2026 Mock MLB Hall of Fame Ballot

It’s time again that I fill out a mock Hall of Fame ballot. Well, probably past the time I would like to if I were to put the tiniest influence out onto the world on the 2026 Hall of Fame inductees. 

This year we see a ballot where no one dropped off the ballot after a 10th year, the two biggest first timers on the ballot were voted in, and this year does not come up to vote on a first ballot. Hopefully this will be a year to work through some of the ballot hangups and logjams of the past. There are players that have been gradually gaining votes through the years despite controversies ranging from PED’s with and without suspensions, sign stealing scandals, injuries and shortened careers. We are also running into a shift in the game after players would amass huge win totals but not have nearly as many strikeouts, or the value of batting average has gone to the wayside in favor of on base percentage. We just might not see many more hitters with 3000 hits in their careers or pitchers with 300 wins and that definitely doesn’t mean we don’t have stars of the game that are lesser than those already in Cooperstown.

Ultimately, I am a “Big Hall Guy.” This doesn’t mean that I will let just anyone into the Hall of Fame, but with 30 teams in the league and an especially high level of play coming from the best players, it hasn’t been hard to look at the players in the league since the last expansion and still clearly recognize a future Hall of Famer when you see one with your own eyes. If you look at the players over a 12 to 15 year span of the game and can make up a line up of the best players at each position, each one of them should be in the Hall, and there are probably few players just behind them at many of the positions that were equally great. The players on this ballot span from Manny Ramirez whose first season was in 1993 to about Dustin Pedroia whose career began in 2006, and those two overlapped as Red Sox even winning a World Series together in 2007. 

Eras Committee Mock Ballot

I like a little statistical context. What we do know is that the players that are in the Hall of Fame do average out with some statistics. That’s not really the best way to measure whether someone should be in the Hall because they may excel in another area or have huge deficiencies elsewhere as well, and different eras bring different light on different statistics. But it is a good idea of what neighborhood players fall in. There are a few statistical mile-markers we can look at as “average Hall of Famers.” I figured it would be pretty handy to get a sense of the stats of average Hall of Famers to compare to the guys on the ballot and to supply comparable Hall of Famers to those numbers.

Hitters

69 WAR (Tony Gwynn), 2411 Hits (Mickey Mantle, 2415), 1330 R (Barry Larkin, 1329), 225 HR (Bobby Doerr, 223), 1230 RBI (Gary Carter, 1225), 224 SB (Dave Winfield, 223), .302 AVG (Willie Mays), .376 OBP (Harmon Killebrew), .841 OPS (Carl Yastrzemski), 6 All-Star Games (Jackie Robinson).

Pitchers

69 WAR (Don Sutton), 246 W (Juan Marichal, 243), 3.00 ERA (Dizzy Dean, 3.02), 2127 Ks (Roy Halladay, 2117), 412 SVs (Closers only, Dennis Eckersley, 390) 4 All-Star Games (Dizzy Dean).

Last year we saw the induction of Ichiro Suzuki, CC Sabathia and Billy Wagner and the Veteran’s committee inducted Dave Parker and Dick Allen. It was an excellent class with great star power from Ichiro, CC as one of the last workhorse Aces of the game, and Wagner’s long overdue induction on his last ballot after a genuinely dominating career as a closer. Parker and Allen ultimately ended up being inducted posthumously, both players are incredibly deserving of enshrinement. 

