Jeff Kent Elected to the Baseball Hall of Fame

Former Giants second baseman Jeff Kent was elected to the Baseball Hall of Fame by the Contemporary Era Committee on Sunday Evening. Kent received votes from 14 of the 16 writers, earning 87.5% of the vote.

The five-time All-Star, four-time Silver Slugger, and 2000 National League MVP is the all-time home run leader at second base.

Kent spent 10 years on the BBWAA Hall of Fame ballot before maxing out and being deferred to the Contemporary Era Committee. He hung between 14-18% of the writer’s vote in the first six of those years before a late charge in his final four years brought him up to 46.5% of the vote in 2023.

The players, executives, writers, and historians in the committee voted for Kent because of his high-powered offense at a position not typically revered for it.

One of the Best Offensive Second Basemen Ever

Jeff Kent hit 20 doubles and 20 home runs in 12 of his 17 career seasons. No other second baseman has done so more than eight times. His 1,518 career RBI are also the third-most for a player at the position, and the most since integration.

Kent is best remembered for the MVP-winning season for the Giants in 2000. That year, he slashed .344/.424/.596 for a 162 OPS+ and 7.4 fWAR. He also tallied 33 home runs, 41 doubles, and 90 walks.

To this day, it remains the only season by a second baseman with 30+ home runs, 40+ doubles, and 90+ walks.

But that season was one of many that defined the peak of Kent’s career. From 1998-2005, he slashed .301/.372/.537 for a .908 OPS and 136 OPS. He maintained an OPS above .850 in each of those seasons while qualifying for the batting title, making him one of only seven players to do so in each of those eight seasons.

Kent ended his career in 2008, having slugged 377 home runs and rocking a career .290/.356/.500/.855 slash line in 9,537 plate appearances.

He is one of 41 players to hold a career slugging percentage of .500 in at least 9,000 plate appearances. Every non-Hall of Famer on the list has either been left out due to PED use or has not yet been eligible to appear on a ballot.

Kent is also one of only 15 players to log 350 home runs, 550 doubles, and 800 walks.

Lone Player Voted in by the Contemporary Committee

This result is not a surprising one. As a steroid-free power bat who played in an era defined by steroid use, Kent was bound to draw the attention of the more old-school mindset held by the members of this committee.

The momentum he saw at the end of his time on the BBWAA ballot set this up as a perfect opportunity for his election, much like it did for Fred McGriff, who was inducted by this same committee in 2023.

Kent will be inducted into the Baseball Hall of Fame on Sunday, July 26, 2026, at the Clark Sports Center in Cooperstown, N.Y.

Further down the ballot, Carlos Delgado turned in a surprising and satisfying nine out of the 16 votes. This was his first appearance on a Hall of Fame ballot of any kind since he was turned away on a loaded 2015 BBWAA ballot, where he received just 3.8% in his lone appearance with the writers.

Much like Kent, Delgado was a prolific power hitter in his time with a clean record on steroid use: no allegations, no suspensions.

Veterans to this ballot, Dale Murphy and Don Mattingly earned the votes of six of the 16 committee members in this election, a disappointing outcome for both.

For Murphy, this ties his result from his last election, showing no forward progress for him in the last three years. But for Mattingly, who received eight votes in his last try, this was a step down from his previous performance.

To the frustration of many across baseball fanhood, Barry Bonds and Roger Clemens failed to receive even five votes from this year’s group. They join Gary Sheffield and Fernando Valenzuela in this fate.

Due to new rules enacted this year, these four players — who failed to attain five votes — will not be eligible to appear on an eras committee election ballot until the 2031-2032 election cycle.

If these players fail to reach five votes on a second ballot, they become ineligible for future ballot consideration. Tonight created a haunting reality for many baseball fans; not only is it unlikely that Barry Bonds and Roger Clemens will reach the Hall of Fame anytime soon, but it’s also possible that they will be forever locked out of the halls of Cooperstown by 2031.