The National Baseball Hall of Fame Class of 2026 Sees Three New Members Enshrined
Traditionally it’s more difficult to get into it than to any other Hall of Fame. Usually, the class sizes are very small and very elite. This year less than four former plays made the cut. The National Baseball Hall of Fame class of 2026 sees three new members enshrined. The three former players are Carlos Beltrán, Andruw Jones and Jeff Kent. Together they spent 20, 17 and 17 years respectively playing the game they loved, a total of 54 years!
First up we’ll talk about Carlos Beltrán’s induction. He was well supported by his fellow Puerto Ricans who waved flags, clapped and chanted as if it was a block party. Over 150 of his family and friends showed up for this special day. He thanked all of them for making the trip to Cooperstown to share in celebrating with him. Beltrán started with Kansas City, the team that drafted him and where he won the AL Rookie of the Year in 1999. Traded to Houston in 2004, he had an incredible postseason — alongside Kent. He skipped over his Mets chapter, looking back on his time with the Giants, Cardinals, Yankees and Rangers.
On his Hall of Flame plaque, he is wearing a New York Mets cap. Regarding his return to New York he said:
“When people ask me why I chose [a Mets cap for his plaque], I have to say this, it’s simple: Every organization shapes your career. New York shaped my life,” he said. “It was here where I experienced my greatest success and some of my greatest challenges. Playing for the Mets made me a better man and a better leader.”
The National Baseball Hall of Fame Class of 2026 Sees Three New Members Enshrined
Next up is Andruw Jones originally from the tiny island of Curaçao. He has the distinction of being the first inductee to the Hall of Fame from that island just north of Venezuela. Although it is part of the Kingdom of the Netherlands. Speaking on that honor, Jones said:
“There is no easy way to get here from the small island of Curaçao, more than 2,000 miles away, but today Cooperstown and Curaçao are forever joined together,” he said. “Being the first Hall of Famer from my island is an incredible moment.”
Jones spoke about the influence his father had on his love of playing the game:
“Because he played center field, I wanted to be a center fielder,” Jones said about his father. “And he passed down every bit of knowledge of the game to me, like how to read balls off the bat. He hit me fly balls from foul pole to foul pole in Curaçao so I can track balls down — because the ocean breeze makes tracking fly balls very difficult on the island.”
Jones joins a long line of Braves in the Hall who also contributed to the 14 consecutive division titles from 1991-2005, They include teammates Greg Maddux (Class of 2014), Tom Glavine (2014), John Smoltz (2015), Chipper Jones (2018) and Fred McGriff (2023), plus manager Bobby Cox (2014) and general manager John Schuerholz (2017). So, it’s only natural that Jones has on a Braves cap in his plaque.
New Inductees Are Honored by the Baseball Hall of Fame
Last but not least is Jeff Kent. Although he was a fierce competitor he was known for keeping a tight lid on his emotions. Therefore, Dusty Baker, his manager in San Francisco, said he was looking for two things: to see Kent smile or to see him cry. Surprisingly what got Kent worked up the most was a pickup truck. He said:
“When I was 16 years old, I was racing motorcycles and driving my great-grandparents’ old Plymouth Volaré, and my dad knew motorcycles weren’t taking me anywhere, so he made me a bet,” Kent explained. “He knew that if I were to earn a college scholarship, he would buy me a pickup truck. [Getting] that truck meant everything to me, so I quit racing and focused on school and baseball and won that baseball scholarship, ’cause I got that truck.”
Recognizing the honor of being inducted to the Hall he shared a more global perspective:
“This day isn’t about me though, this day is about baseball,” he said. “It’s a celebration of baseball, and I just happen to be a part of it. Baseball was here long before me, it’s going to be long after I sit back down. But standing up here with these guys sitting behind me, I’ve never felt more humbled and more grateful in my entire life.”
Congratulations to Carlos Beltrán, Andruw Jones and Jeff Kent on being inducted into the 2026 Baseball Hall of Fame!
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