Hall of Fame: 2026 & Era Committee

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via mlbtr.com

Barry Bonds, Roger Clemens, Carlos Delgado, Jeff Kent, Don Mattingly, Dale Murphy, Gary Sheffield, and Fernando Valenzuela were revealed today by the Hall of Fame as this year’s candidates on the Era Committee ballot. Previously called the Veterans Committee, a panel made up of 16 former players, executives, sportswriters, and historians from around the game will meet during this year’s Winter Meetings to vote on whether or not these eight players will be elected into the Hall of Fame. At least 12 of those 16 votes are needed to be inducted into Cooperstown, and the results of this year’s vote will be revealed at 6:30pm CT on December 7.

[JCA-CrystalCity]

Delgado would be an interesting candidate in this era. He was a strong opponent of the use of Vieques as a bombing range as well as the occupation of Iraq. For a while, he refused to leave the dugout and stand for G-d Bless America. He also did a ton of charity work and won the Roberto Clemente award later in his  career. 3rd most HRs for anyone not linked to PEDs not already in the HOF. As Jay Jaffe says, a story worth knowing but  unlikely to get through on a stacked ballot.
https://blogs.fangraphs.com/election-season-bonds-and-clemens-lead-the-contemporary-baseball-ballot/

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Ballot for next year is out:

New:
Ryan Braun
Shin-Soo Choo
Edwin Encarnacion
Gio Gonzalez
Alex Gordon
Cole Hamels
Matt Kemp
Howie Kendrick
Nick Markakis
Daniel Murphy
Hunter Pence
Rick Porcello

They join holdovers: Abreu, Beltran, Buehrle, Felix Hernandez, Tori Hunter, Andruw Jones, Pedroia, Pettitte, Manny, F-Rod, and Jimmy Rollins

I don't think any of the new guys get in, maybe ever. Beltran and Jones should have good chances.

[Count Walewski]

I'm a "Big Hall" guy - I think the likes of Gary Sheffield and Kenny Lofton should be in the Hall and I don't see an issue with Baines being in it. But even I don't think any of these guys will get in.

[welch]

Cecil Travis, a former Nat who led the AL in hits in the mah=gicel year of 1941, with a longer hit streak than Ted Williams and a higher average than DiMaggio.

Claim to fame: Travis broke in with the Washington Senators in 1933 and quickly emerged as one of baseball’s best infielders. Playing primarily at shortstop, Travis hit above .300 eight of his first nine seasons, making three All Star teams. He peaked in 1941 at 28 when he hit a career-high .359, led the American League with 218 hits, and finished sixth in Most Valuable Player voting. He would never again approach stardom.

The United States entered World War II in December 1941, and Travis spent nearly four years in the military. Most established ballplayers served by playing on USO ball clubs. Travis is one of the few who saw combat, and he paid a heavy price, suffering frostbite to his feet in the Battle of the Bulge and just avoiding amputation. He played just three more seasons, never again hitting above .300.

There are those who say Travis’s feet were permanently damaged, though his New York Times obituary in 2006 reported him once saying his timing was gone after the war.

Does he belong in the Hall of Fame? If we merely analyze Travis’s career stats, his numbers don’t come close to Cooperstown standards. But statistics aren’t why Travis deserves a plaque.

Travis is among a small number of players who might already be in Cooperstown if not for losing prime years from the middle of their careers to military service. Dom DiMaggio is the only other member I know of in this club. Of course, there may have been many minor league or amateur players on their way to good things in baseball before wartime duty changed this. If anyone reading has such a relative or friend, please feel free to contact me. I’d love to write something.

Were it up to me, I’d enshrine Travis, DiMaggio too, who I once interviewed. I’m generally in favor of Cooperstown recognizing special circumstances when it comes to truncated careers of good players, for a variety of reasons. Travis had no choice being drafted and was willing to fight. I think the Hall of Fame should honor him for that, not ding him.

