SAN FRANCISCO — Two of the best hitters in Giants franchise history will get another crack at entering the Hall of Fame.
Barry Bonds and Jeff Kent, teammates in San Francisco for six seasons, were among the eight former players listed on this year’s ballot for the Contemporary Baseball Era Committee, which will meet on Dec. 7 in Orlando at the start of the annual MLB Winter Meetings. A 16-member board will meet to discuss this year’s ballot and any candidate who receives at least 12 votes will be part of next summer’s Hall of Fame class.
This is the only path to Cooperstown still available to Bonds and Kent, both of whom fell short during traditional voting.
Bonds was on the BBWAA ballot for 10 years and maxed out at 66 percent, falling short of the 75 percent required. He got another crack in 2022 but received fewer than four votes from this committee, which voted Fred McGriff into the Hall of Fame that year.
Kent, one of the best-hitting second basemen of all-time, didn’t crack 50 percent in 10 years on the BBWAA ballot. He could find more luck with the committees than Bonds, as they have been just as harsh to players with PED connections as the BBWAA writers were.
The 16 voters — a mix of former players, executives and media members — will be announced later this fall. It’s crucial that Bonds finds some support in the room, even if he is not elected this time. The Hall recently passed a rule that states any player who does not get at least five of 16 votes will not be eligible for the Era ballot over the next three years. Failing to reach that mark back-to-back times, starting this year, would make a player ineligible for all future ballots.
Bonds and Kent are joined on this year’s ballot by Roger Clemens, Carlos Delgado, Don Mattingly, Dale Murphy, Gary Sheffield and Fernando Valenzuela. Next year’s ballot will deal with managers, executives and umpires, and again could be Giants-heavy. Bruce Bochy is a lock and Brian Sabean could get some consideration, as well.
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