The National Baseball Hall of Fame gained two new members when the ballots from the Baseball Writers Association of America were tallied and announced Tuesday evening.
Being inducted this summer will be two former star outfielders: Carlos Beltran and Andruw Jones. Beltran, in his fourth year on the ballot, received 84.2% of votes. Jones, in his seventh, received 78.4%, well above the 75% threshold.
Beltran’s induction seemed all but inevitable, even as the alleged architect of the Houston Astros’ cheating scandal in 2017. He is still one of the best switch-hitters in baseball history and wrapped a 20-year career with a .279 lifetime batting average and 435 career home runs. Beltran was also a nine-time All-Star and took home three Gold Gloves playing center field for the New York Mets.
It was the Mets with whom Beltran spent his best-known years. He arrived as a free agent on a seven-year deal after spending the first seven years of his career with Kansas City and Houston. Injuries piled up in Queens about five years into the contract, and Beltran was traded to the Giants in 2011. In return, the Mets received a young pitching prospect named Zack Wheeler.
What’s astonishing is that after looking like he might be done, Beltran played six more seasons following the trade. He signed a two-year deal with the Cardinals before moving on to the Yankees, Rangers, and Astros again, retiring at age 40.
A return to the Mets was in the works when Beltran agreed to manage the team ahead of the 2020 season. However, he voluntarily stepped down after news of the Astros scandal broke. Luis Rojas, currently the Yankees’ third base coach, was named his successor. But all was not lost, and Beltran joined the Mets’ front office in 2023.
Jones too, like Beltran, was one of the best center fielders of his time. He took home a whopping ten Gold Gloves and slugged 434 home runs in 17 seasons, 12 of which were spent with the Braves before he started declining. One bad season with the Dodgers later, he became a journeyman and platoon bat. A year each with the Rangers and White Sox, then two with the Yankees two finish his MLB career.
But no, Andruw Jones wasn’t done! The Curaçao native represented the Netherlands in the 2013 World Baseball Classic. Next, he hit 50 home runs across two seasons with Japan’s Rakuten Golden Eagles.
Carlos Beltran has not indicated which hat he will wear on his plaque, but Jones’ goes without saying. He’s an Atlanta Brave, through and through. Ever since debuting as a baby-faced 19-year-old in 1996. Jones only played in 31 regular season games that season, but went on to hit .400 with two home runs in the World Series. Sadly, his Braves lost to the Yankees in six games.
There weren’t any near-misses in this year’s Hall of Fame class, but we have a pretty good idea who’ll be inducted in 2027. Former Philadelphia Phillies second baseman Chase Utley got 59.1% of the vote on his third chance. Beloved Yankees lefty Andy Pettitte, in his eighth, received 48.5% of the vote.
And there aren’t any locks among the first-ballot names next year, maybe Buster Posey. At a minimum, Utley gets his plaque.
But for now, the moment belongs to Carlos Beltran and Andruw Jones. Two star center fielders whose gloves were as strong as their bats, Jones’ probably more so. Along with Era Committee inductee Jeff Kent, Cooperstown is getting some deserving names in 2026. Even if the place is just a museum.
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