ORLANDO, Fla. — Jeff Kent was not on a Hall of Fame trajectory when he arrived in San Francisco.
Kent was 29-years-old when he was traded from Cleveland to the Giants in November 1996 (along with José Vizcaino) for third baseman Matt Williams. The deal was met with so much vitriol in the Bay Area that Brian Sabean, the architect of the trade, “Well, I’m not an idiot.” Williams was a four-time All-Star and a fan favorite. Kent was a fine player up to that point, but Cooperstown did not appear to be in his future.
In San Francisco, Kent blossomed into one of the best power-hitting second basemen of all-time. This summer, he’ll be enshrined in the National Baseball Hall of Fame after being elected as part of the Contemporary Baseball Era Ballot.
“That was the turning point of my career,” Kent said on Monday at MLB’s Winter Meetings about joining the Giants. “When I got to San Francisco, (manager) Dusty Baker lit a fire under me to be better — not to achieve the normal standard but to achieve more. Dusty was a guy that really understood how to get the best out of his players and I think he knew I had more to give.”
Kent’s Hall of Fame plaque is all but guaranteed to feature him wearing a Giants cap after all he accomplished over six seasons in San Francisco alongside Barry Bonds, who received fewer than five votes on Sunday.
The second baseman posted a slash line of .297/.368/.535 with 175 home runs and 689 RBIs as a Giant, winning 2000 NL MVP, earning three All-Star appearances and capturing three Silver Sluggers. In 2002, Kent helped lead San Francisco to the World Series and hit two home runs in Game 5, though the Giants fell to the Anaheim Angels in seven games.
Kent would become the sixth player to go into the Hall of Fame as a Giant since the team moved to San Francisco, joining Willie Mays, Willie McCovey, Juan Marichal, Gaylord Perry and Orlando Cepeda. When asked about joining that company, Kent fought through tears as he described joining that quintet.
“There’s no way in the world that you can write my name down and pin it next to those types of players,” said Kent, who had the opportunity to greet Marichal on Monday. “That doesn’t calculate with me, and I’m a guy that wants to calculate things. … There’s no way. I know the things that I did in my career mattered. That’s why I cried at my retirement because I love the game so much.
“I’m grateful for people that recognized it, argued it and thought that I was good enough to be pinned with those guys. It’s a lot of gratitude.”
For all the questions about the highs of his career, Kent was also asked about the infamous wrist injury that he sustained in 2002. Kent initially claimed that he broke his wrist when he slipped off his truck while washing it, but it was later revealed that Kent actually crashed his motorcycle while performing wheelings.
“That’ll die with me,” Kent said on Monday. “But, what you think happened, there’s some truth to it. What did happen — what I said happened — there’s some truth to that.”
Kent said on Monday that he “loved everything that he did” in San Francisco but was noncommittal when asked if he could see himself taking on a role with San Francisco. His son, Kaeden, currently plays in the Yankees’ organization, and when Kent spotted Buster Posey among the Giants’ brass in attendance, Kent asked if he could wear a Yankees hat during spring training.
“We can talk offline,” said Posey, the Giants’ president of baseball operations.
“That era has changed now,” Kent expanded. “Since I’m so far away, I’m chasing my own kid, training him and teaching him. Now, I’m stuck chasing four grandkids. So, it’s going to be hard for me to get on an airplane.”
Following Kent’s enshrinement in 2026, there’s a possibility that three more franchise icons make a trip to Cooperstown in ‘27. Posey will be on next year’s writers’ ballot while Baker and Bruce Bochy will both be eligible for the Contemporary Baseball Era/Managers-Executives-Umpires Ballot.
“You’re lying if you don’t somewhat think about it, but I usually try to push it to the side real quick because I’ve got a lot of other things to think about,” Posey said. “No doubt, it’d be an unbelievable honor. I’m kind of happy that I have this job so I can focus on this. I have four children at home, too. It’d be an unbelievable honor, but I have to focus on (the 2026 season).”