When the National Baseball Hall of Fame revealed the cap logos for its Class of 2026, two familiar names to Dodgers fans-Jeff Kent and Andruw Jones-were on the list. But neither will be wearing Dodger blue on their plaques in Cooperstown.
Instead, Jeff Kent will be immortalized as a San Francisco Giant, and Andruw Jones will go in as an Atlanta Brave. It’s a decision that reflects the essence of each player’s career-the peak years, the accolades, and the legacy they left behind with those franchises.
Jeff Kent: A Giant Legacy
Let’s start with Kent. Of the two former Dodgers, he had the stronger case for potentially representing L.A. in the Hall.
He spent the final four seasons of his career in Los Angeles, playing 521 games and putting up a respectable 6.8 bWAR. During that stretch, he launched 75 home runs and drove in 311 runs.
He even notched his final All-Star appearance and Silver Slugger award in 2005 while wearing Dodger blue.
But Kent’s most dominant years came in San Francisco, and there’s really no debate about that. He hit 175 home runs as a Giant-by far the bulk of his 377 career homers-and won the National League MVP in 2000. From 1999 to 2001, he was a fixture in the All-Star Game and earned three straight Silver Sluggers from 2000 to 2002.
Kent was the engine behind the Giants’ offense during that era, a middle-of-the-order force who consistently delivered in big spots. His time in L.A. was solid, no question.
But his time in San Francisco was Hall of Fame-caliber. That’s why the plaque will feature a Giants cap-because that’s where his legacy was cemented.
Andruw Jones: Forever a Brave
Then there’s Andruw Jones, whose brief stint with the Dodgers in 2008 is best left in the rearview mirror. In just 75 games, Jones posted a .505 OPS-easily the lowest of his career. It was a tough chapter for a player who, not long before, had been one of the most feared center fielders in the game.
But if you rewind to his 12 seasons with the Atlanta Braves, you see the full picture of why he’s heading to Cooperstown as a Brave. Jones won 10 consecutive Gold Gloves in center field, a testament to his elite defensive instincts and range. He wasn’t just good in the field-he was historically great.
Offensively, he held his own, too. Jones posted a .839 OPS with Atlanta and had his best season in 2005, when he hit 51 home runs, drove in 128 runs, and finished second in MVP voting. He was a five-time All-Star, a Silver Slugger winner, and a cornerstone of the Braves’ late-90s and early-2000s dominance.
There was never really a question about which cap Jones would wear in the Hall. His time with the Dodgers was a footnote.
His time with the Braves? That was a headline.
How Cap Decisions Are Made
It’s worth noting that players no longer make the cap decision entirely on their own. The Hall of Fame works with each inductee to determine which team best represents their career.
In some cases-like Jim Leyland in 2024, who managed four different clubs-a player or manager might go in without a logo. But when there’s a clear defining chapter, as there is for Kent and Jones, the logo becomes part of the story.
For Dodgers fans, it’s a reminder that greatness sometimes passes through L.A., even if it’s not where the legend was written. Kent and Jones had their moments in Dodger Stadium, but their legacies were forged elsewhere-one in the Bay, the other in the South.
Still, it’s a proud moment for the Dodgers organization to have two former players enshrined in the same class. Even if the caps don’t say “Dodgers,” the contributions they made in L.A. are part of the journey that got them to Cooperstown.