By John A. Tures, Professor of Political Science, LaGrange College

This is an all-points bulletin to all die-hard Atlanta Braves fans. Your words, your posts, and reposts on social media are all badly needed by a Braves warrior and clubhouse leader: Catcher Brian McCann. He’s not just in danger of missing Major League Baseball’s Hall-of-Fame. He’s in real trouble of being dropped on his first time on the ballot. But you can perhaps do something about it, as you share this link wherever you can generate some buzz. Cite these facts in your post, so he’ll stay on the ballot for 2026, and maybe move up the rankings.

Like you, I was a little skeptical at first. As Nick Halden for House that Hank Built writes “Looking at a comparison between Russell Martin, Joe Mauer, Brian McCann, and Iván Rodríguez the distance between McCann and his counterparts becomes clearer. McCann’s only argument is weak, with his only comparable numbers being Silver Slugger awards and a World Series ring. Every meaningful statistical category falls in the camp of the two Hall of Fame catchers. Even Martin has an edge over McCann in career WAR, though Brian’s offensive numbers are more impressive than Martin’s. The point remains clear, Brian McCann is not a Hall of Fame-worthy player and if the current numbers hold has no chance of getting in. The catcher remains a Braves legend and had an incredible career, but not one deserving of the highest honor in baseball.”

Well, it’s one thing to say McCann doesn’t belong in the Hall-of-Fame. It’s another to accept that McCann doesn’t deserve even a second year of voting. The latter contention isn’t supported by the statistics.

I’m glad Halden mentions Hall-of-Famer Joe Mauer. Fangraphs WAR, or Fangraphs’ “Wins Above Replacement” measure (fWAR) puts McCann right with Mauer. “[H]e grades out much higher using Fangraphs’ version of fWAR, due to his extremely high grades for his pitch framing. McCann has a 52.1 career fWAR, 15th all time, between Hall of Famers Joe Mauer and Mickey Cochrane,” writes Adam J. Morris with Lone Star Ball.

For those who demand postseason glory, McCann has a World Series Ring, and several playoff appearances with the Braves, Yankees and Astros.

And for a guy with good defensive statistics, McCann can also point to several awards. According to Baseball Reference’s numbers, McCann has seven All-Star appearances, two top 25 MVP vote lists, and six silver slugger awards for being the best hitter at his position, showing the guy could put up offensive numbers as well.

Just for the sake of the argument, Hall-of-Famer Mike Piazza has ten Silver Sluggers for catchers. Fellow Hall-of-Fame Catcher Ivan Rodriguez has seven. MLB HoF member Joe Mauer has five. Buster Posey has five. Gary Carter, also in the HoF, has five. I know the award has only been around since 1980, but it shows that McCann is in excellent company. Buster Posey had five, and many expect him to be a strong candidate.

Now, you can debate whether McCann was better than anyone on that list, but you have no argument to say they deserved to get 75%+ on the ballot, while McCann only deserves single-digit votes.

Take to Facebook, Twitter or X, Instagram, Snapchat, FanSided, Sports Illustrated.com or wherever you scroll. But don’t wait too long. Voting results are announced in eleven days, and ballots are being turned in as we speak. If there’s any justice for McCann, he’ll get enough votes to be on the ballot for 2026. And, as players who make it their first time, hopefully he’ll stick around long enough, maybe getting in with the veterans’ committee, like Ted Simmons.

Meanwhile, Brian McCann, the Braves’ longtime catcher from 2006 to 2013, faces an uphill battle. The seven-time All-Star has not yet reached the 5% threshold required to remain on the ballot for 2026, putting his Hall of Fame candidacy in jeopardy.

John A. Tures is a professor of political science at LaGrange College in LaGrange, Georgia. His views are his own. He can be reached at jtures@lagrange.edu. His “X” account is JohnTures2.