Obvious Guardians Hall of Fame snub just got far more glaring after Andruw Jones news

On Tuesday, MLB outfielders Andruw Jones and Carlos Beltran were formally elected into the Baseball Hall of Fame. 

The inductions were a long-time coming for both outfielders, as Beltran was elected in his fourth year of eligibility after getting 84.2% of the vote, while Jones earned 78.4% of the vote in the second-to-last year of eligibility. 

Both players became greats thanks to different skillsets, as Beltran put together a great all-around career and is one of four players with 2,700 hits, 400 homers, 1,500 runs and 300 steals.

Meanwhile, Jones hit just .254 for his career but is one of only six outfielders to win 10 or more Gold Gloves. He clearly got into the Hall because of his defense. 

Which makes it all the more egregious that Jones is in the Hall of Fame and former Cleveland great Kenny Lofton isn’t. 

Kenny Lofton deserves to be in the Baseball Hall of Fame 

Not only is Lofton one of the best outfielders in Cleveland Guardians history, he’s one of the best outfielders in baseball history. Period. 

Lofton got the short end of the stick when he was initially added to the ballot, as he was first eligible in 2013 and was on a ballot that featured 10 players who have eventually made it into the Hall of Fame. 

He received 18 votes (3.2% of ballots), which meant he fell below the 5% threshold and was subsequently dropped off the ballot. 

It was a disgrace then, and it’s even more of a disgrace now that Jones is in. And don’t get us wrong, Jones is a Hall of Fame player. He was a wizard with the glove and one of the best defensive outfielders of all time. 

While Lofton’s four Gold Gloves don’t compete with Jones’ 10, Lofton was worth more bWAR in his career (68.4 for Lofton compared to 62.7% for Jones) along with having more hits (2,428 vs. 1,933) and runs scored. 

Lofton also has a superior .372 on-base percentage, and he stole 622 bases in his career, which still stands as the high-water mark in Cleveland franchise history.  

Lofton’s 68.4 bWAR is fifth all-time among players not in the Hall of Fame, behind Bill Dahlen, Lou Whittaker, Rick Reuschel and Curt Schilling. 

The good news for Lofton is that he can still make it into the Hall via the Contemporary Baseball Era Committee, which is a panel of 11 historians who researched players who made their biggest impact from 1980 and beyond. 

Although Lofton wasn’t included on last year’s ballot, he could still be included in future ones, and should be a shoo-in to make it now that Jones is in. 

And while that would be a great way to finally honor one of the best outfielders in MLB history, the fact that Lofton isn’t in the Hall already is an egregious mistake.