#MLBVideos: Breaking down the 2026 Hall of Fame ballot (Carlos Beltrán, Andruw Jones, Cole Hamels AND MORE!)

Breaking down the 2026 Hall of Fame ballot (Carlos Beltrán, Andruw Jones, Cole Hamels AND MORE!)

while you were watching something else last night. The ballot dropped and this is where this soundboard moment came from. I hate this time of year. This is Harold said, “I hate this time of year about 10 years ago because we always have to sound like we’re arguing against players.” And I agree with you. This is a tricky time of year. But here we go. This is the entire 2026 Hall of Fame ballot. Note that there are a ton of, you know, contemporary era players. These are all the firsttime eligibles in this year’s ballot. Now, a lot of these guys are not going to remain on the ballot, but here we go. The notable firstear guys. I think Cole Haml’s headlines the list. It’s an interesting group. I don’t know that you can say there’s a first ballot guy here. And I think maybe for some guys who are close, you really have to work to make a case. No slam dunks. In other words, grab a name here and jump in. Who most intrigues you among the first year eligibles? Cole Hams to me is going He’s a high-end all-star pitcher. Yeah, he was an all-star bunch of times, World Series. I think he leads the class to be honest with you. When they were all playing, um, you know, Ryan Braum was leading the house until the suspension there. There’s a ton of controversy cuz he was on his way to the Hall of Fame. Sure he was. Sure was. So, that was probably that was hard, man. That was disappointing, you know, with with how that all went down, that whole scene, but and that comes back when you start discussing this stuff. For sure it does. I mean, there was too much controversy there. We don’t want to get into all that because it was really unsemly. But, um, in regards to Haml, yeah, 15-year career, four-time all-star, World Series MVP, LCS MVP, you know, all the boxes are checked in terms of things that you want to accomplish along the way to the Hall of Fame. Threw and no hitter. Yeah. All that stuff. Um, but in the minds of some, 163 wins, you know, look, this guy was an elite pitcher during his time, but how does he comp out to some guys that were like near misses is my question. I I he reminds me a lot of of Kurt Schilling when you start looking at the resume and the postseason. Ah, look at this. I didn’t even know that was on going to be on this board. Well, you got that full screen built. Here it is. Hamill’s short of Pettit and Schilling in terms of wins. Erra commensurate with the rest of the group. Uh strikeouts commensurate and the war is commensurate with the exception of Schilling who really leads in that one. And we we chose these three guys here because Pettit Schilling and Hernandez get a lot of conversation as being Hall of Fame worthy. None of them are in the Hall of Fame. So where does Hamills rank according to that bar? Well, I I don’t have him ahead of Andy Pettit. I think Andy Pettison in the Hall of Fame. Um, the only guy who maybe doesn’t have the of those four, Felix Hernandez didn’t have all the wins, but he had the amazing run or any of the postseasons. Yes, he had the amazing run of being King Felix. Everybody has a story, and I think that’s part of the Hall of Fame legacy. What’s your story? Because it’s going into a museum. It is about it’s the hall and I think we’ve gotten so number oriented. When I look at Felix, he was the first guy that saber metrics was the key. Oh yeah. That’s how he won his Sai Young. Yes. So all the all the other numbers came into play. So that’s to me is the turning point of moving forward. He’s on that borderline. You want to throw him back against guys with 300 wins, he’s not in. But if you throw him in against the guys today, you start looking at Felix Fernandez has a chance to get in. So I think that’s how you look at most of these guys. Here’s the thing for me, and this is where the Hall of Fame discussion gets so wobbly, and this is why you said 10 years ago, I hate this time of year. Yeah. Because you can’t have Cole Hamls in Coopertown if you don’t have Fernando and Vita Blue in the Hall of Fame. Right. We’re talking about left-handers who changed the dialogue around the game. These guys were were culture changers. And it goes back to what I was saying, the story. There’s a story behind that. And by the way, they were just as good, if not better than Cole Hamls, and they’re not in. And now we have to go through these stupid veteran committee ballots to make that right. So, so until we fix the way we look at the guys that have been snubbed, I can’t I’m not on board with guys who are commensurate statistically to somebody that’s not in Well, and the only way, Matt, it’s going to get writed is not two or three guys a year when the committee, right, you got to do what the NFL does. Here’s 10 guys this year. Yes. Yes. We’re we’re flooding the market. You know, if that’s truly how we see guys being Hall of Famers, that’s what we need to do. I I do want to say one thing with Cole Hamls. Okay. Two things stand out. Remember the commercial at Nauseium when we first came on? It was that new era. It was put on the corner, Cole. The guy that came out with the shower shoes came out of the stands. Yeah. Always stood out when we first It was It was Cole worked the corners and he goes, “Hell