1. Carlos Beltran, OF (70.3% in 2025, 4th year on the ballot)

70.1 WAR, 2725 H, 435 HR, 312 SB, .279 AVG, .350 OBP, .486 SLG, 9x AS, 3x GG, 2x SS, 2017 WS, 1999 ROY

Hat: Mets

In all of MLB history only Barry Bonds, Willie Mays, Andre Dawson, Alex Rodriguez and Carlos Beltran can claim to be in the 400 homer and 300 steal club. As great as his regular season numbers were, he was even better in the postseason, hitting .307, getting on base at a .412 clip and slugging .609 in 7 trips spanning 13 years. He has the fourth most home runs by a switch hitter (435) and sixth most in hits (2725). Beltran really would have been a shoe-in for being a first ballot Hall of Famer if it wasn’t for his involvement with the Astros sign stealing scandal in the post season of his final year before retirement. Sign stealing, spitballs and other bending of the rules have been rampant throughout the history of baseball, I’m not really sure if a moral judgment should be placed on involvement. Bobby Thompson’s “Shot Heard ‘Round the World” is a home run that is now celebrated not just for the drama of the hit but also for the subterfuge of relaying the sign for the pitch as observed with binoculars from the dead center field stands.

2. Andruw Jones, OF (66.2% in 2025, 9th year)

62.7 WAR, 1933 H, 434 HR, 152 SB, .254 AVG, .337 OBP, .486 SLG, 5x AS, 10x GG, SS

Hat: Braves

While his strike out numbers could be ugly at times, Jones was an incredible power hitting outfielder, even as a teenager, and one of the best fielders ever to play the game. With the eye test he was incredible, but by the numbers his total zone rating, fielding as it relates to the rest of the league in that season, he was off the charts great, with numbers in the 30’s and 20’s almost every year, something I haven’t seen from many other players in history. To compare, Ozzie Smith had three seasons with total zone ratings in the 20’s and one over 30, and Jones had four seasons in the 20’s, and two over 30 and finished with a career zone ratings 15 points higher despite having a bit of a drop off his last five seasons. There just aren't very many players with the consistency and reputation as a fielder to win ten Gold Glove Awards as Jones did, he is tied for the tenth most awards with four Hall of Famers and likely inductee, Ichiro. His first moments in the spotlight saw him hit two homer runs and hit .400 in the 1996 World Series as a 19 year old against the Yankees. He went to two World Series with the Braves and despite playing many years with the Braves and Yankees, he joined both teams just after their Championship runs.

3. Chase Utley, 2B (39.8% in 2025, 3rd year)

64.5 WAR, 1885 H, 411 2B, 259 HR, .275 AVG, .358 OBP, .465 SLG, 6x AS, 4x SS, 2008 WS

Hat: Phillies

When it comes to all-time WAR or home runs at the second base position, Utley is in a class of all Hall of Famers, or all-time great guys, Lou Whitaker and Bobby Grich, whose shot at the Hall was more deserved than their Writers’ Ballot vote totals. Utley was the leader of the Phillies during a run in the 2000’s that brought the Phillies to consecutive World Series, winning the trophy in 2008. He played much better in the year that they lost to the Yankees, hitting five home runs in that series, than the year they actually won it. His career WAR is sandwiched between Jackie Robinson and Craig Biggio, within a point of both legends, and he has the seventh most homers at the position. Not only was he a great power hitter for the position but also a pretty great fielder, 123 career defensive runs saved and the same defensive WAR total as defensive great Dick Groat, despite never winning a Gold Glove during his career. The Platinum Glove award for the best fielder in the majors started in 2011, but if it existed in 2008, Utley should have walked away with it thanks to a 30 defensive runs saved season… and he still lost out on the NL second baseman award to Brandon Philips who scored only 13 defensive runs saved. He likely should have walked home with six of those trophies, and he deserves a plaque in Cooperstown as well.

