SPRINGFIELD, Mo. (KY3) – EW YORK (AP) — Carlos Beltrán and Andruw Jones, center fielders who excelled at the plate and with their gloves, were elected to baseball’s Hall of Fame on Tuesday.
Beltrán, making his fourth appearance on the ballot, received 358 of 425 votes for 84.2% from the Baseball Writers’ Association of America, 39 above the 319 needed for the 75% threshold. Beltran began his career with the Kansas City Royals, playing eight seasons. He played for the Cardinals from 2012 to 2013.
Jones, in the ninth of 10 possible appearances, was picked on 333 ballots for 78.4%
Beltrán moved up steadily from 46.5% in 2023 to 57.1% the following year and 70.3% in 2025, when he fell 19 votes short as Ichiro Suzuki, CC Sabathia and Billy Wagner were elected.
Beltrán was hired as the New York Mets’ manager on Nov. 1, 2019, then fired on Jan. 16 without having managed a game, three days after he was the only Astros player mentioned by name in a report by Major League Baseball regarding the team’s illicit use of electronics to steal signs during Houston’s run to the 2017 World Series championship.
Jones received just 7.3% in his first appearance in 2018 and didn’t get half the total until receiving 58.1% in 2023. He increased to 61.6% and 66.2%, falling 35 votes short last year.
They will be inducted at Cooperstown, New York, on July 26 along with second baseman Jeff Kent, voted in last month by the contemporary era committee.
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