yeah.” I’ll never forget that. And then the other Cole Hams moment for me was in Coopertown. We’re getting ready to cover the induction ceremony and he throws the no hitter in Chicago and it just kind of stole the thunder that night of the the 15 uh 2015 induction. Here he was and this fly ball to center field. I don’t know if it’s in this rip right here. Oh my gosh. I was screaming at the TV. He almost missed the ball. Can you believe that was 10? And I want to say that that was was that his last start as a Philly before he before he got traded to the Rangers? Yes. So, wow, what a bookend for a career. And look, I again, this is why you said I hate this time of year because I love Cole Hamsl as a pitcher. Yeah, he was awesome. He was amazing. But the the disqualifier here is Vitablau and Fernando aren’t in the Hall of Fame. So, I can’t I can’t get on board with anybody else that’s a left-hander that has commensurate numbers until we fix that. I think Cole’s going in. Let’s talk about the guys who are returning to the ballot this year because since there’s no slam dunk among the first year eligibles, maybe that bodess favorably for guys like Carlos Beltron who felt just shy last year. I have one question. Is Mark Burley first time or was he on last year? No, no, he’s been on before. Yeah. Okay. Cuz I think Burley is going to shock people with numbers. He’s going to be one of those late risers through the numbers. But I’ll come back to the board here. I didn’t see Burley. Burley is just off this board at 11.4. That’s why you don’t see him. But but tell me about Beltron and Jones. I mean, my take. They get in this year. Yeah, they do. What do you think? I agree. I think this is the year for that because look, it’s been a slow build. There there aren’t a bunch of guys that are going to grab votes among the first year eligibles. So, I think that bodess well for a couple of guys who have been um favorably on the rise. Look at the swell for Beltron between 2023 and 2025. I mean, that’s pretty impressive. Guys clear off the board. Yeah, they’ve cleared some players through. Uh he he’s going to make it about this. I started I talked to Carlos about this cuz being a switch hitter myself, I asked him I was shocked to hear the answer. I asked him, “When’d you start switch hitting?” And I figure, you know, he grew up in Puerto Rico and he’s probably playing baseball a long time in his life, which he had. He did not start switch hitting till he was 19. Wow. Wow. How about that? Yeah. And then boom, he’s in the big league by rookie of the year. You know who the last switch hitter was to win AL MVP? Vita Blue. I’m telling you, man, I’m pissed about it. I’m never not going to be pissed about it. Yeah. Uh let’s talk about Andrew Jones. Andrew Jones because he too has seen a real uptick in his percentage all the way to 66 plus percent in the most recent ballot. I agree with you. I think both of these guys get in and I think for Andrew Jones part of the problem when he first was put on the ballot was it was too close to the end of his career where he was out of his peak years when he was in Atlanta. you know, his years as a Dodger were not entirely productive, and that that recent memory kind of obscured how good he was over a 10-year period when he was at his peak with Atlanta. Yeah. And and my argument for Andrew Jones, everybody was knocking him because his numbers got worse. That’s what’s supposed to happen. Yeah. You don’t get better, you get worse, right? And he got dinged for that. Well, it was like a kind of a Willie Mays career arc. Peak, peak, peak and then and the last thing you remember about Willie in uniform as an active player falling down on a fly ball, him on his knees in a Mets uniform at the end of the 73 World Series. That’s unfortunate. We don’t, you know, I’m not old enough to remember Willie in the 50s, right? But I kind of remember Willie in that in that World Series in 73. Yes. And he’s he’s 40ome years old, right? You know, you remember Elliot Cobb? Sure. Who used to be one of our head research, one of our friends. Yeah. So, we were in Coopertown and he had his book out and he ranked the top players in baseball and he had Babe Ruth, Barry Bonds, and Willie Mays. And so, we’re having breakfast, me and Elliot. Willie walks in. He’s sitting at the table, him, McCovy, a few guys. And I go, “You want to meet Willie Mays? You ever met Willie?” He’s like, “No, never met him.” So I take him over there and I go, “Willie, this guy’s got you number three all time.” That’s how I introduced him. Killed him. And Willie went, “Number three. Who you got in front of me?” And then he says, “Well, Babe Ruth and Barry Bonds.” And Willie says, “Son, you see me play?” And he goes, “Well, I saw you play when you were with the Mets.” He said, “You didn’t see me play. You didn’t see Willie when Willie was playing in New York.” Will he went first person like that? You start talking about when he was really Willie Mays, right? And that’s the thing, you know, we we don’t see guys when they’re in their prime time. Kind of where we’re at with with Andrew Jones. But I agree with you. I think Jones and Beltran both very optimistic that they’ll get in this year.

@MLBNetwork breaks down the biggest storylines on the 2026 National Baseball Hall of Fame ballot. Who has your vote? 👀

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