4. Alex Rodriguez, SS/3B (37.1% in 2025, 5th year)

117.5 WAR, 3115 H, 558 2B, 696 HR, 2086 RBI, 339 SB, .295 AVG, .380 OBP, .550 SLG, 3x MVP, 14x AS, 2x GG, 10x SS, 2009 WS

Hat: Yankees

ARod grew up torn between two cultures, born in New York City, he moved to the Dominican Republic at the age of four and back to Miami when he was in fourth grade. When the family was in Miami, his father left them because Florida wasn’t fast paced enough for him, moving to New York City. During both moves Alex struggled with new languages and struggled to fit in. Struggling to fit in and getting himself into trouble because of it was a theme in his playing career as well, breaking out with the Mariners, but signing as a free agent with the Rangers soon after his mentor Ken Griffey, Jr. was traded to Cincinnati. He admitted to taking PEDs when he joined Texas due to the pressures of signing in biggest contract in MLB history. After three losing seasons with the Rangers he was traded to the Yankees, where he enjoyed winning seasons, but struggles in the post season and a rift with team captain Derek Jeter after ARod disparaged him in an interview, and later in his career he aligned himself with the notorious PED pipeline of Biogensis after an injury that resulted in a year long suspension. All the while he went through a highly publicised divorce and some celebrity relationships. 

It’s easy to get stuck on his awkward personality and various scandals to forget that ARod had one of the great careers in baseball history. His numbers put him in the conversation of the greatest players ever, at perhaps the most demanding defensive positions in the game. His five tools and great speed, just the third 40-40 player in baseball, put him in an echelon of players consisting of just Willie Mays and Barry Bonds. All-time, he has the 12th best WAR for position players, ranks fifth in home runs, fourth in RBI and is one of just eight players ever to hit at least 300 homers and steal 300 bases. Only he and Willie Mays have 300 steals and homers as well as 3000 hits.

5. Manny Ramirez, OF (34.3% in 2025, 10th year)

69.3 WAR, 2574 H, 547 2B, 555 HR, 1831 RBI, .312 AVG, .411 OBP, .585 SLG, 12x AS, 2x WS, 9x SS, WS MVP, Batting Title

Hat: Red Sox

Manny ended his career with a series of failed PED tests that will probably cost him a Hall of Fame ticket, although his antics on and off the field were pretty lovable, losing a massive paycheck and not realizing it was gone until it was returned, cutting off a throw from the outfield while playing the outfield, and generally “Manny being Manny.” It’s really tough to think that he threw it all away with repeated PED fails after he had four trips to the World Series, two Championships, twelve All-Star Games, led the league in RBI (165) in ‘99, AVG and OBP in ‘02 (.349 and .450), OBP in ‘03 and ‘06 and home runs in ‘04 (43), while hitting 555 homers, 2574 hits, .312 AVG, .411 OBP and a 69.3 WAR.

6. Andy Pettitte, LHP (27.9% in 2025, 8th year)

60.2 WAR, 256 W, 3.85 ERA, 1.351 WHIP, 2448 K, 3x AS

Hat: Yankees

In the past I had bunched Pettitte’s vote with Tim Hudson who had a similar career but fell off the ballot, and Mark Buehrle who had an incredibly similar career. Buehrle was the superior fielder and had a lower WHIP, but Pettitte's role on five World Series winning teams and his impressive pick off move to first just barely edged him out. A member of the "core four," Pettitte's 256 wins, 60.2 WAR and five World Series titles compare nicely to fellow Yankee lefty Whitey Ford’s 236 wins, 57.0 WAR and six titles. Ford's ERA was a bit better, but that was much more inline with the trends across the league. The tainted view of Pettitte’s PED admission seems to be fading, and his overall numbers are comparable to fellow Yankee lefty on the ballot, CC Sabathia. Last year I left Pettitte off my mock ballot for space, but this year it is only fitting to include him with Buehrle once again and Sabathia for the first time.

