Carlos Beltrán and Andruw Jones were welcomed to the National Baseball Hall of Fame and Museum on Tuesday, Jan. 20.
Hall of Fame President Josh Rawitch made the announcement Tuesday in Cooperstown on the MLB Network, issuing the highest honor in baseball to the two Latino center fielders.
Beltrán, an outfielder from Puerto Rico, played 20 seasons with Kansas City, Houston, San Francisco, Saint Louis, New York Mets, New York Yankees and Texas. He had a career average of .279 with 2,725 hits, 435 home runs and 1,587 RBIs. He was a nine-time All-Star, won three Gold Gloves and two Silver Slugger Awards, and was the American League Rookie of the Year in 1999. He won the Roberto Clemente Man of the Year Award in 2012.
Beltrán won a World Series with the Astros in 2017, but was implicated in their sign stealing scandal, costing him a managerial job with the Mets in 2020. Beltrán was on his fourth year on the ballot.
Jones, an outfielder from Curacao, played 17 seasons with Atlanta, Texas, Los Angeles, the Yankees and the Chicago White Sox. He was a 10-time Gold Glove Award winner, and won the Silver Slugger in 2005, when he led the National League in home runs and RBI. He hit .254 in his career, with 434 home runs, 1,933 hits and 1,289 RBI. He was considered the best defensive center fielder of an era and played in the 1996 World Series with the Braves. His 10 Gold Gloves is tied for third most, behind only Willie Mays and Clemente. Jones was on his ninth year on the ballot.
Inductees need to be named on 75% of the ballots. Rawitch said there were 425 voters for the 2026 induction.
Beltran was named on 84.2% of the ballots. Jones was named on 78.2% of the ballots.
Beltran is the sixth Puerto Rican to be selected for induction. Jones will be the first player from Curacao to be inducted. Rawitch made part of his announcement Tuesday in Spanish.
Manny Ramirez fell off the ballot on his tenth try, receiving just 38.8% of the vote. An outfielder from the Dominican Republic who played for Boston and Los Angeles, Ramirez had a stigma of a suspension for a positive steroid test weighing against his on-field accomplishments.
Rising in voting this year, Chase Utley (59.1%), Andy Pettitte (48.5) and Felix Hernandez (46.1) seem well positioned for future inductions.
New players eligible for voting in 2027 include San Francisco catcher Buster Posey and pitcher Jon Lester.
Beltrán and Jones will join second baseman Jeff Kent on the stage for induction at The Clark Sports Center in the town of Middlefield on Sunday, July 26. Kent was voted in by the contemporary baseball era committee in December.
Also that weekend, on Saturday, July 25, at Doubleday Field in Cooperstown, the Ford C. Frick Award will be given to Joe Buck, and the Baseball Writers Association of America Career Excellence Award will be presented to Cleveland writer Paul Hoynes.