Kent led all second basemen with 377 home runs and won the Most Valuable Player Award in 2000

The all-time home run leader from second base has made it to Cooperstown.

Jeff Kent – who spent 17 seasons in the MLB, including his last four on the Los Angeles Dodgers – was selected to the National Baseball Hall of Fame on Sunday.

Kent earned 14 votes from the 16-member panel, two more than the required threshold, to earn the lifetime honor.

He notably beat out seven-time Cy Young Award winner and 1986 Most Valuable Player Roger Clemens and seven-time Most Valuable Player – and MLB’s home run leader – Barry Bonds for the Hall of Fame induction. 

Names such as Gary Sheffield, Don Mattingly – the Dodgers manager for five seasons from 2011-2015 – Dale Murphy, and the late Dodgers pitcher Fernando Valenzuela. Bonds, Clemens, Sheffield, and Valenzuela all received fewer than five votes from the committee, making them ineligible for consideration by the Contemporary Baseball Era Committee in 2028.

Carlos Delgado received the second most votes with nine and Mattingly and Murphy both received six votes, making all three eligible to be nominated again in 2028 when the contemporary era is considered again.

Kent made a name for himself primarily in San Francisco, where he spent six seasons of his 17-year career and hit 20-plus home runs in each season, including 30-plus in three of those seasons. In the 2000 season, Kent hit 33 long balls and garnered 125 RBI’s on a .334 batting average, earning him the league’s Most Valuable Player award.

“I was a dead pull hitter early in my career. I started to turn it around in San Francisco,” Kent said. “There were so many great moments in the Bay Area with those fans and opening a new ballpark — it was a phenomenal place for me to play.”

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While Kent made his career in the Bay, he was a key contributor until his final game on the diamond. The second baseman hit 10 or more home runs from 1996-2008 and even hit 20 in his penultimate MLB season in Los Angeles.

Kent was a five-time All-Star and even edged out teammate Barry Bonds for the league’s most valuable player in 2000 despite Bonds hitting 49 home runs on a .306 batting average. 

And while Kent’s 377 career home runs rank him the highest of any second baseman, his eight seasons of 100-plus RBI’s and 1,282 games batting cleanup take the top spot for the middle infield position. His 1,518 career RBI’s also rank in the upper echelons of the MLB’s best second basemen.

Kent said that he was surprised when he heard of his honor, as he was in Texas working with cows and spending time with family.

“I gave no thought to it,” Kent said. “I’m wearing holey jeans and dirty boots and just having a good time out here with my grandkids. This is overwhelming.”

Kent will address the Cooperstown crowd during his Hall of Fame recognition on July 26.

“I have not walked through the halls of the Hall of Fame,” Kent said. “And that’s going to be overwhelming once I get in there.”