6 former Texas Rangers get their verdict in the 2026 Hall of Fame voting

Cooperstown will be busy clearing space for three more busts in the National Baseball Hall of Fame after it was announced that Carlos Beltran and Andruw Jones were voted in Tuesday. They will join Jeff Kent, who was elected by the Contemporary Era Committee in December in the class of 2026.

Beltran, who was a Ranger for 52 games in 2016, comfortably made it in with 84.2 percent, while needing just 75% to get the call. It was a little tighter for Jones, who played 82 games for Texas in 2009, and snuck in with 78.4 percent of the vote.

Two more former Rangers, starting pitcher Cole Hamels and outfielder Shin-Soo Choo, who were with the organization for many seasons, came up short for enshrinement in their first year of eligibility.

Cole Hamels displays respectable first ballot year

It was Hamels' first year of eligibility, and he received 23.8 percent (101 votes). While well short of enshrinement, it was a respectable showing for the hard-throwing lefty. Hamels will likely see that percentage increase in the next several years as the BBWAA and Hall of Fame start to recalibrate pitchers' resumes. Workload and career totals have decreased dramatically since Hamels started his career in 2006.

While with the Texas Rangers, Hamels compiled an impressive 31-20 record while striking out 419 batters in 398 innings over almost three seasons.

He spent the bulk of his 16-year MLB career with the Phillies, retiring in 2020. Overall, Hamels notched a 163-122 record with a 3.43 ERA and 1.183 WHIP. He also fanned 2560 batters over 2698 innings pitched. Hamels' career WAR of 57.9 is well below the 73 average for Cooperstown starting pitchers, but is higher than current Hall of Famers like Whitey Ford and Jim Kaat.

Choo's HOF case ends one-year in

Unfortunately for ironman outfielder Shin-Shoo Choo, who was a Ranger for seven seasons from 2014 to 2020, he only received three votes and came up well short of the necessary five percent to remain on the ballot moving forward.

Choo was a workhorse for Texas, playing a workman-like right field while racking up 771 hits in 2,965 at-bats (.260 avg.) while also smacking 116 homers over 799 games. He earned an All-Star nod representing the Rangers in 2018.

Choo had a career WAR of 34.7, amassing 1,671 hits, 218 dingers and a .275 batting average. His career .373 OBP is 212th-best in major league history, as his keen eye at the plate and discipline are something the 2025 Rangers desperately could've used.

A-Rod, Pence also fall short

A-Rod, who was in his fifth-year of eligibility, received 40 percent (170 votes) of the votes. A Ranger from 2001 to 2003, Rodriguez hit 156 home runs and drove in 395 runs. He won the American League MVP in his last season in Texas.

While Rodriguez's career numbers are massive and clearly Hall-worthy, his involvement in steroids and other PEDs has hindered his candidacy and, unless there is a major shift in the attitudes of the writers over cheating allegations, he will likely continue to come up short.

Hunter Pence, who played for the Rangers for half of the 2019 season, also came up well short, receiving just two votes in his first year of eligibility.

Pence's hard-nosed approach to the game made him an easy guy to root for and he became a fan-favorite in just 83 games with the Texas. Like Choo, he will also fall off the ballot failing to reach the 5 percent threshold.