Want your name enshrined in Cooperstown?
All you have to do is wind your way through the minors, make it to the big leagues, play for at least ten seasons, retire for five years, avoid getting banned by the commissioner, impress the Baseball Writers’ Association of America with your “record, playing ability, integrity, sportsmanship, character, and contributions to the team(s)” and receive at least 75 percent of votes from said writers within 15 years of retirement. Easy.
Adrian Beltré, Todd Helton, Joe Mauer and Jim Leyland made it this year. With the 2024 season over, we turn our attention to: Who will ascend to Cooperstown in 2025?
The BBWAA announced the 2025 ballot Monday, headlined by first-time candidates Ichiro Suzuki and CC Sabathia alongside 12 other first-time hopefuls. Tenth-year Billy Wagner, who received 73.8 percent of votes in 2024, will hope 2025 is his year, as will 13 other holdovers.
GO DEEPER
Five things to watch on the 2025 Baseball Hall of Fame ballot
Here’s the full ballot and how Baseball Hall of Fame elections work.
How eligibility works
Players must have competed for at least 10 seasons in the majors and been active as a player sometime between five and 15 years before the election. The player must be retired for five years.
That means that this year, players must have retired by 2019.
If a player dies before reaching five years of retirement, they are eligible in the nearest election six months after death or five years after retirement, whichever comes earliest.
Players on baseball’s ineligible list are not eligible for candidacy.
How voting works
The ballot consists of eligible candidates who received at least five percent of the vote in last year’s election, along with first-time eligible candidates nominated by at least two members of the six-person BBWAA screening committee.
Electors must have worked as baseball writers and been members of the BBWAA for at least 10 years. They vote for a maximum of 10 candidates, with no write-ins allowed. Players must receive votes from at least 75 percent of electors to gain entry into the National Baseball Hall of Fame.
Eligible players who fail to meet that threshold can stay on the ballot for up to 10 years if they receive at least five percent of the vote annually. Once a player drops off the ballot, they are no longer eligible.
The BBWAA will announce the results in January and induct any new members on July 27.
Who’s on the ballot
Holdovers
Billy Wagner (10th year, 73.8 percent in 2024)
Andruw Jones (eighth year, 61.6 percent)
Carlos Beltrán (third year, 57.1 percent)
Alex Rodriguez (fourth year, 34.8 percent)
Manny Ramirez (ninth year, 32.5 percent)
Chase Utley (second year, 28.8 percent)
Omar Vizquel (eighth year, 17.7 percent)
Bobby Abreu (sixth year, 14.8 percent)
Jimmy Rollins (fourth year, 14.8 percent)
Andy Pettitte (seventh year, 13.5 percent)
Mark Buehrle (fifth year, 8.3 percent)
Francisco Rodríguez (third year, 7.8 percent)
Torii Hunter (fifth year, 7.3 percent)
David Wright (second year, 6.2 percent)
Newcomers
Carlos González
Curtis Granderson
Félix Hernández
Adam Jones
Ian Kinsler
Russell Martin
Brian McCann
Dustin Pedroia
Hanley Ramírez
Fernando Rodney
CC Sabathia
Ichiro Suzuki
Troy Tulowitzki
Ben Zobrist
Other ways to make it to Cooperstown
The Hall of Fame also has Era Committees, which review retired players no longer eligible for the BBWAA ballot, along with umpires, executives and managers. The committees split contenders into the classic era, before 1980, and the contemporary era, from 1980 to the present.
Players must have competed for at least 10 seasons in the majors and been retired for at least 16 seasons for consideration on the Era Committees’ ballot. Managers and umpires must have worked for at least 10 seasons in the majors and been retired for at least five years or have turned 65 years old. Executives must have been retired for at least five years or have turned 70 years old. Candidates cannot be on the ineligible list.
GO DEEPER
The case for — and against — each of the Classic Baseball Era Hall of Fame candidates
The committees consist of 16 members who vote on eight candidates in each category: contemporary players, contemporary non-players and classic era. Like the BBWAA ballot, candidates must receive 75 percent of the vote.
Not every committee holds elections each year. This year, electors will vote on candidates for the Classic Baseball Era at the Winter Meetings in December. The results will be announced on Dec. 8.
Dick Allen, Ken Boyer, John Donaldson, Steve Garvey, Vic Harris, Tommy John, Dave Parker and Luis Tiant are the candidates on this year’s Classic Baseball Era ballot.
Additional awards
The Baseball Hall of Fame will also give out its annual Ford C. Frick Award, recognizing excellence in broadcasting. The winner will be announced on Dec. 11.
Skip Caray, Rene Cardenas, Gary Cohen, Jacques Doucet, Tom Hamilton, Ernie Johnson Sr., Mike Krukow, Duane Kuiper, Dave Sims and John Sterling are this year’s nominees.
BBWAA members will also vote on the Career Excellence Award each year honoring baseball writers.
Required reading
(Photo: Gregory Fisher / USA Today)
