Former Dodger All-Star Misses Hall of Fame for 10th and Final Time

On Tuesday, the voting results for the complete 2023 National Baseball Hall of Fame were announced.

Of the 28 candidates on the Baseball Writers Association of America HOF ballot, third baseman Scott Rolen was the only one to reach 75% support. Because of this, Dodgers former second baseman Jeff Kent is now out of tries.

This year marked his tenth and final appearance on the BBWAA ballot. Last year, Kent received 32.7% of the vote, while this year he improved to 46.5% which is still well below the 75% mark needed for the election.

Many could argue that Kent should be inducted based on the singular fact that he hit more home runs as a second baseman than anyone else ever has.

Kent was crowned as MVP in 2000 after hitting 33 homers and posting an OPS of 1.021. Kent was consistent in the fact that he was the only middle infielder since 1961 to have both a .300 average and .500 slugging percentage with runners in scoring position.

Although he put up great numbers, it doesn't quite stack up to other Hall of Famers. For one, Kent led the NL in errors by a second baseman four times. He also retired with a career WAR of 55.4, which is lower than the majority of the candidates on the ballot.

On top of this, many can argue that the former Dodger never won a Gold Glove and lacked defensive skills.

Though Kent still has a chance to get into the Hall eventually, it is now certain that he won’t be elected by the BBWAA.