BASEBALL HALL: Carlos Beltran, Andruw Jones, Jeff Kent Inducted

BASEBALL HALL: Carlos Beltran, Andruw Jones, Jeff Kent Inducted
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Mlb: Hall Of Fame Induction Ceremony
Jul 26, 2026; Cooperstown, NY, USA; Hall of Fame Inductee Andruw Jones makes his acceptance speech during the National Baseball Hall of Fame Induction ceremony at Clark Sports Center. Mandatory Credit: Gregory Fisher-Imagn Images

Carlos Beltran, Andruw Jones and Jeff Kent led the class of 2026 into the Baseball Hall of Fame in Cooperstown on Sunday.

The three players, all superstars in the ’90s and ’00s, all accepted their kudos with grateful speeches. Beltran, a former New York Met, who had the biggest contingent of fans on hand, said “New York shaped my life. It was here where I experienced my greatest success, and some of my greatest challenges. Playing for the Mets made me a better man and a better leader.”

Jones became the first player from Curacao to earn a spot in the Hall of Fame, and he paid homage to the only big leaguer from the island before Jones’ arrival in the mid-1990s — former Yankee Hensley Meulens.

Kent, who played for a total of six teams over the course of his career, pointed to former manager Tommy LaSorda as his inspiration, saying “I learned a long time ago from Tommy, one of the best motivators in the game, a simple truth that I lived by for my whole career: The money lies in the RBIs. “I’ve got some bling. If I was going to win, I knew I needed to produce runs.” (ESPN)

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