As the MLB offseason winds down and teams gear up for spring training, the spotlight shifts-at least briefly-from roster moves and arbitration hearings to the hallowed halls of Cooperstown. The 2026 Hall of Fame class is official, and it features two long-debated names finally getting their due: Carlos Beltran and Andruw Jones.
Beltran received 84% of the vote, solidifying his place among the game’s greats after a few years of waiting. Jones, whose candidacy has sparked heated debates over the years, crossed the 75% threshold with 78% of the vote.
For White Sox fans, there’s a small footnote of pride in Jones’ induction-he did spend the 2010 season on the South Side. That makes him another Hall of Famer to have worn a White Sox uniform, even if only briefly.
But while Beltran and Jones are celebrating, the news hits a little differently for fans of one of the most quietly consistent pitchers of his era: Mark Buehrle. In his sixth year on the ballot, Buehrle saw his vote total rise to 20%-a notable jump from the 11.4% he received in 2025, but still a far cry from the 75% needed for enshrinement.
Let’s be clear: 20% feels low for a pitcher with Buehrle’s résumé. This is a guy who, from 2001 through 2014, was the definition of reliable.
Fourteen straight seasons of 200-plus innings pitched. That’s not just durability-it’s elite-level consistency in a sport that grinds down even the toughest arms.
And in 2015, his final season, he came just short of the mark, finishing with 198.2 innings after a rough final outing. One more out, and he would’ve hit 15 straight seasons.
That kind of longevity? It’s almost extinct in today’s game.
But Buehrle wasn’t just an innings-eater. He was a craftsman on the mound.
He threw a perfect game. He threw a no-hitter.
He made five All-Star teams. He won four Gold Gloves.
And, oh yeah, he was the ace of the 2005 White Sox team that steamrolled its way to a World Series title. That team snapped an 88-year championship drought for the franchise, and Buehrle was front and center.
Sure, he didn’t rack up strikeouts like Randy Johnson or post sub-3.00 ERAs year after year. But that was never his game.
Buehrle pitched to contact, worked fast, and trusted his defense. He didn’t overpower hitters-he outthought them.
And in an era increasingly obsessed with velocity and spin rate, his approach might seem understated. But the results?
They speak for themselves.
There’s still time for Buehrle. He’s got four more years of eligibility on the writers’ ballot. And even if that path doesn’t work out, the Veterans Committee remains an option down the road-as it was for Minnie Miñoso, the last longtime White Sox player to be inducted, back in 2022.
But for now, 20% feels like a reminder that some players’ greatness doesn’t always show up in the flashiest numbers. Buehrle’s career was built on consistency, dependability, and moments of brilliance. That should count for more than it currently does.
The bump in votes from last year is encouraging. Maybe the tide is turning.
Maybe more voters are starting to recognize that greatness doesn’t always look like a 12-strikeout performance or a 100-mph fastball. Sometimes, it looks like a guy who took the ball every fifth day, year after year, and gave his team a chance to win.
Mark Buehrle deserves a place in Cooperstown. Let’s hope the voters see that before his time on the ballot runs out.