Ichiro Suzuki became the first Japanese player to be elected to the baseball Hall of Fame, falling one vote shy of a unanimous vote when he was elected Tuesday along with CC Sabathia and Billy Wagner.
Suzuki received 393 of 394 votes from the Baseball Writers Association of America. Sabathia had 342 ballots and Wagner had 325, which was 29 more than the 296 needed for the required 75 percent.
Sabathia and Suzuki were selected in their first appearance on the ballot. Wagner made it on his 10th and final attempt.
The trio will be inducted into the Hall at Cooperstown on July 27 along with Dave Parker and Dick Allen, who were voted in last month by the classics committee.
Mariano Rivera was the only player to receive 100 percent of the vote from the BBWAA, appearing on all 425 ballots in 2019. Derek Jeter was selected on 395 of 396 in 2020.
Carlos Beltran fell 19 votes short at 70.3 percent, up from 57.1 percent last year and 46.5 percent in 2023 in his first ballot appearance. He was followed by Andruw Jones with 261 for 66.2 percent, an increase from 61.6 percent last year and 7.3 percent when he debuted in 2018.
Best communication influencer ever?
Suzuki came to Major League Baseball from Japan as a 27-year-old player in 2001 and joined Fred Lynn in 1975 as the only players to win Rookie of the Year and MVP in the same season. He was a two-time AL batting champion and 10-time All-Star and Gold Glove outfielder, hitting .311 with 117 homers, 780 RBIs and 509 stolen bases with Seattle (2001-12, 2018- 19), the New York Yankees (2012-14) and Miami (2015-17).
He may be the greatest hitter of all time, with 1,278 hits in Nippon Professional Baseball and 3,089 in MLB, including a season-high 262 in 2004. His total of 4,367 is a record than Pete Rose's MLB record of 4,256.
Sabathia was a six-time All-Star who won the 2007 AL Cy Young Award and a World Series title in 2009. He went 251-161 with a 3.74 ERA and 3,093 strikeouts, third among lefties on behind Randy Johnson and Steve Carlton, during 19 seasons with Cleveland (2001-08), Milwaukee (2008) and the New York Yankees (2009-19).
Wagner received 284 votes and 73.8 percent on the 2024 ballot, five votes shy of third baseman Adrian Beltre, catcher/first baseman Joe Mauer and first baseman Todd Helton to choose Wagner received only 10.5 percent support in his first appearance in 2016.
He became the ninth Hall of Fame pitcher to serve exclusively in relief – including the first lefty – following Hoyt Wilhelm, Rollie Fingers, Dennis Eckersley, Bruce Sutter, Goose Gossage, Trevor Hoffman, Lee Smith and Rivera.
A seven-time All-Star, Wagner was 47-40 with a 2.31 ERA and 422 saves for Houston (1995-2003), Philadelphia (2004-05), the New York Mets (2006-09), Boston (2009) and Atlanta (2010). His 11.9 strikeouts per nine innings are the most among pitchers with at least 900 innings, although his 903 career innings are the fewest among Hall of Famers.
Chase Utley was sixth with 157 votes for 39.8 percent, up from 28.8 percent in his first appearance.
Alex Rodriguez and Manny Ramirez have fallen in the polls, hurt by suspensions for performance-enhancing drugs. Rodriguez scored 37.1 percent in his fourth appearance, up from 34.8 percent, and Ramirez scored 34.3 percent in his ninth, up from 32.5 percent.
Andrew Pettite received 110 votes and 27.9 percent in his seventh appearance, doubling from 13.5 percent last year. Felix Hernandez received 81 votes and 20.6 percent in his first ballot.
Players include 278 of 351 Hall of Famers elected, including 142 on the BBWAA ballot, 62 of whom were elected in their first year of eligibility.
Carlos Gonzalez, Curtis Granderson, Adam Jones, Ian Kinsler, Russell Martin, Brian McCann, Hanley Ramirez, Fernando Rodney, Troy Tulowitzki and Ben Zobrist will be dropped from future ballots after less than 5 percent get
Cole Hamels, Ryan Braun and Matt Kemp will join the ballot next year.
