The nitty gritty on Andruw Jones’ Hall of Fame voting, which looks promising

You could say that Andruw Jones’ potential place in the Baseball Hall of Fame needed support from about 35 additional baseball media.

The baseball world will learn at 6 p.m. Tuesday how they assessed the Braves legend’s Cooperstown candidacy when the 2026 Hall of Fame class is announced.

We’ll skip to the end. Ryan Thibodaux, who does an excellent job following balloting for Baseball Hall of Fame Vote Tracker — an aptly named website if ever one existed — gave a promising update for Jones on the eve of the announcement. He told The Atlanta Journal-Constitution on Monday that the five-time All-Star and 10-time Gold Glove center fielder was in “excellent position” to be an inductee in the 2026 class.

That would place Jones in the Hall with Braves greats such as Hank Aaron, Chipper Jones, Bobby Cox, Eddie Mathews, Greg Maddux, Phil Niekro and more.

“It is by no means certain, but all indicators are pointing in the right direction,” Thibodaux wrote in an email to the AJC.

So why 35?

Therein lies the interesting part — if, in fact, you find the Hall of Fame voting process interesting. A year ago, Jones was named on 261 of the 394 ballots (or 66.2%) cast by voting members of the Baseball Writers Association of America, who can select up to 10 candidates each year. While it was Jones’ highest percentage in his eight years on the ballot, it nevertheless fell short by 35 votes of the 75% threshold necessary for induction.

Typically — though not always — voters who vote yes on a former player keep doing so in successive years. And in Jones’ case, a clear majority of voters have reviewed his career — including 434 home runs and status as possibly the best defensive center fielder of all-time — and recognized it as Cooperstown material. That group figured to remain in Jones’ corner.

On the other hand, of the 33.8% who left Jones off their ballots last year, a portion were and are resolute to never check off the box next to his name. In reaching out to several “no” voters from 2025, I heard from a number of them.

For some, it was his 2012 arrest on charges of domestic violence, which in their eyes ran afoul of the character clause in BBWAA voting instructions.

For others, it was the steep drop-off in his performance after his peak. For instance, if he were to be voted in, his .254 career batting average would be the lowest of any enshrined outfielder. To those voters, despite his power and defensive greatness, it relegated him to the so-called “Hall of Very Good.”

In Andrew Jones’ case, a clear majority of voters have reviewed his career — including 434 home runs and status as possibly the best defensive center fielder of all-time — and recognized it as Cooperstown material. (Brynn Anderson/AP 2023)

So, there are two entrenched camps: “Yes” and “Never.” But then there are new voters and returning “no” voters who kept an open mind to Jones’ case, and he needed a gain of about 35 votes from them.

I say “about” because the voting pool changes from year to year. BBWAA members earn voting privileges after 10 consecutive years on a baseball beat, according to organization rules, and lose them 10 years after they stop covering baseball.

As a result, Jones needed roughly three dozen new votes in his favor on top of the 66.2% from last year — either from new voters or returning “no” voters — and possibly more, to earn his place in Cooperstown.

We can talk about fuzzy memories of diving catches and the home runs in his first two World Series at-bats at the age of 19, but ultimately, this is what matters in Jones’ bid for baseball immortality.

Out of a pool of roughly 400 voters, it’s a fairly small — but obviously influential — bloc.

And, according to Thibodaux, the voting appeared to be falling Jones’ way.

Most notably, new voters were strongly in his corner. Of the 36 publicly revealed ballots of first-time voters, an astounding 33 included Jones. That may well cement Jones’ spot in Cooperstown.

The new set of voters, a group surely skewing younger, likely viewed Jones through a different lens than their predecessors. With a more advanced grasp of baseball statistics, they may have placed less value on “counter” stats, such as total base hits, a category in which Jones compares poorly with enshrinees. Further, they might have given more consideration to defensive metrics that speak to Jones’ glove work.

Also, among ballots that had been shared with him or otherwise publicly, Thibodaux counted 16 “no” voters from 2025 who turned around and voted for Jones in this cycle. None had gone the other way.

Some had decided he had waited long enough. Others didn’t see anyone else as deserving. (This year’s group of candidates lacks the star power that Hall of Fame ballots typically have, one considerable advantage for Jones this time around.)

One changed ballot belonged to writer Aurelio Moreno.

“Now in his ninth year on the ballot, it’s time to fully acknowledge his greatness — both with the glove and the bat,” he told the AJC in an email.

There was another vote from former Padres beat writer Bill Center, who shared his rationale for selecting Jones.

“Very, very good player. Elite defender. Good power. But overall elite?”

Not the most gripping endorsement, but it’s what you might expect from a voter on the fence.