My 2026 Baseball Hall of Fame Ballot (If I Were a BBWAA Member)

Tomorrow the Baseball Writers Association of America will announce who they have elected to the National Baseball Hall of Fame for the Class of 2026. To gain entry into Cooperstown, a player must earn 75% of the vote. Members of the BBWAA can enter up to 10 names on their individual ballots.

If I were a BBWAA member, this would be my list from the 2026 ballot:

1. Francisco Rodriguez

2. Andruw Jones

3. Torii Hunter

4. Jimmy Rollins

5. Chase Utley

6. Felix Hernandez

7. Dustin Pedroia

Six of the seven names on this ballot were on my 2025 ballot.

The only addition I have made is Dustin Pedroia who is in his second year of eligibility. I think his offensive stats are comparable to those of Chase Utley who is projected to make a dramatic surge in his support after attaining just under 40% of the vote in his third year on the ballot in 2025. Pedroia was also a better defensive second baseman than Utley. Yes, seeing Pedroia play in person during his prime is a factor. 

It is curious to me why Utley is gaining momentum, but not his double play partner Rollins whose offensive stats are considerably better than Utley's and was also the better defender of the pair. But, as I argued last year, I view Rollins and Utley as the Whitaker and Trammell of their era. They belong in the Hall, and they should go in together. 

Of the names on the list, the most likely to go in is Andruw Jones who earned 10 Gold Gloves while patrolling center field for the Atlanta Braves. Jones, who is in his penultimate year of eligibility garnered just over 66.2% of the vote last year. Yet Torii Hunter, who earned 9 Gold Gloves for his outfield play, only earned 5.1% of the BBWAA vote last year and nearly fell off the ballot.

I should note that I left Carlos Beltran off my ballot. However, after earning just over 70% of the vote last year, will likely get a plaque in Cooperstown in his fourth year of eligibility. I remain uneasy over his involvement in the Houston Astros sign stealing scandal as he willfully disregarded efforts to stop it. His election to Cooperstown sends a bad message in our troubled times. I'll be especially troubled if Beltran is the only person elected by the BBWAA tomorrow.