Barry Bonds, Roger Clemens, Don Mattingly, and Dale Murphy have made it through the initial round on the Hall of Fame’s contemporary baseball era committee ballot. They will be joined by newcomers Carlos Delgado and Jeff Kent from the Toronto Blue Jays, as well as Gary Sheffield and the late Fernando Valenzuela next month.
The committee, consisting of 16 members, is set to convene on December 7 during the winter meetings in Orlando, Fla. A 75 percent vote is required for induction. The elected individuals will be officially inducted on July 26, alongside those chosen in the upcoming Baseball Writers’ Association of America vote, scheduled for January 20.
In a previous contemporary era ballot in December 2022, Albert Belle, Rafael Palmeiro, and Curt Schilling were omitted from the current ballot. Fred McGriff was unanimously elected with 16 votes during that round. Mattingly received eight votes, Schilling seven, Murphy six, and Belle, Bonds, Clemens, and Palmeiro received less than four votes each.
The Hall of Fame recently restructured its veterans’ committees for the third time in the past 12 years. The contemporary baseball era now features separate ballots for players and another for managers, executives, and umpires.
Each committee meets triennially. The upcoming considerations include contemporary managers, executives, and umpires in December 2026, classic era candidates in December 2027, and contemporary era players again in December 2028.
The December 2027 ballot presents the first opportunity for Pete Rose to appear on a Hall ballot since baseball Commissioner Rob Manfred declared in May that Rose’s lifelong ban ended with his passing in September 2024. The Hall prohibits anyone on the permanent ineligible list from being included on a ballot.
According to a new rule announced by the Hall last March, any candidate who receives fewer than five votes on the current ballot will be ineligible for the next three-year cycle. If a candidate is dropped and subsequently receives fewer than five votes in a future ballot appearance, they will be barred from appearing on future ballots.
Barry Bonds and Roger Clemens fell short of induction during their final appearances on the BBWAA ballot. Bonds received 260 votes out of 394 (66%) in 2022, while Sheffield garnered 63.9% in his last BBWAA vote in 2024, falling short by 43 votes.
Bonds denied any knowledge of using performance-enhancing drugs, Clemens maintains his innocence regarding PEDs, and Sheffield claimed unawareness of steroids in substances used during training in 2002.
Roger Clemens, a seven-time Cy Young Award winner, boasted impressive stats, going 354-184 with a 3.12 ERA and 4,672 strikeouts. Gary Sheffield, a nine-time All-Star and 1992 NL batting champion, had a notable career with 509 home runs, 1,676 RBIs, and 253 stolen bases.
Dale Murphy, a seven-time All-Star outfielder with 398 homers and 1,266 RBIs, received a high of 116 votes (23.2%) in 2000 during his 15 appearances on the BBWAA ballot. Don Mattingly, a six-time All-Star first baseman with a .307 batting average, 222 home runs, and 1,099 RBIs in 14 years, received a high of 145 votes (28.2%) during his 15 BBWAA ballot appearances.
Carlos Delgado, who was dropped from future ballots after receiving 3.8% of the 2015 BBWAA vote, had a career with 473 home runs and 1,512 RBIs. Jeff Kent’s highest vote percentage was 46.5% in his final BBWAA ballot appearance in 2023. The five-time All-Star second baseman had an impressive record of .290 batting average, 377 home runs, and 1,518 RBIs.
Fernando Valenzuela, who passed away in October 2024, received 6.2% support from the BBWAA in 2003 and 3.8% in 2004 before being eliminated from future consideration. The six-time All-Star and 1981 NL Cy Young Award winner had a record of 173-153 with a 3.54 ERA and 2,074 strikeouts in 17 seasons.
The ballot composition was determined by the BBWAA’s 11-person historical overview committee.