Many are called, few are chosen. This is the pinnacle of their baseball career. A new crop of legends are headed for Cooperstown to be enshrined.
The Baseball Hall of Fame Class of 2025 was revealed on Tuesday evening with three players getting the call they have been waiting for. Ichiro Suzuki, CC Sabathia and Billy Wagner surpassed the necessary 75% threshold for induction.
Headlining the class is Japanese sensation Ichiro, who was a shoo-in, and easy admission in just his first year on the ballot. The Seattle Mariners legend, who also spent time with the New York Yankees and Miami Marlins after nearly two decades of playing, polled at 100%. He made history becoming the first Japanese-born player to enter the hallowed halls of Cooperstown.
“I don’t think anybody in this whole world thought that I’d be a Hall of Famer,” Suzuki said. “As a baseball player, this is the highest honor you can achieve.”
However, Suzuki just barely missed out on a unanimous selection, receiving 99.7% of the vote. He fell short by the slimmest of margins, one. But the question is why.
Talk about killing two birds with one stone, Suzuki was recently voted into the Japanese Baseball Hall of Fame due to his playing days in the NPB, where he was a seven-time All-Star and a champion in 1996. That league is considered the second-best in the world. Even though he did not capture the ultimate prize in MLB, a World Series ring, he has various accolades and was a 10-time All-Star and claimed the AL MVP and AL Rookie of the Year in his debut season in 2001. He was only the second player in MLB history to accomplish that feat.
“Ichiro is truly one of a kind,” Mariners’ president Jerry Dipoto said in a statement. “His commitment, legendary work ethic, physical endurance, mental toughness, attention to detail and passion for the game are all on a different level.”
Embed from Getty ImagesFellow Yankees star pitcher CC Sabathia, who started off with a long and distinguished tenure with the Cleveland organization, came in next with nearly 93% in the polls. It was also his first time being eligible, collecting 86.8% on the ballot.
“The first time I walked into the plaque room, I almost cried,” Sabathia said about the first time he entered the Cooperstown corridor in which his image will now be permanently enshrined. “I had no idea. I think current players should go to the Hall of Fame. It’s so inspiring.”
The six-time All-Star also spent some time with the Milwaukee Brewers as a rental in 2008 but went to the ‘Bronx Bombers’, Yankees’, the following season and won a World Series in his first year with the club. The south paw had inked a massive seven-year, $161 million deal with New York, the most for a pitcher at the time.
On the opposite side of the first-year spectrum, pitcher Billy Wagner got the call on his 10th and final year on the ballot. He was polling at almost 86% but got in with 82.5%. Wagner began his career with the Houston Astros, then had smaller stints with the Philadelphia Phillies, New York Mets, Boston Red Sox and Atlanta Braves.
“It’s not been an easy 10 years,” Wagner said of his wait, noting he’s not a patient person before cracking a joke.
“I didn’t blow a save during the last 10 years, maybe that had an input on being able to get in.”
Wagner, nicknamed “Billy the Kid,” became known for his dominant closing ability on his way to seven appearances at the Mid-Summer Classic. He took the mound in a combined no-hitter in 2003 and is in the Astros’ team Hall of Fame.
Carlos Beltran was close but no cigar. He was the next closest player to getting inducted but only received just over 70% of the votes. He was polling at above 81% in his third year on the ballot, but the nine-time All-Star, 2017 World Series champion and AL Rookie of the Year fell short of the 75% threshold.
Additional marquee names that did not make the cut included Alex Rodriguez, Manny Ramirez, Chase Utley and Andruw Jones. Rodriguez and Ramirez polled between 35-40%, respectively, with the former just shy by 40%. It was Rodriguez’s fourth time on the ballot, while Ramirez will enter his 10th and last year in 2026.
The 2024 class included Adrian Beltré, Todd Helton, Jim Leyland, and Joe Mauer.
