The MLB Baseball Hall of Fame has officially announced the list of candidates for 2026.

The Baseball Writers' Association of America released the 2026 MLB Hall of Fame ballot today, with 12 newly nominated players joining 15 holdover candidates from the 2025 voting cycle.

In the past two years, the writers have chosen three players each year, including two first-time nominees. In 2024, Adrian Beltré and Joe Mauer, both first-time nominees, were successfully inducted alongside Todd Helton, who was in his sixth year on the ballot. Last year, first-time nominees Ichiro Suzuki and CC Sabathia gained entry, joining Billy Wagner, who was in his tenth and final year of eligibility. However, continuing this trend in 2026 may prove challenging.

Although left-hander Cole Hamels leads this year's new nominees, returning outfielders Carlos Beltrán and Andruw Jones are the most likely to deliver induction speeches next July. Beltrán, in particular, is close to the election threshold—during the 2025 voting cycle, his vote percentage rose from 57.1% in his third year to 70.3%. Candidates must receive 75% of the vote to be inducted, and as long as they earn at least 5% of the vote each time, their eligibility lasts for ten years.

This threshold once posed a challenge for Jones, who received only about 7% of the vote in his first two years (2018-19). The longtime Atlanta Braves star outfielder has since seen steady increases in support, rising from 61.6% to 66.2% in the 2025 cycle, just about 9 percentage points shy of induction, with two years of eligibility remaining.

While several candidates show positive momentum, other returning players failed to surpass 40% in the last vote. Second baseman Chase Utley jumped from 28.8% to 39.8% in his second year, right-hander Félix Hernández earned 20.6% in his first year on the ballot, and left-hander Andy Pettitte doubled his vote share from 13.5% to 27.9%. However, Pettitte is now in his eighth year of eligibility, leaving limited time to gain induction.

Other returning candidates ranked by their 2025 vote percentages include shortstop Alex Rodriguez (37.1%, fifth year), outfielder Manny Ramirez (34.3%, tenth year), outfielder Bobby Abreu (19.5%, seventh year), shortstop Jimmy Rollins (18.0%, fifth year), shortstop Omar Vizquel (17.8%, ninth year), second baseman Dustin Pedroia (11.9%, second year), left-hander Mark Buehrle (11.4%, sixth year), right-hander Francisco Rodriguez (10.2%, fourth year), third baseman David Wright (8.1%, third year), and outfielder Torii Hunter (5.1%, sixth year). Among them, Ramirez is the only player in his final year of eligibility.

With Adrian Beltré, Joe Mauer, CC Sabathia, and Ichiro Suzuki having all been first-year inductees over the past two years, this year's ballot lacks similarly strong candidates with immediate electability.

Hamels is regarded as the most likely first-time nominee to remain on the ballot and approach the 75% threshold, especially as voters' criteria for modern Hall of Fame starting pitchers continue to evolve. His career stats—163 wins, a 3.43 ERA, and 2,560 strikeouts—are very close to those of Félix Hernández, and both have benefited from strong ties to specific teams; for Hamels, that team is the Philadelphia Phillies.

However, Hamels did not reach the peak heights of Hernández, who won a Cy Young Award (Hamels' best finish was fifth place in 2011). It is worth noting that Hamels did win a World Series ring in the 2008 postseason and was named MVP of both the National League Championship Series and the World Series.

Other notable first-time nominees (whose last major league appearances were in 2020) include outfielders Ryan Braun, Shin-Soo Choo, Alex Gordon, Matt Kemp, Nick Markakis, and Hunter Pence, as well as designated hitter Edwin Encarnación. The ballot also features second basemen Howie Kendrick and Daniel Murphy, left-hander Gio Gonzalez, and right-hander Rick Porcello.

The Baseball Writers' Association voting results will be announced live on MLB Network at 7 a.m. Beijing time on January 21. Any inductees will join players selected by the Contemporary Baseball Era Committee, whose results will be revealed on December 7, to form the 2026 Hall of Fame class. The induction ceremony will take place on July 26 in Cooperstown, New York.