7. Bobby Abreu, OF (19.5% in 2025, 7th year)

60.2 WAR, 2470 H, 288 HR, 400 SB, .291 AVG, .395 OBP, .475 SLG, 2x AS, GG, SS

Hat: Phillies

There was a bit of a SABRmetric game a couple of years ago comparing seemingly middle of the pack players with one of the best batting average hitters of the last forty years, Tony Gwynn. These comparisons were a big reason for the election of Tim Raines to the Hall when his OBP numbers were favorably compared to Gwynn. While it’s a bit more of a joke comparison, last year Jeremy Frank noted Abreu got on base 24 more times than Gwynn, hit 158 more extra base hits and stole 81 more bags in 15 fewer games. It’s a pretty fun comparison, but Gwynn’s 69.2 WAR is still a good bit and quite a bit more star power than Abreu’s 60.2 WAR and zero batting titles (nor did he ever lead the league in onbase percentage for that matter). Regardless, Abreu was an incredibly consistent player over his 18 seasons, hitting 20 or more homers nine times and stealing more than 20 bags in thirteen seasons. His 2470 hits is respectable, but even more impressive is his tally of 288 homers, and 400 steals and near .400 career OBP despite an AVG just under .300 (.395 OBP and .291 AVG). Abreu fell off my ballot last year for space, but’s he’s back. I’m not sure he has the star power to ever get into the Hall, however.

8. Felix Hernandez, RHP (20.6% in 2025, 2nd year)

49.8 WAR, 169 W, 3.42 ERA, 2524 K, 1.206 WHIP, CY, 6x AS, 2x ERA title

Hat: Mariners

While there are a couple of players that I am voting for the first time, this happens to be the first time I have written about King Felix on this site. While he doesn’t have the milestone marks of headlining Hall of Fame pitchers, and because he spent his whole career with one team, and that happened to the Mariners, he never pitched in the Playoffs. With the election of CC Sabathia last year, perhaps the last of the older generation workhorse pitchers, Felix’s incredible run from 2008 to 2015 where he pitched over 200 innings each year and recorded a 2.90 ERA over that span. He is one of only five pitchers in MLB history to have pitched for only one team, amassing over 2,500 strikeouts and 2,500+ innings pitched, with Walter Johnson, Bob Gibson, Bob Feller and Clayton Kershaw. The face of the Mariners breaking into the league as a 19 year old, he rose to the occasion throwing the first perfect game in Mariners history, winning the 2010 Cy Young Award and finishing second in two other seasons, starting an All Star game, recording an immaculate inning and a four strikeout inning as well. He was an undisputed Ace in the game in his 20’s, he didn’t have health or longevity to pitch into his 30’s. Although his 9 wins aren’t eyepopping compared to other generations, that win total is not indicative of his status in the game, career 3.42 ERA and 2524 K’s place him in a greater class. Much like the short lived dominance of fellow Venezuelan countryman Johan Santana, who similarly had an eight year stretch of All-Star appearances, Awards and top-five Cy Young finishes, but an unspectacular WAR and Win total from a career cut short did not endear him to Hall voters. The truth is that Johan should be in Cooperstown, and Felix, the career pitching leader for Venezuelan nationals in almost all categories, should be there, too. 

9. Dustin Pedroia, 2B (11.9% in 2025, 2nd year)

51.9 WAR, H, 2B, HR, SB, .299/.365/.439, 2008 MVP, 2007 ROY, 4x AS, 4x GG, SS, WS

Hat: Red Sox

The player that I watched the most from this year’s ballot was the Red Sox second baseman, and a leader of the team for the 2008 and 2013 World Series Championships. One of the smaller players in the league, his height being listed at 5’9” was a joke throughout his career and he is likely closer to 5’6,” but he always willed himself to play with every inch of his body to have as much reach or strength or speed as anyone else on the field. The length of his career was not as long as anyone had hoped, the last few years of his career were lost to a knee injury that lingered and recurred over and over again. His undoing was trying to play through pain, perhaps trying to make up for expectations of his small stature, that he never healed from his initial injury. His career started off with a nasty slump. He had one bad month before he infamously threatened a reporter that a “laser show” of base hits off his bat was only a matter of time. After that, Pedroia went on to almost every trophy possible as a baseball player. He was the AL Rookie of the Year in 2007 and won the World Series with the Red Sox. The next season he was an All-Star, won a Gold Glove and Silver Slugger and won the MVP. In 2013 he won the AL award for the Wilson Defensive Player of the Year as well as adding another World Series trophy. For me, Pedroia was one of the most exciting players that I have ever seen in person and he always had the hits, runs, AVG and OBP to back it up despite his shortened career.

