Here is the best player not in the Hall of Fame for every team
With the recent election of Adrián Beltré, Todd Helton and Joe Mauer by the Baseball Writers' Association of America, there are 273 players in the Hall of Fame -- a little over 1 percent of the nearly 23,000 players in history, including known Negro Leagues players.
That leaves many greats from the game's rich history who are not enshrined in Cooperstown. Below is a look at the top player not in the Hall from each of the 30 teams, considering only those who are currently retired and spent a significant amount of time playing for that club.
+ - Not yet on the BBWAA ballot
^ - Currently on BBWAA ballot
# - No longer on BBWAA ballot
AMERICAN LEAGUE EAST
Blue Jays: Dave Stieb#, RHP
Key fact: Blue Jays’ all-time leader in wins (175), starts (408) and innings (2,873)
Stieb’s greatness is appreciated by Blue Jays fans -- particularly those who watched the right-hander pitch through the 1980s -- but his name still doesn’t receive the respect it deserves around baseball. The seven-time All Star won 175 games for the Blue Jays and was one of the league’s most dominant starters for a decade. Whether you prefer sustained success or peaks of greatness, Stieb has something to satisfy your argument. More >
Orioles: Rafael Palmeiro#, 1B
Key fact: He is one of six Major Leaguers with at least 3,000 career hits and 500 home runs
We’re considering entire careers more than Baltimore tenures for this exercise, and while there are more iconic lifelong Orioles lower on Baltimore's list, none can match the overall résumé of Palmeiro. The reasons Palmeiro isn’t in Cooperstown are what complicate his legacy: Despite his elite numbers, the first baseman quickly fell off the Hall of Fame ballot because of his ties to performance-enhancing drugs and his inclusion in the Mitchell Report. More >
Rays: Jose Canseco#, OF
Key fact: The first player in the 40/40 Club, he's one of only 14 AL/NL players to hit 400 home runs and steal 200 bases in his career
If you look at his career, Canseco had an outside shot at making a run at the Hall of Fame. The Cuban outfielder won the 1988 American League Most Valuable Player Award, took home the '86 AL Rookie of the Year Award, made the All-Star team six times and won two World Series titles. With the Rays, Canseco hit 34 homers in 1999, making quite a 1-2 punch with Fred McGriff in the middle of the lineup. Canseco's career accolades likely wouldn’t have put him into the Hall, and his involvement with performance-enhancing drugs never helped his case. More >
Red Sox: Roger Clemens#, RHP
Key fact: His seven career Cy Young Awards are two more than any other pitcher has
While Ortiz cruised into the Hall on his first try in 2022, Clemens fell off the ballot after coming up short in his 10th and final year of eligibility. The Rocket's on-field accomplishments have never been the issue -- the Cy Youngs, the two 20-strikeout games, the 354 wins and the 4,672 strikeouts (third all-time). Instead, ties to performance-enhancing drugs kept Clemens from gaining enough support, and his case now will move on to the Hall's Era Committees. More >
Yankees: Alex Rodriguez^, SS/3B
Key fact: 696 career home runs (fifth all-time)
A-Rod completed his 22-year career with 696 home runs, which is fifth all-time behind Barry Bonds (762), Henry Aaron (755), Babe Ruth (714) and Albert Pujols (703). A three-time AL MVP who collected 3,115 hits, Rodriguez was a 14-time All-Star, 10-time Silver Slugger Award winner and two-time Gold Glove winner. He played a dozen seasons in pinstripes beginning in 2004, compiling a .283/.378/.523 slash line with 351 homers, 1,096 RBIs, a 136 OPS+ and 54.0 bWAR while winning his only World Series title in 2009. He had a 117.5 bWAR overall with the Mariners, Rangers and Yankees from 1994-2016. Rodriguez debuted on the ballot last year but received only 34.3% support, with voters weighing his stellar stats against a suspension related to performance-enhancing drug use that cost Rodriguez the entire 2014 season. More >
AL CENTRAL
Lofton’s career slash line is impressive -- hitting .299/.372/.423 from 1991-2007 -- with 622 stolen bases, 781 RBIs and a 107 OPS+, but it wasn’t enough to convince Hall of Fame voters. Though his numbers did not make him a lock for induction, it was surprising that the former center fielder didn’t receive enough votes to stay on the ballot for more than one year. A case could also be made to feature Manny Ramirez or Omar Vizquel -- each of whom is currently on the ballot -- in this spot. More >
White’s legacy is that he is one of the greatest defensive second basemen in baseball history. He held Kansas City's club record for Gold Glove Awards until Alex Gordon tied him with eight. White, the best success story of the once-famed Royals Baseball Academy in the 1970s, had a storied career with Kansas City that included the '80 ALCS MVP Award. More >
