Former baseball stars Barry Bonds, Roger Clemens, Don Mattingly, and Dale Murphy have been retained on the contemporary baseball era committee ballot for the Hall of Fame. Joining them next month will be former Toronto Blue Jays players Carlos Delgado and Jeff Kent, along with Gary Sheffield and Fernando Valenzuela.
The committee, consisting of 16 members, will convene on Dec. 7 at the winter meetings in Orlando, Florida. A 75 percent vote is required for induction. The elected individuals will be honored on July 26, along with any selections from the Baseball Writers’ Association of America vote set to be announced on Jan. 20.
Albert Belle, Rafael Palmeiro, and Curt Schilling have been removed from the ballot after appearing in the previous contemporary era vote in December 2022. During that vote, Fred McGriff was unanimously chosen with 16 votes. Mattingly received eight votes, Schilling seven, Murphy six, and Belle, Bonds, Clemens, and Palmeiro each received less than four votes, according to the Hall.
In 2022, the Hall revamped its veterans’ committees for the third time in 12 years, establishing separate panels to evaluate the contemporary era from 1980 onwards, as well as the classic era. The contemporary baseball era features distinct ballots for players and another for managers, executives, and umpires.
Each committee convenes every three years, with contemporary managers, executives, and umpires slated for consideration in December 2026, classic era candidates in December 2027, and contemporary players again in December 2028.
The December 2027 ballot marks the first opportunity for Pete Rose to be included on a Hall ballot following a decision by baseball Commissioner Rob Manfred in May that lifted Rose’s lifetime ban after his passing in September 2024. The Hall prohibits individuals on the permanent ineligible list from appearing on a ballot.
As per a Hall announcement last March, any candidate on the ballot receiving fewer than five votes will be ineligible for the next three-year cycle. A candidate dropped from the ballot who later reappears and again garners fewer than five votes will be excluded from future considerations.
Bonds and Clemens fell short in their 10th and final appearances on the BBWAA (Baseball Writers’ Association of America) ballot. Bonds received 260 of 394 votes (66%) in 2022, while Clemens, a seven-time Cy Young Award winner, maintained his innocence regarding performance-enhancing drugs. Sheffield, who garnered 63.9% in his final BBWAA vote in 2024, expressed unawareness of using steroids in 2002.
Bonds, a seven-time National League MVP and 14-time all-star, holds the career home run record at 762 and the single-season record with 73 in 2001. Clemens, with a 354-184 record, a 3.12 ERA, and 4,672 strikeouts, ranks third in all-time strikeouts behind Nolan Ryan and Randy Johnson.
Sheffield, a nine-time all-star and 1992 NL batting champion, boasted 509 homers, 1,676 RBIs, and 253 stolen bases. Murphy, a seven-time all-star outfielder, tallied 398 homers, 1,266 RBIs, and 161 steals during his career.
Mattingly, a six-time all-star first baseman, received a high of 145 votes (28.2%) in his first of 15 BBWAA ballot appearances in 2001, boasting a .307 batting average with 222 homers and 1,099 RBIs over 14 seasons.
Delgado, Kent, and Valenzuela also made significant impacts in their careers, with Delgado hitting .280 with 473 homers and 1,512 RBIs, Kent batting .290 with 377 homers and 1,518 RBIs, and Valenzuela achieving a 173-153 record, a 3.54 ERA, and 2,074 strikeouts in 17 seasons.
The voting committee was determined by the BBWAA’s 11-person historical overview committee.