Baseball Hall of Fame: New members, voting, location, eligibility

Each year, members of the Baseball Writers Association of America vote to induct retired MLB players into the Hall of Fame.

Here, we have all you need to know about the National Baseball Hall of Fame.

Baseball Hall of Fame voting

All members of the Baseball Writers Association of America are eligible to vote. A player must receive votes from 75 percent of eligible writers in order to be inducted into the Hall of Fame. Voting usually takes place in the winter, which is the MLB offseason.

Baseball Hall of Fame location

The Hall of Fame and Museum is in Cooperstown, New York, a small village in Central state New York.

It is said that baseball was invented there by Abner Doubleday on a cow pasture within the village in 1839, the present site of Doubleday field.

This claim has been subject to questioning by many Baseball historians, however Cooperstown remains synonymous in the Baseball world.

Baseball Hall of Fame induction

Each year, there is an induction ceremony for the people voted into the Hall of Fame. The 2024 edition is scheduled to take place on July 21 in Cooperstown, NY.

Baseball Hall of Fame history

There are currently 346 members of the Baseball Hall of Fame. 

No players were inducted in to the Hall of Fame in the years 1940, 1941, 1943, 1951, 1958, 1960, 1965, and 2021.

The first five players inducted into the Hall of Fame were Ty Cobb, Walter Johnson, Christy Mathewson, Babe Ruth, and Honus Wagner. This first Hall of Fame class was voted on in 1936 and inducted with the classes of 1937, 1938, and 1939 on June 12, 1939.

2024 Baseball Hall of Fame inductees

Three players were inducted into the Hall of Fame in 2024: Adrian Beltre, Todd Helton, and Joe Mauer.

Beltre, a third baseman, played for the Boston Red Sox, Los Angeles Dodgers, Seattle Mariners, and Texas Rangers during his 21-year career. He made four All-Star games, won five Gold Gloves and six Silver Sluggers, and he ended his career with 477 home runs and a .286 career batting average.

Helton spend his entire career with the Colorado Rockies, playing first base there for 17 years. He finished his career with a .316 batting average and 369 home runs. He batted .372 in 2000, and he hit 30 or more home runs in a season six times.

Mauer played catcher and first base and spent his whole 17-year career with the Minnesota Twins in his home state. He won the AL MVP award in 2009 thanks to his .365 average and .444 on-base percentage. He ended his career with 143 home runs, a .306 batting average, and 181 runners caught stealing.

Next Baseball Hall of Fame ballot

Fourteen players will be on the 2025 Baseball Hall of Fame ballot, with that group headlined by Andruw Jones, Carlos Beltran, Alex Rodriguez, Manny Ramirez, Chase Utley, and David Wright.

New players on the ballot must have been retired from MLB for at least five years.

In 2025, new players to the ballot will include Ichiro Suzuki, CC Sabathia, Dustin Pedroia, Ian Kinsler, Troy Tulowitzki and Felix Hernandez.

In 2026, new entries to the ballot will be Cole Hamels, Ryan Braun, Alex Gordon, Shin-Soo Choo and Edwin Encarnacion. Buster Posey, Jon Lester, Ryan Zimmermann and Kyle Seager will be eligible for voting in 2027.