Three former Mets get second chance on Hall of Fame ballot

Former Mets Carlos Delgado, Jeff Kent, and Gary Sheffield are among the candidates on the Contemporary Baseball Era ballot.

Sep 13, 2025; New York City, New York, USA; Former New York Mets first baseman Carlos Delgado at Citi Field. Mandatory Credit: Wendell Cruz-Imagn Images | Wendell Cruz-Imagn Images

Three former New York Mets are getting a second chance at being immortalized in Cooperstown.

On Monday, the National Baseball Hall of Fame announced eight additional candidates for consideration in the Class of 2026. Among those to appear on the Contemporary Baseball Era player ballot are Carlos Delgado, Jeff Kent, and Gary Sheffield — each of whom had stints in Queens.

The Contemporary Baseball Era player ballot features eight candidates for consideration in the Hall of Fame Class of 2026.

Results will be announced at 7:30 p.m. ET on Dec. 7: https://t.co/V5Xyf85u9i pic.twitter.com/jdkUy2sOWs

— National Baseball Hall of Fame and Museum ⚾ (@baseballhall) November 3, 2025

Delgado, 53, was previously removed from the Baseball Writers’ Association of America ballot after his first year of eligibility in 2015. He received 3.8% of the vote, below the 5% threshold required to remain on the ballot.

During his 17-year career, Delgado slugged 473 home runs, including 11 straight seasons with at least 25. The power-hitting lefty finished in the top 10 of MVP voting four times, earned three Silver Slugger awards, made two All-Star teams, and won the 2006 Roberto Clemente Award.

Delgado is best known for his time with the Toronto Blue Jays and had a productive one-year stint with the Florida Marlins before being traded to the Mets in November 2005. During his four seasons in Queens, he hit .267/.351/.506 with 104 home runs and 339 RBIs.

15 years ago today, Carlos Delgado drove in 9 runs against the Yankees, setting the single-game record for the Mets.pic.twitter.com/duuWK35jLT

— SNY (@SNYtv) June 27, 2023

Kent, 57, had 10 years of eligibility on the BBWAA ballot but never reached the 75% needed for election. He peaked at 46.5% of the vote in 2023 after finishing below 33% in each of the previous nine years.

Before breaking out with the San Francisco Giants in the late 1990s, he spent parts of five seasons in Queens. He hit .279/.327/.453 with 67 home runs and 267 RBIs in 498 games with the Mets before being dealt to Cleveland ahead of the 1996 trade deadline.

In the six seasons that followed in San Francisco, Kent posted a .297/.368/.535 slash line with 175 home runs and drove in more than 100 runs each year. The 2000 NL MVP ranks first among second basemen with 377 career home runs, second in slugging percentage (.500), and third in RBIs (1,518). He made five All-Star teams and earned four Silver Slugger awards in 17 total seasons.

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Sheffield, who turns 57 this month, also spent 10 years on the BBWAA ballot. He fell just short of enshrinement in his final year of eligibility in 2024, receiving 63.9% of the vote.

With one of the game’s most iconic batting stances, Sheffield hit 509 home runs and drove in 1,676 runs during his 22-year career. The intimidating righty slugger earned nine All-Star nods, five Silver Slugger awards, and helped the Marlins capture their first World Series title in 1997.

Sheffield played for eight teams in the majors and spent his final season with the Mets in 2009. On April 17 of that year, he became the 25th player in history to join the 500-home run club and the first to do so in a pinch-hit appearance. He hit .276/.372/.451 with 10 home runs and 43 RBIs across 312 plate appearances that season.

4/17/2009 Gary Sheffield becomes the twenty-fifth member of the 500 home run club. pic.twitter.com/fYVs70W5cV

— This Day in Mets History (@NYMhistory) April 17, 2025

The other players on the Contemporary Baseball Era ballot include Barry Bonds, Roger Clemens, Don Mattingly, Dale Murphy, and Fernando Valenzuela. Like Bonds and Clemens, Sheffield’s performance on previous ballots has been affected by his connection to PEDs. He was among 89 players named in the 2007 Mitchell Report but has strongly denied knowingly using a performance-enhancing substance.

Candidates must receive votes on 75% of the ballots cast by the 16-member committee to be elected to the Class of 2026. The committee members will be announced later this fall, and the voting results will be revealed live on MLB Network at 7:30 p.m. ET on Dec. 7.