The National Baseball Hall of Fame on Monday announced the ballot for the 2026 class, with 12 new players joining the 15 holdovers who earned at least five percent on the 2025 ballot. Among the newcomers is longtime Dodgers outfielder Matt Kemp.
Kemp was drafted by the Dodgers in 2003 and played 10 of his 15 seasons with the Dodgers. All three of his All-Star berths came with the Dodgers, including his return in 2018. Both Gold Glove Awards and both Silver Slugger Awards for Kemp came while with the Dodgers, each
in 2009 and 2011.
2011 was Kemp’s magnum opus, hitting .324/.399/.586 with a 168 wRC+ and led the National League in home runs, RBI, runs scored, and total bases. He stole 40 bases and finished one home run shy of the 40/40 club, and finished second in NL MVP voting to Ryan Braun, who was later suspended 65 games by MLB for violating the league’s joint drug prevention and treatment program. Braun is also a newcomer on this year’s Hall of Fame ballot.
Kemp played for five times in his 15-year career, and last played for the Colorado Rockies in 2020. He didn’t officially retire until 2024, when he was honored at Dodger Stadium during alumni weekend that August. Players are eligible to be considered for the Hall of Fame ballot after five years elapsed after their last game.
“I’m grateful to be able to put this jersey on, this jersey is special,” Kemp said in 2024. “It’s a different energy here. It’s just something that you can’t really explain.”
Kemp is not going to get voted into Cooperstown, and he probably won’t get the five percent required to make it to a second ballot. But it’s an honor to be included on the Hall of Fame ballot, which this year includes 27 players.
Other former Dodgers among the newcomers on the ballot are Howie Kendrick and (technically) Cole Hamels. Returning players on the ballot who played for the Dodgers are Andruw Jones, Chase Utley, Manny Ramírez, Bobby Abreu, and Jimmy Rollins.
Also, I have a Hall of Fame vote this year, as 2025 was my 10th year in the Baseball Writers Association of America. Votes are due to the Hall by December 31, and the results will be announced on January 20 on MLB Network.