I’m not the only person singing praises. A fellow member of the Society for American Baseball Research, Clay Sigg recently sent me a short biography he wrote on Travis. It featured a quote from Ted Williams about his and Joe DiMaggio’s 1941 seasons. Williams said, “Hell, in 1941, Cecil Travis was just as good as either of us! Cecil Travis is one of the five best left-handed hitters I ever saw.” In the 1995 book on Williams’ top hitters, Ted Williams’ Hit List, co-author Jim Prime noted that Bob Feller included Travis with Joe DiMaggio, Jimmie Foxx, Charlie Gehringer, Hank Greenberg, Al Simmons and Williams on his own list of all time toughest hitters.

https://baseballpastandpresent.com/does-he-belong-in-the-hall-of-fame/cecil-travis/does-he-belong-in-the-hall-of-fame-cecil-travis/

And his stats. Note his numbers through 1941. Lifetime BA of .314, including the last three seasons, when he tried to play on the feet damaged during the Battleof the Bulge.

https://www.baseball-reference.com/players/t/travice01.shtml

[varoadking]

Jeff Kent is in...

[JCA-CrystalCity]

Matt Kemp is in...

really?

[varoadking]

really?

No...I f'd up...corrected to Jeff Kent...

https://www.mlb.com/news/contemporary-baseball-era-hall-of-fame-ballot-results-2026?partnerId=it-20251208-16000446-mlb-1-A&utm_id=it-20251208-16000446-mlb-1-A&lctg=24239293

[JCA-CrystalCity]

No...I f'd up...corrected to Jeff Kent...

https://www.mlb.com/news/contemporary-baseball-era-hall-of-fame-ballot-results-2026?partnerId=it-20251208-16000446-mlb-1-A&utm_id=it-20251208-16000446-mlb-1-A&lctg=24239293

telling Kemp got in but Clemens and Bonds got less than 5 votes. Kent was big anti-roids, and the committee was stacked with opponents of 'roid users. It's a joke that Don Mattingly got more votes than Bonds. I do like Carlos Delgado getting 9 votes.

[blue911]

telling Kemp got in but Clemens and Bonds got less than 5 votes. Kent was big anti-roids, and the committee was stacked with opponents of 'roid users. It's a joke that Don Mattingly got more votes than Bonds. I do like Carlos Delgado getting 9 votes.

Terrible pick. Was Bobby Grich not eligible for this vote?

I’m a big hall guy but Kent was an awful defensive player and a crappy teammate.

[Count Walewski]

Jeff Kent hit the only foul ball that I ever caught. Nonetheless I hate him because he was a huge jerk. However if he indeed was clean of steroids (I always just assumed he was on roids but when I googled it today apparently he was clean) then I think he merits induction into the HoF as the best power hitting 2B of all time.

[blue911]

Jeff Kent but not Lou Whitaker. Just awful. Whitaker,Dewey Evans and Kenny Lofton are all more deserving.

[HalfSmokes]

telling Kemp got in but Clemens and Bonds got less than 5 votes. Kent was big anti-roids, and the committee was stacked with opponents of 'roid users. It's a joke that Don Mattingly got more votes than Bonds. I do like Carlos Delgado getting 9 votes.

The baseball writers have made it very clear that if you started to follow the game in the 90s, your memories and history aren’t part of the hall. I just wonder how they’re going to keep up the number of voters now that baseball writing barely exists

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Jay Jaffe’s ballot:
https://blogs.fangraphs.com/jay-jaffes-2026-hall-of-fame-ballot/

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Andruw Jones and Carlos Beltran elected.  Gio didn’t get any votes.

[varoadking]

Gio didn’t get any votes.

Well, at least he didn't get any more than he deserved...

[imref]

No votes for Kendrick or Daniel Murphy either.

[varoadking]

No votes for Kendrick or Daniel Murphy either.

Now THAT pisses me off... 

[imref]

Zimmerman on the ballot next year. And probably only for next year. Hopefully he gets at least a couple of votes.