2025 Baseball Hall of Fame Ballot Preview: New Faces and Returning Players

2025 Baseball Hall of Fame Ballot Preview: New Faces and Returning Players

The votes for the 2024 Baseball Hall of Fame are in, and four new names will be joining the all-time greats in Cooperstown.

3,000 hit club member Adrián Beltré, 2009 AL MVP Joe Mauer, and Colorado Rockies icon Todd Helton all reached the 75% voting threshold, and will be entering the hall alongside manager Jim Leyland, who won the 1997 World Series with the Florida Marlins.

Now, it’s time to start looking ahead to the 2025 ballot. There are plenty of intriguing names still on the card, and some new faces with some very convincing cases.

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First, let’s take a look at the candidates who remain from last season, meaning they received less than 75% of the votes, but more than the 5% needed to stay on the ballot.

• Billy Wagner (73.8%)




• Andruw Jones (61.6)




• Carlos Beltrán (57.1)




• Alex Rodríguez (34.8)




• Manny Ramírez (32.5)




• Chase Utley (28.8)




• Omar Vizquel (17.7)




• Bobby Abreu (14.8)




• Jimmy Rollins (14.8)




• Andy Pettitte (13.5)




• Mark Buehrle (8.3)




• Francisco Rodríguez (7.8)




• Torii Hunter (7.3)




• David Wright (6.2)

Of these 14 players, Wagner, Jones, and Beltran seem to be the most likely candidates to secure a spot in the Hall next season, with all three having excellent resumes while consistently gaining votes throughout their eligibility.

Others, particularly Alex Rodriguez and Manny Ramirez, have the stats, but will probably fall by the wayside like Barry Bonds and Roger Clemens thanks to their involvement in the steroid scandals of the early to mid 2000s.

Looking ahead to newly eligible players, those who have been retired for at least five seasons after playing 10+ years in the MLB, there is a trio of players who you could make solid cases for.

Ichiro Suzuki: If you watched even a second of baseball during the 2000s, you know that Ichiro is an absolute lock for the Hall. 3089 career hits, an MVP during his rookie season, and the single season hits record in 2004, the Japanese superstar is one of the defining figures of 21st century baseball. Not to mention he’s by all accounts an incredible human being as well.

C.C. Sabathia: The 2007 AL Cy Young Winner, Sabathia is one of the few modern pitchers with the longevity to challenge for a place in Cooperstown. With over 250 games won and a career WAR higher than nearly a dozen other Hall of Fame starting pitchers, the 2009 World Series champion should get in eventually, although probably not on the first ballot.

Dustin Pedroia: Pedroia is one of the sad cases of a player that seemed destined for the Hall of Fame through the first decade of his career, but was then ravaged by injuries that cut his time in the MLB short. But, despite the lack of longevity, the 2008 AL MVP might have done just enough to impress the judges. He might not have the counting stats, but the 2x World Series champion is an analytical darling who finished 19th in career WAR among second baseman, ahead of six Hall of Famers.

Other names to watch out for on the ballot include Ian Kinsler, Felix Hernandez, Troy Tulowitzki, Ben Zobrist, Curtis Granderson, and Hanley Ramírez.

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