As the ballots have been collected, three baseball greats will be joining the Hall of Fame in July. Japanese sensation Ichiro Suzuki was one vote away from being unanimously nominated in his first year on the ballot, becoming the second player to fall one vote short and the first player from Japan to be nominated to the MLB Hall of Fame. 2007 AL Cy Young and 2009 World Series champion CC Sabathia joined Suzuki as a fellow first year hall of fame nomination. Lastly, untouchable lefty reliever Billy Wagner earned 82.5% of the voter’s nods in his final year on the ballot.

Ichiro Suzuki, Outfielder, Seattle Mariners, New York Yankees and Miami Marlins
Beginning his career in Japan, Suzuki spent ages 18 to 26 as a member of the Orix Blue Waves, tallying just under 1,300 hits and hitting .353, earning seven Gold Gloves. Following his successful stint in his home country, he joined the Seattle Mariners, coming stateside.

Suzuki had possibly the greatest rookie season in MLB history. The now 27-year-old led baseball in hits (242) and stolen bases (53), while leading the American League in batting average (.350). Suzuki scooped every award a player could have, earning a Gold Glove, Silver Slugger, AL Rookie of the Year and AL MVP in the Mariners greatest season as a franchise, winning 116 games.

His next two seasons were both excellent, hitting above the .300 average mark and over 200 hits. 2004 would be his next historic season. The always efficient hitting Suzuki roped 262 hits, surpassing the 86-year-old record set by George Sisler. Suzuki’s dominance continued across the next six seasons, leading baseball in hits in five of the six seasons.

The longtime Mariner finally departed from the Pacific Northwest, heading to the Bronx through a trade before the deadline in 2012. His addition at the deadline helped the Yankees to an ALCS berth, before falling to the Detroit Tigers. Though not to the standard of his heyday in Seattle, Suzuki had a successful two-and-a-half season stint in New York. Suzuki hit free agency, heading to the Miami Marlins. It would be there where he’d become the 30th member of the 3,000 hit club, spanking a triple against the Colorado Rockies. Suzuki would finish his playing career in 2019, after returning to Seattle the season prior.

CC Sabathia, Starting Pitcher, Cleveland Indians, Milwaukee Brewers and New York Yankees
Debuting in 2001, the lefty would accumulate a 4.39 ERA and 171 strikeouts in 180.1 innings pitched, finishing second in AL Rookie of the Year voting behind Suzuki. Sabathia put together five solid seasons following, earning two All Star nominations, with a 3.87 ERA in the span.

2007 would be his true breakout year. Sabathia logged the most innings in baseball, tossing 241 innings, with a 3.21 ERA, leading baseball in a strikeout to walk rate (5.65). His efforts earned him another All Star nod and the AL Cy Young award. Sabathia would be solid in 2008, becoming the hottest player on the market at the trade deadline. Milwaukee won the sweepstakes and got everything they paid for, as Sabathia dominated down the stretch for the Brewers, finishing with an 11-2 record in 17 starts, posting an ERA under 1.70. Despite only playing half the season in the National League, he finished fifth in NL Cy Young voting, helping Milwaukee to a Wild Card berth.

In free agency, Sabathia joined the Yankees on a seven-year deal. The lefty was the ace of New York’s rotation, becoming the 27th Yankees team to win a World Series. This would be the first of Sabathia’s three consecutive top five AL Cy Young finishes.

Following the 2012 season, Sabathia began to slow down due to age and injuries, pitching through 2019. From 2017 to 2019, he helped the Yankees to three straight postseason appearances. During his final season, Sabathia collected his 3,000th strikeout, becoming only the third left-handed pitcher to accomplish this feat.

Billy Wagner, Relief Pitcher, Houston Astros, Philadelphia Phillies, New York Mets, Boston Red Sox and Atlanta Braves
Coming out of high school, Wagner earned no Division I offers, opting to go to Division III Ferrum College. Wagner dominated, being drafted 12th overall in the 1993 MLB Draft. He debuted in 1995, contributing one out in a meaningless loss to the New York Mets. Wagner would rattle off three productive seasons, slotting into the full-time closer role in 1997.

1999 would send him into superstardom. Wagner was responsible for clinching 39 saves in the Astros 92-win, NL Central winning season, finishing fourth in NL Cy Young award voting. His next season would be his worst, only appearing in 28 games with an ERA north of six. Wagner would return to his ways in 2001 to 2003, posting a low two ERA and being picked twice to the NL All Star team.

Following the 2003 season, Houston dealt the closer to Philadelphia. In his two years in pinstripes, Wagner was untouchable, with a 1.86 ERA in 120 games. Wagner left Philadelphia at the end of the season, going to the rival New York Mets. Wagner’s dominance continued in Queens, helping the 2006 Mets to a NLCS appearance in his second 40+ save season of his career.

The next two seasons were great for the southpaw, earning two more All Star nods. Towards the end of the 2008 season, he suffered an elbow injury, sidelining him for the rest of the year and part of the next year. After just two appearances in New York during 2009, Wagner was sent to Boston for the final month of the season, being a pivotal piece of the Red Sox’s berth.

At the conclusion of the year, he signed a one-year deal with the Braves. In Wagner’s swansong, he looked like his prime self, clinching 37 saves with a 1.43 ERA, as Atlanta would earn the NL Wild Card.

Rest of the ballot
The closest player to miss the 75% cut off was Carlos Beltrán, falling just under 5% short in his third year on the ballot. The nine-time All Star saw a 13% increase in votes from 2024, showing the early signs that he will be a part of next year’s class. Narrowly behind Beltrán was 10-time Gold Glove Andruw Jones, who has just two years left on the ballot, needing 9% of votes to join the exclusive group.

Phillies great Chase Utley saw an uptick in votes, finishing with just under 40% of votes, followed by Álex Rodriguez, Manny Ramírez and Andy Pettitte, all of who’s chances of joining the Hall of Fame will always be tainted by their steroid use. In his first year, longtime Mariners righty Félix Hernández appeared on just over 20% of voters ballots.

Bobby Abreu, Jimmy Rollins, Omar Vizquel, Dustin Pedroia, Mark Buehrle, Francisco Rodríguez, David Wright and Torii Hunter rounded out the players remaining on the ballot for another season.

With next year’s ballot having no true consensus first-year nominees, many of the players who narrowly missed this year have a great chance to be sent to Cooperstown.

All stats are from Baseball Reference as of Jan. 23.

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