Baseball Hall of Fame Roundtable: Four Burning Questions Before Class of 2026 Reveal

We’ll find out Tuesday who will join Jeff Kent in being inducted into Cooperstown this year. What should we be looking for in the voting results?

Felix Hernández has seen a surge in Hall of Fame support this year among publicly revealed ballots. | Joe Nicholson-Imagn Images

The Baseball Hall of Fame’s class of 2026 will be revealed Tuesday with the release of the Baseball Writers’ Association of America’s voting results. Jeff Kent was already voted in last month by the Contemporary Baseball Era Committee last month, and Carlos Beltrán and Andruw Jones seem poised to join him based on publicly released results—though neither is a certainty as of now.

Over the last month, we’ve looked closer into the candidacies of Beltrán, Jones, Francisco Rodriguez, Cole Hamels, a quartet of second basemen and all 12 first-time candidates. With just one day remaining until the candidates’ fates are revealed, three of our staff members answered some of the biggest questions surrounding this year's vote.

1. Which of the 11 first-time candidates currently polling below 5% on Ryan Thibodeaux’s Hall of Fame ballot tracker deserves a closer look rather than fall off the ballot?

Tom Verducci: Edwin Encarnación. Starting when he was 29, Encarnación hit 30 homers or more eight straight seasons. Only Encarnación, Mike Schmidt and Babe Ruth put up seven straight 30-homer seasons in their 30s. Cool.

And the counting numbers are impressive: 424 homers, 1,261 RBI and a 123 OPS+. Only 44 players have reached those thresholds—29 are in the Hall of Fame. The only ballot-eligible ones not in the Hall and not connected to PEDs are Encarnación and Carlos Delgado.

I have no problem with him staying on the ballot, but even with “a closer look” it’s hard to elevate him to Hall of Fame status.

Nick Selbe: Since 2000, only 10 players have tallied 2,000 hits with at least 500 doubles. Three (David Ortiz, Adrian Beltre and Todd Helton) are in the Hall of Fame. Two (Albert Pujols and Miguel Cabrera) are almost certainly first-ballot selections once they're eligible. One (Carlos Beltrán) is likely getting in this year. Jimmy Rollins is currently on his fourth year on the ballot, Freddie Freeman is still active and Robinson Canó would likely get serious Hall consideration if not for his multiple failed PED tests.

The other player on this list? Nick Markakis. Markakis was frequently overlooked throughout his 15-year career, making his lone All-Star team at age 34. He won three Gold Gloves, led the league in WAR in 2008 and always posted, logging 155 or more games in 11 different seasons. A Hall of Famer, he is not, but making it on the ballot one more year would be a deserving achievement for one of his era's most consistent hitters.

Ryan Phillips: It’s a really weak first-year class but of the guys polling poorly, Alex Gordon deserves more love. He was one of the best defensive outfielders of his era. While he was only a three-time All-Star, he won eight Gold Gloves and helped the Royals win the World Series in 2015.

2. Which returning candidate would you like to have a surge in support?

TV: Jimmy Rollins. Now here’s someone who deserves a closer look. At first glance he compares to Edgar Renteria as a reliable shortstop but with a below-average career OPS+. Not great. But what Rollins lacked in taking walks he made up for by being an extra-base machine and showing up game after game, year after year.

Only Cal Ripken had more extra-base hits while playing shortstop—and only by three. Only Derek Jeter and Ripken had more total bases at the position.  He is the only player with 200 homers and 400 steals while playing shortstop. Only five players played more games at shortstop than Rollins, and none of them were as small as Rollins's listed height of 5' 7 ".

He also checks the “fame” requirement. Rollins won an MVP award and a World Series and owns the longest hitting streak in the past quarter century.

Jimmy Rollins won the 2007 National League MVP award. | Drew Hallowell/Getty Images)

NS: In his ninth year on the ballot, Andruw Jones is looking very likely to earn enshrinement. But he's not the only slick-fielding, power-hitting center fielder who deserves a serious look from voters.

Torii Hunter avoided getting cut from the ballot by just one vote last year. He's so far gotten a slight bump in support this year, his sixth time on the ballot, but remains far from the 75% threshold needed for enshrinement. But consider how he stacks up to Jones, who's in his ninth year on the ballot:

Hunter	Stat	Jones
50.6	WAR	62.7
110	OPS+	111
.277/331.461	Slash Line	.254/.337/.486
2,452	Hits	1,933
353	Home Runs	434
1,391	RBI	1,289
1,296	Runs	1,204
195	Stolen Bases	152
9	Gold Gloves	10

Jones had a higher peak, as he accumulated 61.0 WAR and 368 homers through his age-30 season and just 1.7 and 66, respectively, over his final five seasons. Hunter stayed productive well into his 30s, making four All-Star teams in his final nine seasons, most recently at age 37. He had a better OPS+ in his 30s (117) than his 20s (100).

RP: Andy Pettitte won five World Series titles with the Yankees, but was only a three-time All-Star. It shouldn’t matter, he deserves to get a far higher percentage than the 27.9% he got in 2024. He has 60.2 career WAR, 256 wins, and a 3.85 ERA over 18 seasons. It’s his eighth year on the ballot and he should be far closer to induction.

3. Andy Pettitte and Felix Hernández are both polling above 50% after being named on less than 30% of ballots last year. Which pitcher do you think is more deserving?

TV: Felix Hernández. Yes, Pettitte’s multiple dips into the PED well matter here. But just as importantly, Hernández finished in the top 10 in Cy Young Award voting six times, including four top four finishes. Pettitte had five top 10s and two top fours. Hernández had twice as many top 10 ERA finishes (six) as Pettitte (three). Hernández had the more impressive peak and Pettitte the longer career. Put a prime version of each on the same staff, and Hernández gets the ball in Game 1 ahead of Pettitte.

NS: I've made my case for Hernández's consideration here, but the gist is that his peak—a seven-year run from 2009 to '15 in which he had a 2.83 ERA, averaged 228 innings per season and had four top-four Cy Young Award finishes with one win—puts him in league with some elite company. Injuries prevented him from compiling counting stats that likely would have made him a Cooperstown shoo-in, but his surge in voting in just his second year on the ballot shows that voters are taking notice of how electric the King was at his best.

RP: By every measure, Pettitte had a better career, despite Hernandez having a Cy Young Award on his resume. Pettitte’s 60.2 career WAR is far higher than Hernandez’s 49.8, and his JAWS rating of 47.2 bests Hernandez’s of 44.1. Pettitte has a far better case.

4. Give us your hypothetical ballot.

Note: Tom Verducci is a Hall of Fame voter. His ballot will be revealed Tuesday before the BBWAA voting results.

NS: Bobby Abreu, Carlos Beltrán, Mark Buehrle, Felix Hernández, Torii Hunter, Andruw Jones, Manny Ramirez, Alex Rodriguez, Chase Utley, David Wright.

RP: I’d have Beltran and Andruw Jones in as no-doubters, and I’d also add Pettite. No one else on the ballot is worthy of inclusion. 

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