We love to add more sub-sections at Notinhalloffame.com, and if you have been looking at our recent posts, you can see that our current focus is on our Futures Section, which look at eventual candidates who have retired from their respective sport, but are not yet Hall of Fame eligible.  Today, we unveil the latest add-on, the 2026 Baseball Futures of the players who qualify for Cooperstown in 2026.

Here are the players in our 2026 Baseball Futures Section:

Alex Gordon:  Playing his entire career with the Royals, Gordon won three Gold Gloves, was a three-time All-Star and was a member of the 2015 World Series Championship Team.

Chris Davis:  Davis was a power hitter who won two American League Home Run Titles as a member of the Orioles.

Cole Hamels:  Hamels helped lead Philadelphia to a World Series win in 2008, and he was the NLCS and World Series MVP that year.  A four-year All-Star, Hamels had four top ten Cy Young finishes and 2,560 Strikeouts.

Daniel Murphy:  Murphy was the runner-up for the 2016 National League MVP in 2016, and was a three-time All-Star.  He also won two Silver Sluggers and twice led the NL in Doubles.

Edinson Volquez:  Volquez was a long time Starting Pitcher who went to one All-Star Game and won a World Series with Kansas City in 2015.

Edwin Encarnacion:  Finding his stride as a Designated Hitter with Toronto, Encarnacion earned three All-Star appearances, and had 429 Home Runs.

Gio Gonzalez:  Gonzalez went to two All-Star Games and had an overall record of 131-101 and 1,860 Strikeouts.

Howie Kendrick:  Kendrick played most of his career with the Angels where he was an All-Star in 2011, but he would later win an NLCS MVP and World Series Ring with Washington in 2019.

Hunter Pence:  Pence was a four-time All-Star who won two World Series Rings with the San Francisco Giants.

Jason Kipnis:  Kipnis is best known for his time with Cleveland where was a two-time All-Star and won one a Wilson Defensive Player Award.

Jeff Samardzija:  Samardzija was an All-Star Pitcher in 2014 and also led the NL in Strikeouts in 2017.

Kelvin Herrera:  Herrera went to two All-Star Games as a Relief Pitcher and would win a World Series with Kansas City in 2015.

Matt Kemp:  Kemp went to three All-Star Games, and won two Gold Gloves and two Silver Sluggers.  He was the runner-up for the NL MVP in 2011 when he was a Dodger.

Matt Wieters:  Wieters was a four-time All-Star and two-time Gold Glove winner as the Catcher for the Orioles.

Nick Markakis:  Splitting his career between Baltimore and Atlanta, Markakis won three Gloves, one Silver Slugger and went to one All-Star Game.

Rick Porcello:  The Starting Pitcher won the American League Cy Young Award in 2016 and the World Series two years later. 

Ryan Braun:  Braun played his entire career with Milwaukee where he won the AL Rookie of the Year in 2008 and the AL MVP in 2011.  He is also a five-time Silver Slugger, six-time All-Star and he twice led the league in OPS and Slugging Percentage.

Shin-Soo Choo:  Choo is one of the first everyday players from South Korea and was an All-Star in 2018.

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Daniel Murphy played for the New York Mets in the first half of his career (2008-09 & 2011-15), where the Second Baseman was not lighting up the stat sheets, but turning heads with his hustle.  In 2015, he was the lightning rod of the Mets team that reached the World Series, winning the NLCS MVP, but New York would fall to Kansas City.  

Murphy would then join the Washington Nationals, where he promptly had the best year of his life.  An All-Star for the second time, Murphy’s 2016 saw him lead the NL in Doubles (47), Slugging (.595), OPS (.985) with career-highs in Home Runs (25), RBIs (104) and Batting Average (.347).  Murphy won the Silver Slugger and was second in MVP voting.  He had another excellent year for the Nats the year after, again leading the NL in Doubles (43) with a third All-Star and second Silver Slugger.  Murphy also had his second straight 20 Home Run/.300 year.

Traded to the Cubs during the 2018 Season, Murphy was unable to replicate the magic in Washington.  He had two more years in Colorado, retiring with 1,572 Hits and a .296 lifetime Batting Average.

 Daniel Murphy only played two-and-a-half seasons with the Washington Nationals, which came after a long run with the New York Mets where he was poised to be a star in Gotham.

Daniel Murphy had a good run with the New York Mets where he averaged .288 over seven seasons.  The Second Basemen was named an All Star in 2014, and while 2015 saw him put up decreased numbers he exploded by batting .529 in the NLCS where he was named the MVP.   After collecting 967 Hits for New York, Murphy would sign as a Free Agent with the Washington Nationals where he won the Slugging and OPS Title and finished second in MVP voting.