Hall of Fame's starting pitcher problem -- and what it means

"The 2026 balloting results announced Tuesday confirmed what many had anticipated: another year without a hurler getting the call to Cooperstown. With pitchers getting shut out this year, CC Sabathia remains the only starting pitcher voted into the Hall of Fame by the Baseball Writers' Association of America this decade. The Hall's starting pitcher problem has snuck up quickly as the position has been revolutionized over the past few years."

"In just the past decade -- the 2010s -- we saw a spate of starters enshrined, a group composed largely of the last of the greats who were used in a more or less traditional fashion. These pitchers -- Randy Johnson, Tom Glavine, Greg Maddux, Mike Mussina et al -- enjoyed careers with usage patterns and durability records that led to big lifetime win totals. That's not the only reason they got in, but it helped."

"The results of the most recent round of voting were encouraging because of the solid first-year support for Cole Hamels and the big leap in support for Felix Hernandez. But if that support were to flatline, there wouldn't be another likely Hall of Fame starter until, possibly, 2029, when Zack Greinke becomes eligible. We'll get at least three in the 2030s -- Clayton Kershaw, Max Scherzer and Justin Verlander -- but beyond that trio of no-brainers, who else gets in? Anyone?"

The Hall of Fame faces a growing shortfall of starting pitchers due to rapid changes in how pitchers are used. Recent voting produced no new starting-pitcher inductees, leaving CC Sabathia as the only starter elected by the BBWAA this decade. A cluster of traditionally used, durable pitchers dominated previous decades' elections, producing high lifetime win totals that aided their cases. Solid support for some recent candidates exists, but without sustained momentum there may be a long gap until likely inductees like Zack Greinke, Clayton Kershaw, Max Scherzer and Justin Verlander become eligible. Uncertainty surrounds other current and future pitchers' candidacies.

Read at ESPN.com