Matt Kemp joined the Los Angeles Dodgers in late 2006 after three years in the Minors, but it was not for another two seasons that he established himself as an everyday Outfielder.  Breaking out in 2009 with a 26 HR/101 RBI/34 SB year where he won the Silver Slugger and Gold Glove, Kemp was tenth in MVP voting, and Los Angeles thought they had a potential megastar.  After a decent 2010, Kemp had one of the best seasons of a player who didn't win the MVP.  Kemp's 2011 saw him finish one Home Run shy of a 40/40 year, but he still led the NL in taters.  Adding a second Gold Glove and Silver Slugger, Kemp also led the NL in Runs (115), RBIs (126), and OPS+ (176).  It was a phenomenal year, but that was the only campaign Kemp would have that could be categorized as such.

Kemp was still a good power hitter, belting 20 or more Home Runs six more times, but he only stole 42 more Bases after his 40 SB year.  The Dodgers traded Kemp to San Diego after the 2014 Season, and he bounced around with stops in Atlanta and Los Angeles for a second time for one solid year in 2018, where he added a third All-Star Game appearance.

With the Dodgers, Kemp blasted 203 Home Runs with 170 Stolen Bases and 1,322 Hits.

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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Matt Kemp had an interesting career, and if you watched him in 2011, you might have thought this was a potential Hall of Famer.

Kemp joined the Los Angeles Dodgers in late 2006 after three years in the Minors, but it was not for another two seasons that he established himself as an everyday Outfielder.  Breaking out in 2009 with a 26 HR/101 RBI/34 SB year where he won the Silver Slugger and Gold Glove, Kemp was tenth in MVP voting, and Los Angeles thought they had a potential megastar.  After a decent 2010, Kemp had one of the best seasons of a player who didn't win the MVP.  Kemp's 2011 saw him finish one Home Run shy of a 40/40 year, but he still led the NL in taters.  Adding a second Gold Glove and Silver Slugger, Kemp also led the NL in Runs (115), RBIs (126), and OPS+ (176).  It was a phenomenal year, but that was the only campaign Kemp would have that could be categorized as such.

Kemp was still a good power hitter, belting 20 or more Home Runs six more times, but he only stole 42 more Bases after his 40 SB year.  The Dodgers traded Kemp to San Diego after the 2014 Season, and he bounced around with stops in Atlanta, Los Angeles for a second time, Cincinnati and Colorado, finishing with good power numbers of 287 Home Runs and 1,031 RBIs.