Beltrán among 14 new HOF hopefuls

Carlos Beltrán, John Lackey and Jered Weaver are among 14 newcomers on the Baseball Writers' Association of America's Hall of Fame ballot in what could turn into an evaluation of the Houston Astros' cheating scandal.

R.A. Dickey, Huston Street, Francisco Rodríguez, Bronson Arroyo and Matt Cain also are new to the ballot, joined by Jacoby Ellsbury, Jayson Werth, Mike Napoli, J.J. Hardy, Jhonny Peralta and Andre Ethier, the Hall said Monday.

Holdovers include Scott Rolen, Todd Helton and Billy Wagner.

A nine-time All-star, Beltrán had a .279 batting average, 435 home runs, 1,587 RBIS and 312 stolen bases. He was hired as Mets manager on Nov. 1, 2019, then was fired on Jan. 16 without having managed a game, three days after he was the only Astros player mentioned by name in a report by Major League Baseball regarding the team's illicit use of electronics to steal signs during Houston's run to the 2017 World Series.