Three new members of Cooperstown’s Hall of Fame were elected this year: Adrian Beltré, Joe Mauer, and Todd Helton. Players must have their names checked by at least 75% of the ballots submitted. Beltré had 95.1% support, Helton received 79.7%, and Mauer, at 76.1%, made it by just four votes. Wagner (73.8%), a former Braves closer, fell just five votes shy of entry and will have his last chance to make it into the Hall of Fame in 2025. Former Braves slugger Gary Sheffield (63.9%) failed to get enough support on his 10th and final attempt. In 2026, however, he will have another chance to be elected via the Contemporary Baseball Era Players Committee.
The largest disappointment of Atlanta Braves fans, myself included, is seeing Braves’ legend Andruw Jones (61.6%) not receive enough ballots cast by eligible members of the Baseball Writers’ Association of America (BWAA) in his 7th year of eligibility to be elected to Cooperstown this year. Jones will have to wait at least another year, and it could be even longer.
There is no doubt that Jones is one of the greatest defensive centerfielders of all time. He’s been called the greatest centerfielder of all time by Willie Mays himself, but apparently, that’s not enough to make the Hall of Fame. During his 17-year career, Jones won 10 consecutive Gold Gloves, batted .254 with 434 home runs and an .823 OPS.
In MLB history, only five players have won 10 straight Gold Gloves: Willie Mays, Roberto Clemente, and Ken Griffey, Jr, all in the Hall of Fame. The other two are Jones and Ichiro Suzuki (who is eligible next season), a future Hall of Famer. There have, however, only been four players in MLB history to achieve 400+ home runs and at least 10 Gold Gloves (Mike Schmidt, Ken Griffey, Jr, Willie Mays, and Andruw Jones). Among them, three are Hall of Famers.
Despite this, Jones has come a long way since his first year on the ballot, when he barely garnered 5% of the votes required.
The most significant increase came in 2023 when Jones’ vote percentage increased 16.7 percent over 2022. However, his totals have risen every season that he has been eligible.
Jones is eligible to remain on the ballot for another three years. Recent trends indicate that the former Braves centerfielder could be elected as early as next year. I remain confident that Andruw Jones will earn a Cooperstown induction, and his former teammate Chipper Jones agrees.
“It seems like the Braves’ run is incomplete without Andruw [Jones] there. I think what the Braves did this [past] year by retiring his number and being in the Braves Hall of Fame obviously will help him tremendously. I think it’s gonna happen regardless. And if it doesn’t and the writers don’t vote him in, I am on the Veterans Committee for the Hall of Fame, which votes for people who fall off the ballot. I can promise you that I will do everything in my power to get him in.”
Chipper will always go to bat for his former teammate. Hopefully, enough of the writers will do the same in the coming years.
The Baseball Hall of Fame will induct its members during a ceremony in Cooperstown, New York, later this summer.
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