Two Upcoming Elections To Bolster Baseball Hall Of Fame’s Class Of 2024

The next Baseball Hall of Fame Induction Class should be a lot bigger.

That’s because it will include any selections made by the Contemporary Baseball Eras Committee, voting on non-players next month, as well as the Baseball Writers Association of America, who will consider four strong holdovers from last year plus a pair of strong first-ballot candidates.

Their vote will be announced in January.

After the Veterans Committee off-shoot considers former managers Jim Leyland, Lou Piniella, and Davey Johnson, among others, the writers will announce their choices from a ballot that includes newcomers Adrián Beltré and Joe Mauer plus almost-but-not-quite holdovers Todd Helton, Billy Wagner, Andruw Jones, and Gary Sheffield.

Helton and Wagner both earned more than two-thirds of the vote last year but not the minimum 75 per cent required for election.

The former finished with 72.2 per cent, while Wagner polled 68.1 per cent, and Jones had 58.1 per cent. Sheffield, now in his 10th and final try with the writers, would need a 20 per cent hike over the 55 per cent mark he made in voting for the Class of 2023.

With 509 career home runs, his record is expected to receive extra scrutiny this fall.

Helton is in his sixth try, Jones his seventh, and Wagner his ninth.

Once players are elected, they can add the letters “HOF” to their autographs, increasing their value – and the price-tags for their public appearances – dramatically.

Last year’s electees were Scott Rolen, chosen by the writers, and Fred McGriff, a unanimous selection of the Baseball Eras Contemporary Committee, considering players who excelled after 1980.

Beltré and Mauer hope to join the 58 players previously chosen on the first ballot, mostly recently David (Big Papi) Ortiz in the Class of 2022.

Also new to the ballot this time are Chase Utley, David Wright, Bartolo Colon, Matt Holliday, and José Bautista.

Beltré is a five-time Gold Glove third baseman who included 477 home runs among his 3,166 career hits. He was one of six players who hit for the cycle three times in his career. His 21-year career ended after the 2018 campaign.

A six-time All-Star who also won an MVP award and three batting crowns, Mauer was a .306 career hitter who spent his entire career with the Minnesota Twins, mainly as a catcher.

Like Mauer, Helton played exclusively for the Colorado Rockies, hitting .317 while winning an MVP award, three Gold Gloves, and a batting title.

Wagner was a hard-throwing closer for several clubs, while Jones and Sheffield were slugging outfielders.

Jones was one of five outfielders to win 10 consecutive Gold Gloves but is the only one (other than the not-yet-eligible Ichiro Suzuki) not yet enshrined in Cooperstown.

Beyond the Class of 2024, upcoming candidates include CC Sabathia and Ichiro (2025), Buster Posey (2027), and former Cardinals Albert Pujols and Yadier Molina (2028).

More than 35,000 fans have attended six of the past nine induction ceremonies, with a record 82,000 coming to Central New York for the 2007 induction of Tony Gwynn and Cal Ripken, Jr.

The Hall of Fame has 342 elected members. Induction ceremonies are planned for next July in Cooperstown.