A new class of baseball greats will take their place at the Baseball Hall of Fame in Cooperstown in July.
This year’s ballot did not feature any first-year candidates as compelling as Ichiro Suzuki or even CC Sabathia, who were elected last year. That opened the door for candidates who had spent multiple years on the ballot, including ninth-year candidate Andruw Jones, to potentially have a clearer path to the Hall.
Carlos Beltran, meanwhile, came painfully close to being elected a year ago and entered the process this year as the favorite to lead all candidates in votes.
Officially, those two former star center fielders were inducted Tuesday night when the Hall of Fame announced who would be joining Jeff Kent, who was previously elected by the Contemporary Baseball Era Committee, to be immortalized in Cooperstown this summer.
Here’s a look at who MLB writers voted into the Hall of Fame as part of the class of 2026.
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MLB Hall of Fame class of 2026
Carlos Beltran, OF, 1998-2017
- Teams: Mets, Royals, Yankees, Cardinals, Astros, Rangers, Giants
- Awards: 9x All-Star, 2017 World Series champion, 3x Gold Glove winner, 2x Silver Slugger, AL Rookie of the Year
- Notable Career Stats: .279 AVG, 435 HR, 2,725 H, .837 OPS, 67.4 fWAR
Beltran fell short of Cooperstown in each of his first three years on the ballot, but his narrow miss in 2025 made him a near-lock to be elected in year four. The 48-year-old former outfielder spent parts of 20 seasons in the major leagues, debuting with the Kansas City Royals in 1998 and earning AL Rookie of the Year honors in 1999.
Beltran largely split the early portion of his career between the Royals and New York Mets, earning five All-Star selections in a Mets uniform and hitting a career-high 41 home runs with New York in 2006. Beltran would play for seven teams altogether, including two stints with the Houston Astros, nearly three years with the New York Yankees and two with the St. Louis Cardinals.
After reaching the World Series in 2013, Beltran got the rare opportunity to finish his career on top, winning a championship with the Astros in 2017. It was his role in the Astros’ sign-stealing scandal that put his Hall of Fame viability in question, as MLB’s investigative report labeled Beltran one of the ringleaders and cost him his job as manager of the Mets before he ever managed a game, but the scandal ultimately didn’t keep him out of the Hall of Fame.
Beltran finished his career with 435 home runs, 2,725 hits and an .837 OPS, compiling a 67.4 fWAR that ranks as the highest in this Hall of Fame class.
Andruw Jones, OF, 1996-2012
- Teams: Braves, Yankees, White Sox, Rangers, Dodgers
- Awards: 5x All-Star, 10x Gold Glove winner, 1x Silver Slugger
- Notable Career Stats: .254 AVG, 434 HR, 1,933 H .823 OPS, 67.0 fWAR
It took Jones nine years to be elected to the Baseball Hall of Fame, but the tide has finally turned his way.
While Jones played for five different teams, he was an Atlanta Brave through-and-through. Jones spent 12 of his 16 seasons with the Braves, earning all five All-Star selections and all 10 Gold Gloves in Atlanta.
434 home runs and a career .823 OPS are nothing to ignore, but defense is what put Jones in the Hall of Fame. He was one of baseball’s elite defenders on contending Braves teams over the span of a decade, and he played that kind of defense while averaging 34.5 home runs per season over his 10-year peak.
As emphasis shifts away from batting average and more toward metrics that capture a player’s full value, Jones’ combination of defense and power aged well and turned enough voters his way to put him in Cooperstown after a long wait.
Who is on next year’s Hall of Fame ballot?
Before Albert Pujols (2028) and Miguel Cabrera (2029) become eligible for the Hall of Fame, 2027 will bring one more year without an all-time great on the ballot. That doesn’t mean no first-year candidate will be elected, though.
Here are a few of the first-year candidates for 2027, who will join every candidate from this year’s ballot who received more than five percent of the vote without being elected:
- C Buster Posey
- SP Jon Lester
- SP Jake Arrieta
- 3B Ryan Zimmerman
- RP Andrew Miller
- 3B Kyle Seager
Former San Francisco Giants catcher Buster Posey is likely to have strong support despite a relatively short career. A former MVP and three-time World Series champion, Posey was an All-Star seven times and was perhaps baseball’s best all-around catcher at his peak. Whether his counting stats are enough to put him in on the first ballot will be the biggest question.
Lester might have a challenging path to the Hall of Fame, but his body of work and multiple championships should allow him to stay on the ballot long-term.
Outside of Lester, it’s tough to find many viable candidates. Jake Arrieta’s peak with the Chicago Cubs was undeniable but short, while injuries damaged what could have been a potential case for Ryan Zimmerman.