Whitaker’s 75.1 bWAR ranks 80th all-time and 51st among position players. He has a higher WAR than Michigan native and former Yankees shortstop Derek Jeter, who was elected to the Hall of Fame by members of the BBWAA in 2020 in his first year on the ballot. When Whitaker retired after the 1995 season, he was one of just three second basemen all-time with 1,000 runs, 1,000 RBIs, 2,000 hits and 200 home runs, alongside Hall of Famers Rogers Hornsby and Joe Morgan. More >
Twins: Johan Santana#, LHP
Key fact: Only pitcher in MLB to have an ERA below 3.00 (2.90) and more than 1,500 strikeouts (1,785) from 2002-10
By several measures, Santana was the best pitcher in baseball over a nine-season span from 2002-10, six of which were spent with the Twins. He won two Cy Young Awards and three ERA titles, leading the league or the Majors in strikeouts three times, ERA+ three times, innings pitched twice, WHIP four times and fewest-hits-per-nine-innings three times. He was also a Cy Young Award finalist twice in addition to the two awards he won. Santana received 2.4% of the BBWAA vote in 2018, falling off the ballot for failing to reach at least 5%. More >
White Sox: Dick Allen#, 1B/3B
Key fact: Among players with 7,000 career plate appearances, his 156 OPS+ places him in a tie for 14th all-time with Frank Thomas
Minnie Miñoso had been the pick here, but he got his long-overdue ticket to Cooperstown in December 2021, via the Golden Days Era Committee. However, Allen fell just one vote shy on that same ballot, having been selected on 11 of the 16 ballots instead of the necessary 12. Allen, who died in December 2020, didn't spend a long time with the White Sox -- just 348 games over three seasons. But one of those seasons was 1972, when he earned AL MVP honors by leading the league in OBP, slugging, homers, RBIs and walks. More >
AL WEST
Angels: Bobby Grich#, 2B
Key fact: He was a six-time All-Star, four-time Gold Glove winner and one-time Silver Slugger
Grich played 10 of his 17 seasons in the Majors with the Angels, and he is almost universally viewed as one of the most deserving of enshrinement among players not in the Hall of Fame. Grich did just about everything well as an elite second baseman, racking up 71 WAR during his career. That's good for eighth all-time among second basemen and puts him ahead of several Hall of Fame second basemen such as Frankie Frisch, Ryne Sandberg, Roberto Alomar and Craig Biggio. Grich is a member of both the Orioles and Angels Halls of Fame, but the 74-year-old is still waiting for a potential call to Cooperstown, which would have to come via the Modern Baseball Committee at this point. More >
Lance Berkman, an outfielder turned first baseman, performed at a Hall of Fame caliber at his peak in the mid-2000s and played in 1,879 regular-season games in 15 seasons, amassing a .293 batting average, 422 doubles, 366 home runs, 1,234 RBIs and a .943 OPS that ranks 21st in Major League history (minimum 7,000 plate appearances). Still, he fell off the Hall of Fame ballot in 2019 after receiving only 1.2% the Baseball Writers’ Association of America vote in his first year. More >
Through the late 1980s and '90s, McGwire appeared to be a lock for the Hall of Fame as he ascended to superstardom as one of the top sluggers of his generation before his retirement in 2001. But by the time he became eligible for the Hall of Fame, McGwire had been linked to baseball’s controversy surrounding performance-enhancing drugs, with the legitimacy of his dominant statistics being called into question. With his time on the ballot to be voted in having come and gone, McGwire’s only way in now would be a selection through the Today's Game Committee. More >
Mariners: Alex Rodriguez^, SS/3B
Key fact: 696 career home runs (fifth all-time)
As mentioned above in the Yankees section, this one obviously comes with some controversy -- and we’re certainly not suggesting that Rodriguez will be the next former Mariner inducted into Cooperstown given his association with performance-enhancing drugs and a suspension that led to him missing the entire 2014 season while with the Yankees. Still, in a 22-year career that began with seven seasons at shortstop in Seattle, A-Rod racked up 696 home runs, fifth on MLB’s all-time list behind only Bonds, Aaron, Ruth and Albert Pujols. He’s also fourth in RBIs behind Aaron, Ruth and Pujols. Rodriguez doesn’t just rank among the best former Mariners, he stands firmly among baseball’s all-time greats and was a 14-time All-Star and three-time MVP Award winner. More >
Rangers: Rafael Palmeiro#, 1B
Key fact: He is one of six Major Leaguers with at least 3,000 career hits and 500 home runs
