Special Report

Baseball Teams Sending the Most Players to the Hall of Fame

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On Tuesday, Jan. 25, David Ortiz became the latest player to be selected to the Baseball Hall of Fame. The Dominican-born Ortiz was the only player to receive more than 75% of the votes from sports media members needed to be elected.

Ortiz played for 20 years for the Minnesota Twins and the Boston Red Sox. He was one of the big reasons why the Red Sox won the World Series in 2004, ending their so-called 86-year-old curse. (These teams have gone the longest without a playoff win.)

Ortiz is the 12th member of the Red Sox to be chosen for the Hall of Fame, joining such Red Sox legends as Ted Williams and Carl Yastrzemski. The Red Sox have one of the higher player totals in the HOF on the list, but there are quite a few teams ahead of them. 

To determine the baseball teams with the most members in the Hall of Fame, 24/7 Tempo reviewed data from the National Baseball Hall of Fame and Museum. Inductees are associated with just one franchise, their primary team. Players, managers, and executives were all considered. Inductees associated with teams that were renamed or relocated were also considered, but Hall of Famers from defunct franchises were not included. Additional data came from Baseball Reference.

While the team with the most players in the Hall of Fame will not come as a shock, you might be surprised at the number of Hall of Famers from other clubs who have been honored. Most of the teams on the list are at least 119 years old, and they have the most Hall of Fame players. Three relatively new franchises have not had a player inducted yet.

Some of these teams began their baseball lives in different cities with different names before moving in the 1950s and 1960s. As the St. Louis Browns and Washington Senators, those franchises were mostly also-rans until they moved and became the Baltimore Orioles and Minnesota Twins, respectively. Success soon followed. The Orioles have won three World Series, with Hall of Famers Frank and Brooks Robinson, and the Twins have won two, with HOF outfielder Kirby Puckett.

While some HOF players played their entire career with one team, such as George Brett of the Kansas City Royals, five-time Cy Young winning pitcher Randy Johnson toiled for six teams and chose to enter the Hall of Fame as a member of the Seattle Marlins. (These are professional athletes who have played for the most teams.)

Click here to see the baseball teams sending the most players to the hall of fame

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28. Arizona Diamondbacks
> Hall of Famers: 0
> Notable inductees: N/A
> Franchise active since: 1998

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28. Miami Marlins
> Hall of Famers: 0
> Notable inductees: N/A
> Franchise active since: 1993

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28. Tampa Bay Rays
> Hall of Famers: 0
> Notable inductees: N/A
> Franchise active since: 1998

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24. Colorado Rockies
> Hall of Famers: 1
> Notable inductees: Larry Walker
> Franchise active since: 1993

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24. Kansas City Royals
> Hall of Famers: 1
> Notable inductees: George Brett
> Franchise active since: 1969

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24. Los Angeles Angels
> Hall of Famers: 1
> Notable inductees: Nolan Ryan
> Franchise active since: 1961

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24. Texas Rangers
> Hall of Famers: 1
> Notable inductees: Iván Rodríguez
> Franchise active since: 1961

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19. Houston Astros
> Hall of Famers: 2
> Notable inductees: Jeff Bagwell, Craig Biggio
> Franchise active since: 1962

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19. Milwaukee Brewers
> Hall of Famers: 2
> Notable inductees: Robin Yount, Paul Molitor
> Franchise active since: 1969

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19. New York Mets
> Hall of Famers: 2
> Notable inductees: Tom Seaver, Mike Piazza
> Franchise active since: 1962

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19. San Diego Padres
> Hall of Famers: 2
> Notable inductees: Tony Gwynn, Trevor Hoffman
> Franchise active since: 1969

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19. Toronto Blue Jays
> Hall of Famers: 2
> Notable inductees: Roberto Alomar, Roy Halladay
> Franchise active since: 1977

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18. Seattle Mariners
> Hall of Famers: 3
> Notable inductees: Randy Johnson, Ken Griffey Jr.
> Franchise active since: 1977

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17. Washington Nationals
> Hall of Famers: 5
> Notable inductees: Tim Raines, Andre Dawson
> Franchise active since: 1969

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16. Baltimore Orioles
> Hall of Famers: 9
> Notable inductees: Brooks Robinson, Cal Ripken
> Franchise active since: 1901

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15. Cincinnati Reds
> Hall of Famers: 10
> Notable inductees: Frank Robinson, Johnny Bench
> Franchise active since: 1882

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14. Philadelphia Phillies
> Hall of Famers: 11
> Notable inductees: Steve Carlton, Mike Schmidt
> Franchise active since: 1883

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11. Boston Red Sox
> Hall of Famers: 12
> Notable inductees: David Ortiz, Ted Williams
> Franchise active since: 1901

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11. Detroit Tigers
> Hall of Famers: 12
> Notable inductees: Ty Cobb, Al Kaline
> Franchise active since: 1901

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11. Minnesota Twins
> Hall of Famers: 12
> Notable inductees: Kirby Puckett, Rod Carew
> Franchise active since: 1901

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9. Cleveland Guardians
> Hall of Famers: 13
> Notable inductees: Bob Feller, Larry Doby
> Franchise active since: 1901

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9. Pittsburgh Pirates
> Hall of Famers: 13
> Notable inductees: Roberto Clemente, Honus Wagner
> Franchise active since: 1882

8. Oakland Athletics
> Hall of Famers: 14
> Notable inductees: Rickey Henderson, Catfish Hunter
> Franchise active since: 1901

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5. Atlanta Braves
> Hall of Famers: 16
> Notable inductees: Chipper Jones, Greg Maddux
> Franchise active since: 1876

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5. Chicago White Sox
> Hall of Famers: 16
> Notable inductees: Luis Aparicio, Carlton Fisk
> Franchise active since: 1901

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5. Los Angeles Dodgers
> Hall of Famers: 16
> Notable inductees: Jackie Robinson, Sandy Koufax
> Franchise active since: 1884

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4. Chicago Cubs
> Hall of Famers: 18
> Notable inductees: Ernie Banks, Ron Santo
> Franchise active since: 1876

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3. St. Louis Cardinals
> Hall of Famers: 20
> Notable inductees: Bob Gibson, Stan Musial
> Franchise active since: 1882

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2. San Francisco Giants
> Hall of Famers: 25
> Notable inductees: Willie Mays, Juan Marichal
> Franchise active since: 1883

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1. New York Yankees
> Hall of Famers: 26
> Notable inductees: Yogi Berra, Derek Jeter
> Franchise active since: 1903

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