The results of the Contemporary Baseball Era Committee voting were released at the Winter Meetings. Two Atlanta Braves legends waited patiently to see if they would make it into the MLB Hall of Fame.
Barry Bonds, Roger Clemens, Carlos Delgado, Jeff Kent, Don Mattingly, Dale Murphy, Gary Sheffield, and Fernando Valenzuela comprised the ballot. This committee focuses on players whose primary contributions to the game have come since 1980. Candidates have to receive votes on 75% of the ballots cast by the 16-member committee to become part of the 2026 Baseball Hall of Fame Class.
Murphy and Sheffield were the former Braves listed on the ballot. Both have been waiting for the opportunity to land in Cooperstown. Ultimately, the committee voted in Jeff Kent as the lone player to be inducted in 2026.
Dale Murphy and Gary Sheffield were denied entrance to Cooperstown again with Jeff Kent getting the surprise nod
Murph and Sheffield will have to wait a bit longer to see if they will ever land themselves in the hallowed halls of the Hall of Fame. This was always a long shot for both players, despite their impressive resumes. Murphy received six votes while Sheffield received fewer than five votes.
Murphy was one of the best players in the 80s and has long had support to be in the HOF. It's hard not to believe he is deserving of a spot. He was a two-time MVP, a seven-time All-Star, a five-time Gold Glove winner, and a four-time Silver Slugger winner. Murph was also awarded the Clemente Award in 1988.
From 1980 to 1990, Murphy slashed .270/.357/.484 with 332 homers, 1012 RBI, and a 48.1 WAR. Those are some absolutely incredible numbers during that time. Unfortunately, a knee injury plagued the latter half of his career and is the sole reason he has yet to make it in.
Braves fans were lucky to have a front row seat to Sheffield in his prime. Over the two seasons he was in Atlanta, he batted .319 with 64 homers, 216 RBI, and a 151 OPS+. It was a lot of fun to watch.
Sheffield had a great career with a .292 batting average, 509 home runs, 1,676 RBIs, and a 140 OPS+. He earned five Silver Slugger awards, appeared in nine All-Star Games, and impressively, walked more than he struck out. How he isn't already in the HOF is very interesting.
Hopefully, they will be recognized for their incredible ability in the next few years. Both players are probably a bit disappointed in the results.