After a nail-biting nine-year wait, Andruw Jones finally secures his Hall of Fame call.
Atlanta Braves icon Andruw Jones is headed to Cooperstown after being elected to the Baseball Hall of Fame on Tuesday, and the moment could not have been sweeter for a player who nearly fell off the ballot in his first year of eligibility.
Jones received 78.4 percent of the vote in his ninth year on the BBWAA ballot, clearing the 75 percent threshold needed for enshrinement and capping off one of the most impressive rises in Hall of Fame voting history.
A Long Road to Cooperstown
The journey to Cooperstown was anything but easy for Jones, who received just 7.3 percent of the vote in 2018 when he first appeared on the ballot.
That total was barely enough to keep him eligible for the following year, as candidates need at least 5 percent to remain on the ballot.
His numbers climbed slowly at first, reaching 7.5% in 2019 before jumping to 19.4% in 2020, and then the momentum really started to build.
By 2025, Jones had reached 66.2 percent, and voters finally pushed him over the top this year in what was his second-to-last chance to earn induction through the BBWAA.
Jones will join fellow outfielder Carlos Beltrán and second baseman Jeff Kent in the Class of 2026, with the induction ceremony set for July 26 in Cooperstown, New York.
Former Braves manager Brian Snitker has been among the most vocal supporters of Jones's candidacy, pointing to his remarkable career numbers as undeniable proof of his worthiness for the Hall.
Defining a Decade in Atlanta
Jones spent 12 seasons with the Braves from 1996 to 2007, and those years in Atlanta are what define his legacy.
He was signed by the franchise in 1993 out of Curaçao at just 16 years old, and he made his big-league debut on August 15, 1996 at the age of 19.
Jones immediately made history in the 1996 World Series when he became the youngest player ever to hit a home run in the Fall Classic, and he was also the first player to homer in his first two World Series at-bats.
Over the course of his career, Jones hit 434 home runs with 1,289 RBIs and 1,933 hits while posting a .254 batting average and .823 OPS across 17 major league seasons.
He played for five teams in total, but his time with the Braves was where he truly became a star, hitting 368 of those home runs in Atlanta.
His best season came in 2005, when he led the National League with 51 home runs and 128 RBIs while finishing second to Albert Pujols in MVP voting.
That season, Jones also won the Hank Aaron Award and earned his only career Silver Slugger.
Elite Defense Sets Him Apart
While his power numbers were impressive, it was his defense that truly set Jones apart from other players of his era.
He won 10 consecutive Gold Glove Awards from 1998 to 2007, which ties him with Roberto Clemente and Willie Mays for the most by an outfielder in baseball history.
His defensive WAR of 24.4, according to Baseball Reference, is the highest ever recorded by an outfielder, and Willie Mays himself once told Jones that he was the best center fielder he had ever seen.
The Braves retired Jones's No. 25 jersey in 2023, and he now becomes the first player born in Curaçao to be elected into the Baseball Hall of Fame.
Jones will also serve as the manager of Team Netherlands for the 2026 World Baseball Classic, which takes place in Miami this March.
Looking at the Current Braves
The Atlanta Braves finished the 2025 season with a 76-86 record, which placed them fourth in the National League East and marked their first losing season since 2017.
The team struggled with injuries throughout the year and used a Major League Baseball record 71 players over the course of the campaign.
With former manager Snitker stepping down after 10 seasons at the helm, the franchise is entering a new era as it looks to return to contention in 2026.
For Jones, the Hall of Fame induction will serve as the ultimate honor for a career that combined elite defense with consistent offensive production over more than a decade with the Braves.