The Baseball Writers' Association of America (BBWAA) is to announce the results of the 2024 National Baseball Hall of Fame voting on Tuesday, which is always the center of a hot debate in the baseball world.
The inducted players – 75% of the vote is needed to enter the Hall of Fame – will enter Cooperstown on July 21.
Let’s take a look at this year’s ballot, starting with those returning.
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Colorado Rockies legend Todd Helton was close to being a part of the Class of 2023, which featured Fred McGriff and Scott Rolen, after receiving 72.2% of votes on ballots cast.
This will be Helton’s sixth time on the Hall of Fame ballot, with a maximum of 10 times allowed.
Speaking of year 10, Gary Sheffield, who received 55% of votes last year, will be on the final year of his ballot. Billy Wagner, who was also close with 68.1% of votes, is entering his ninth year.
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Andruw Jones was the only other returning player that garnered more than 50% of the vote (58.1%) in 2023.
Carlos Beltran, Alex Rodriguez and Manny Ramirez also highlight those returning that received a good chunk of votes but needed more to enter the Hall. Of course, all three of these players are controversial topics in Hall of Fame debates because all three have their own dark moments in the game.
Beltran isn’t connected to performance-enhancing drugs like the other two, though. He was a part of the Houston Astros’ 2017 cheating scandal, and he was named in the report that found the team to be guilty.
He was a coach at the time, and there’s no doubting he has a Hall of Fame resume after putting together nine All-Star campaigns with 435 homers, 2,725 hits and a 70.1 WAR as a switch hitter. Beltran received 46.5% of votes in his first year in 2023.
There are many new players that will make the ballot this year, and they’ll hope to stay on it as 5% of all ballots must have their name checked off to return if they are not inducted.
The list is as follows: Jose Bautista, Adrian Beltre, Bartolo Colon, Adrian Gonzalez, Matt Holliday, Victor Martinez, Joe Mauer, Brandon Phillips, Jose Reyes, James Shields, Chase Utley and David Wright.
Of those listed, Beltre has a big chance to be a first-year election by the BBWAA. He certainly is a Hall of Famer on the stat sheet, racking up 3,166 hits, 477 home runs and ending his illustrious career with a 93.5 WAR, which is third-most among third basemen in league history.
There’s also the thought that perhaps Minnesota Twins legend Joe Mauer and Philadelphia Phillies icon Chase Utley could get a large number of votes as well. If they’re enough to crack that 75% threshold remains to be seen.
Wright, the New York Mets’ legendary third baseman, will also be an interesting player to watch on the ballots. He might have been a surefire pick if his career wasn’t shortened by spinal stenosis. He was a seven-time All-Star, two-time Gold Glover and two-time Silver Slugger who hit .296 for his career with 242 homers.
