 5%. You’d have to induct at least a dozen center fielders in the Hall before even considering Hunter.
CARLOS DELGADO
Delgado got 9 of the required 12 votes from the Contemporary Era Committee this year. He’s an interesting case. From all accounts, he was a clean player who put up great numbers during the steroid era. Carlos hit 473 home runs and almost certainly would’ve reached 500 if not for a career ending injury with the Mets in 2009. If he gets to 500 homers does he get in? Probably.
DON MATTINGLY
Donnie Baseball is the 44th best first baseman of all time, just ahead of the highly overrated Steve Garvey. He had a short, though very good peak at a position that’s loaded with offensive players. Similar to Dustin Pedroia and David Wright, Mattingly’s another potential Hall of Famer whose injuries shortened his career. Was on the HOF ballot for 15 years, peaking in his debut (2001) with 28.2%. He was just over 20% in 2002 and continued to decline until he was under 10% his last two years. He first came up before the Veterans Committee in ’18 & ’20. Got six votes from the Era Committee this year, half of what’s needed for election to the Hall.
DALE MURPHY
Like Mattingly, Murphy got six votes from the committee after failing to be picked in 2018 & 2020. He made it through 15 years of BBWAA voting, getting 23.2% in 2000, his second year on the ballot. He never got 20% again. Dale had a really good peak, winning back to back NL MVPs in ’82 & ’83 and homer titles in ’84 & ’85 with Atlanta. He faded drastically after 1987, continuing to play until 1993. His HOF career value is 31st and five year peak is 11th among center fielders. Murphy and Mattingly will be eligible for the next Contemporary Era Committee ballot in three years
FERNANDO VALENZUELA
Fernando had a sensational beginning to his career, winning the Cy Young Award and Rookie of the Year in 1981. He continued to be a good pitcher through 1987. After that, injuries began to take their toll. Except for one good year in 1996 with the Padres, Valenzuela was never the same again. He finished 173-153 3.54, 37.4 WAR, ERA+ was 104. Definitely not Hall of Fame caliber numbers, Received less than five votes and will not be eligible for the next vote in three years.
BARRY BONDS, ROGER CLEMENS & GARY SHEFFIELD
All three failed to get the required five votes to stay on the next ballot and will not come up for consideration until December 2031. Given their circumstances, it is highly doubtful that any of them will be elected to the Baseball Hall of Fame in the foreseeable future.
Go to TOP 15 PLAYERS NOT IN THE HALL OF FAME for more info on Beltran, Kent, Utley & Abreu.