Palmeiro spent more seasons of his 20-year career with the Rangers than with any other club, with stints from 1989-93, and 1999-2003. His ties to performance-enhancing drugs are the reason he wasn't easily elected to Cooperstown following a career in which he had 3,020 hits, 569 home runs and an .885 OPS. Only Juan Gonzalez (372) hit more homers in a Rangers uniform than Palmeiro (321). More >
NATIONAL LEAGUE EAST
Until Bonds came along, Murphy stood with Roger Maris as the only players who had not been elected to the Hall of Fame after winning consecutive MVP Awards. At the end of the 1987 season, a 31-year-old Murphy had compiled 310 homers and an .862 OPS over 6,383 plate appearances. Even when accounting for a steady decline, it was easy to project Murphy would easily surpass the 400-homer mark and keep his career OPS around .850. He averaged 36 homers from '82-87, but he never again hit more than 24 in a season as he battled bad knees while struggling over his final six seasons. More >
Marlins: Gary Sheffield^, OF
Key fact: Hit 509 career home runs, including 42-homer season with Marlins in 1996
A member of MLB’s famed “500 Home Run Club,” Sheffield finished with 509 home runs in his impactful 22-year career. The Tampa, Fla., native played for eight different teams, with his longest tenure coming with the Marlins for parts of six seasons. As a Marlin, Sheffield hit .288/.426/.543 with 122 home runs and 380 RBIs. With his famous bat waggle, Sheffield’s stance was mimicked by a generation of young players, and he certainly looked to do damage every time up. Sheffield’s 42 home runs in 1996 stood as the single-season franchise record until Giancarlo Stanton blasted 59 in 2017. A nine-time All-Star, Sheffield was a big part of the Marlins’ 1997 World Series championship team. After receiving 55% of the vote in the Hall's 2023 cycle, Sheffield has one more chance left on the BBWAA ballot. More >
It is with bewilderment that many around the game accept Hernandez’s continued absence from the Hall of Fame. The 1979 National League MVP Award winner and arguably the greatest first base defender in history, Hernandez was also one of the purest left-handed hitters of his generation. He retired with a .296 career average, 162 home runs, 426 doubles and of course a record 11 Gold Glove Awards as a first baseman over 17 seasons with the Cardinals, Mets and Cleveland. Anecdotally, he was the soul of the '86 World Series champion Mets. More >
From 1979-94, Reardon closed out games around the league. The right-hander played for the Expos from ’81-86, as well as for the Mets, Twins, Red Sox, Braves, Reds and Yankees. He earned four All-Star selections, led the National League with 41 saves in ’85 while in Montreal and won a World Series in ’87 with Minnesota. Reardon’s only year on the Hall of Fame ballot came in 2000 when he received just 24 votes (4.8 percent), not quite enough to remain on the ballot. More >
The late Allen -- also the White Sox pick above -- deserves his spot in Cooperstown after slashing .292/.378/.534 with 351 home runs, 1,119 RBIs, a .912 OPS and a 156 OPS+ in a 15-year career with the Phillies, Cardinals, Dodgers, White Sox and A’s. From 1964-74, he posted a 58.3 bWAR, tied with Willie Mays for sixth place among position players in that 11-year span, behind Hank Aaron (68.8), Carl Yastrzemski (68.2), Roberto Clemente (64.7), Ron Santo (60.1) and Brooks Robinson (59.4). Pete Rose (58.0), Frank Robinson (55.3) and Joe Morgan (54.0) rounded out the top 10. More >
NL CENTRAL
A six-time All-Star and five-time Silver Slugger who won the National League Rookie of the Year Award in 2007, the NL MVP Award in 2011 and is the Brewers’ all-time leader with 352 home runs, Braun has a statistical case for the Hall of Fame by at least one standard -- Bill James’ Hall of Fame Monitor. Braun scores 107 in that system, in which a likely Hall of Famer scores 100. But Braun, who was first tied to PEDs in 2011 and was among the players suspended as part of MLB’s investigation into the Biogenesis lab in 2013, said he considers his Hall chances unlikely. He'll join the ballot in 2026. More >
Cardinals: Albert Pujols+, 1B
Key fact: He's just one of four players in AL/NL history to hit 700 home runs
By almost any measure, Pujols is one of the game’s greatest hitters. Upon his retirement following the 2022 season, he ranked 10th in hits (3,384), fourth in home runs (703), second in RBIs (2,218), second in total bases (6,211), fifth in doubles (686), fifth in games played (3,080) and sixth in at-bats (13,041). Pujols’ advance metrics hold up over time as well as he is 20th in WAR among position players (101.6), 33rd in slugging (.544) and 53rd in OPS (.918). In 88 career postseason games, Pujols hit .319 with 19 home runs and 54 RBIs, more walks (50) than strikeouts (46) and a .995 OPS. He's a near lock to be a first-ballot Hall of Famer when eligible in 2028. More >
