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The Baseball Hall of Fame has three new members.
Ichiro Suzuki, CC Sabathia and Billy Wanger were voted into the Hall of Fame on Tuesday. Outfielder Carlos Beltran and Andruw Jones fell just short of immortality.
Ichiro was one vote shy of becoming the second unanimous selection for the Hall of Fame. The Japanese outfielder was an immediate sensation with the Mariners in 2001, winning the AL Rookie of the Year and MVP awards. A 10-time All-Star and Gold Glove winner, Ichiro set a major league record with 262 hits in 2004.
His 4,307 professional hits are the most of any player in baseball history. He ended his major league career with 3,089 hits and 509 steals, his accomplishments helping to pave the way for future Japanese position players.
Sabathia, who earned 86.8% of the vote, reinvented himself toward the end of his career. A strikeout artist in his younger days, he relied on his command and guile as he aged, continuing to find ways to generate outs. The 2007 AL Cy Young winner, Sabathia was a six-time All-Star and won a World Series with the Yankees in 2009.
He was at his most dominant during a 17-game stint with the Brewers, putting the team on his back and dragging them to the postseason. His performance was good enough to place sixth in the 2008 NL MVP vote. Sabathia posted a 251-161 record with a 3.74 ERA and a 1.26 WHiP, striking out 3,093 batters.
Wagner was finally inducted in his final year on the ballot, earning 82.5% of the vote. A seven-time All-Star and the 1999 NL Rolaids Relief Award winner, he saved at least 35 games for four different franchises and ranks eighth in MLB history with 422 career saves. He posted a 2.31 ERA and a 1.00 WHiP, striking out 1,196 batters.
Wagner, with his 903 innings, now has the fewest innings of any reliever elected to the Hall by the BBWAA, dethroning Bruce Sutter (1042 innings).
Ichiro, Sabathia and Wagner will join Dave Parker and Dick Allen, who were both voted in on the Classic Baseball Era ballot in December, as the inducted 2025 Baseball Hall of Fame class on July 27.