10. Mark Buehrle, LHP (11.4% in 2025, 6th year)

59.1 WAR, 214 W, 3.81 ERA, 1.281 WHIP, 1870 K, 5x AS, 4x GG, 2005 WS

Hat: White Sox

Aside from their terribly misspelled surnames, Veterans’ Committee recently elected Jim Kaat and former White Sox star Mark Buehrle had very similar careers as two of the best fielding pitchers of their respective eras. Kaat is one of the most decorated fielding players in MLB history earning 16 Gold Glove Awards, second only to Greg Maddux and tied with Brooks Robinson, a three-time All-Star with a World Series Championship, and three trips to the All-Star Game, his 283 wins, 3.45 ERA and 2461 strike outs over 25 years amounted to a 50.5 WAR. Similarly, Buehrle was a highlight reel fielder on the mound, winning four Gold Gloves, five trips to All-Star Games and a World Series Ring of his own. His play on the field was rather flashy, but it was also statistically quantifiable as exceptional, he had four seasons with 10+ defensive runs saved, and his first three seasons came before the stat was measured. That might not be eye popping for a positional player, but he was able to do it in 31 to 35 games on the mound. If a position player fielded to that level they would be pushing 50 defensive runs saved in a season. The all time best season was Andrelton Simmons with 41 defensive runs saved in 2017. This past season former Gold Glove 3B Matt Chapman tied for 24th in the defensive runs saved category with 12 DRS, a Mark Buehrle equaled twice in about a quarter of the games played. While Buehrle’s 214 wins, 3.81 ERA and 1870 K’s over 16 seasons are dwarfed by Kaat, his 59.1 WAR place the lefty in favorable light to the Hall of Famer’s 50.5 career WAR. Frankly, every year that I come back to look at Buehrle’s numbers, the more impressed I am by what he compiled as a pitcher, but his fielding metrics are somehow even more eye-popping than his actual highlights.

Extras

Last one off: Jimmy Rollins/ David Wright

I like both players, they were pretty similar in the ways that they played and were rivals in the NL East as well. Both combined power, speed, and fielding and were both the leaders of their teams. Their career WARs in the high 40’s are incredibly similar, while Wright suffered terrible injuries that cut his career short and Rollins’ production drastically declined in the second half of his career after having a pretty heavy workload (more than 700 plate appearances in a season at shortstop seven times, and an 8th year with 699). They both had excellent peaks to their careers that were overshadowed by frustrating lack of health or production once they hit 30 years of age. 

First timer worth a look, just misses: Cole Hamels

The one first timer on the ballot that deserves recognition is Cole Hamels. I would probably have him at the third player off my ballot despite career numbers that compare well to a few of the guys I tend to vote for year after year. He never seemed like the ace of his team or like much of a star. He was a big contributor to the Phillies 2008 run, but the best he ever finished in Cy Young voting was a 5th place finish in 2011. On that ‘08 team it felt like Howard, Utley and Rollins were the future Hall of Famers and Hamels was an afterthought. 

Prediction

I think Carlos Beltran and Andruw Jones both have a very good shot at being voted in this year, Jones may only get in by a vote or two. I have a feeling Alex Rodriguez will have a big jump in his vote total and might even get in. This might be the year the dam breaks for the most controversial players to finally get them in and I think it will be as Bonds and Clemens should be inducted through the Eras Committee ballot. It would be nice if Manny could make the same kind of jump but I think the multiple suspensions to end his career will hold him back and he will fall off the ballot.

Next year: Buster Posey and Jon Lester

It will be interesting to watch how many players from this year are inducted, if any. If there is a “clearing of the lane” with as many as three players inducted, Posey might have a good shot at first year induction and Lester will likely get enough votes to stay on the ballot and gain momentum.