Cubs: Sammy Sosa#, OF
Key fact: Only player in MLB history to hit 60-plus homers in three seasons
Sosa's numbers are undeniably Cooperstown worthy. It seems that the main reason behind the all-time slugger's struggle to gain entry into the Hall of Fame (he fell off the BBWAA ballot in 2022 after 10 years of eligibility) has been lingering suspicions over how he went about compiling his powerful home run feats. Still, Sosa is the Cubs' home run king with 545 of his 609 career blasts coming with the North Siders. More >
Pirates: Barry Bonds#, OF
Key fact: 762 career home runs (most in MLB history)
Bonds still has a chance to get off this list, but it won’t come through the BBWAA voting process. In 2022, his final year, Bonds was named on 66 percent of the writers' ballots -- a solid jump from past years, but still well shy of the 75 percent threshold. Bonds was one of eight former big league players to comprise the 2023 Contemporary Baseball Era player ballot but did not get elected. More >
Reds: Pete Rose#, OF/1B
Key fact: All-time leader in hits (4,256), games played (3,562) and at-bats (14,053)
One of the biggest flashpoints of controversy in any Hall of Fame debate, Rose would have seen his plaque in Cooperstown decades ago had he not been banned from Major League Baseball since 1989 for betting on games while managing the Reds. Although MLB has no say in the voting process, the Hall of Fame determined that any player on the league’s ineligible list is unable to be inducted. More >
NL WEST
D-backs: Curt Schilling#, RHP
Key fact: 2.23 ERA in 19 career postseason starts, including 2.06 in seven World Series outings (split 2001 World Series MVP Award with Randy Johnson)
Schilling once again fell short of election via voting by the Baseball Writers' Association of America in 2022, his final year on the ballot. He could eventually be inducted via the Today’s Game Committee, but until that happens, he will top this list for the D-backs. Acquired by then-GM Joe Garagiola Jr. prior to the Trade Deadline in 2000 in what was more of a heist than a trade -- the Phillies received Omar Daal, Nelson Figueroa, Travis Lee and Vicente Padilla in return -- Schilling took his career to another level in Arizona. More >
Dodgers: Steve Garvey#, 1B
Key fact: Only player to debut on BBWAA ballot with 40% of the vote or greater and not be elected to the Hall of Fame
Garvey was a model of consistent excellence, hitting .311/.348/.480 with 160 home runs for the Dodgers from 1974-80. Over that span, he was an All-Star every season and won four Gold Glove Awards. He also had at least 200 hits in six of those seven seasons. In 55 postseason games, Garvey hit .338/.361/.550 with 11 home runs, helping Los Angeles win the World Series in 1981 over the Yankees. More >
Giants: Barry Bonds#, OF
Key fact: 762 career home runs (most in MLB history)
As mentioned above in the Pirates section, Bonds obviously possesses enough credentials to merit a place in Cooperstown, but his Hall of Fame candidacy has been put on hold due to his links to performance-enhancing drugs. He dropped off the Baseball Writers’ Association of America’s Hall of Fame ballot after topping out at 66 percent of the vote in his 10th and final year of eligibility, well short of the 75 percent threshold required for induction. Bonds was one of eight former big league players to comprise the 2023 Contemporary Baseball Era player ballot but did not get elected. More >
Padres: Gary Sheffield^, OF
Key fact: He racked up 509 homers and 60.5 WAR over 22 seasons
Sheffield spent only two seasons in San Diego, but they were two of the best seasons of his brilliant 22-year career. In 1992, Sheffield flirted with winning the NL batting Triple Crown. He settled for the batting title and a .330/.385/.580 slash line with 33 home runs. (Sheffield is still the only Padre not named Tony Gwynn to win a batting crown.) He spent time with eight franchises, amassing 509 homers and a 60.5 career WAR. But perhaps because of concerns over performance-enhancing drugs, Sheffield received just 55% of the Hall of Fame vote in 2023, leaving him well shy of the 75-percent threshold necessary for enshrinement heading into his final year on the ballot in '24. More >
Rockies: Troy Tulowitzki+, SS
Key fact: 5.6 bWAR/162 games during his career (average Hall of Fame shortstop: 4.9)
Injuries derailed Tulowitzki's career, but when he was on the field, he was one of the best shortstops in the game. From 2009-14, he hit .309/.385/.553 (137 OPS+) with 143 home runs and won two Gold Glove Awards. Only three players had more bWAR in a Rockies uniform than Tulowitzki's 39.5 -- Todd Helton (61.8), Larry Walker (48.3) and Nolan Arenado (40.1). The first two are Hall of Famers and the third is an active player with a chance to become a Hall of Famer someday. More >