Former Red Sox slugger David Ortiz was the lone player elected to the Baseball Hall of Fame on Tuesday night, which could lead to a crowded ballot once again next year.
Alex Rodriguez, Scott Rolen and Todd Helton are among the stars who were eligible for induction in 2022, though none of them crossed the 75% threshold necessary to be enshrined in Cooperstown. So who will join the returning ballot members in their first year of eligibility for the 2023 class? One former All-Star has the most intriguing case.
Nine-time All-Star Carlos Beltrán will make his first appearance on the ballot in 2023 after logging 20 MLB seasons from 1998–2017. Beltrán earned three gold gloves and two silver sluggers in his decorated career, and he won the 2017 World Series as a member of the Astros. Beltrán hit 435 career homers, and his 70.1 career WAR sits tied for second among all Hall-eligible players.
It's hard to see any other player from the new class of eligible players reaching the Hall of Fame. John Lackey and Jered Weaver sit directly behind Beltrán on the WAR leaderboard for players in their first year of eligibility, though neither pitcher won a Cy Young. Former Red Sox and Yankees outfielder Jacoby Ellsbury sits next on the WAR rankings, though his disastrous seven-year, $153 million deal with the Yankees may be the only Cooperstown-worthy thing on his career resume.
Barry Bonds, Roger Clemens, Sammy Sosa and Curt Schilling all fell short of the 75% threshold for induction into the Hall of Fame. All four players didn't cross the necessary mark in their 10th year on the writer's ballot, and their only chance at reaching the Hall of Fame now rests with the Today's Game Era Committee.
