Ichiro Suzuki wants to raise a glass with the voter who chose not to check off his name on the Hall of Fame ballot.

At Ferrum College: went 17-3 with a 1.63 ERA and 327 strikeouts from 1991-93; earned Division III first-team All-America honors. Drafted: chosen by Houston in first round in 1993.

New York Mets catcher Paul Lo Duca, left, congratulates closer Billy Wagner by patting him on the cap after the Mets 4-3 win over the New York Yankees in 2006. Billy Wagner was unhittable as a pitcher and now he’s officially a baseball immortal.

Billy Wagner had never been to Cooperstown. His closest brushes were trips in short-season A-ball to Oneonta, some 25 miles south in New York, to play road games in 1993, his first professional season in the Houston Astros’ system,

Major league career: pitched for Houston, Philadelphia, New York Mets, Boston and Atlanta from 1995-2010; ranks eighth in MLB history with 422 saves; struck out 1,196 batters; had a 2.31 ERA.

Suzuki, the first Japanese-born inductee, will be joined by longtime ace left-hander CC Sabathia and hard-throwing closer Billy Wagner, each of whom cruised ... Suzuki's close call means New York Yankees closer Mariano Rivera remains the only unanimous ...

Billy Wagner finds out Tuesday evening if he will earn enshrinement in the National Baseball Hall of Fame and according to the early returns and recent trends it appears the Will Cooperstown Call ...

Sabathia, Suzuki and Wagner Get Their "Hall Pass" In Cooperstown Sabathia, Suzuki and Wagner Get In Cooperstown

Wagner, 53, reportedly appeared on 82.5 percent of ballots, easily clearing the 75 percent mark needed for induction. He earned a 73.8-percent voting share in 2024, up from his 68.1-percent voting ...

In New York, Wagner was a two-time All-Star and was one of the reasons why the Mets won 97 games and the National League East title in 2006. “Congratulations to Billy Wagner on baseball’s ...

Image Courtesy of Major League Baseball By Zachary Lichter Former Major League Baseball (MLB) players, Ichiro Suzuki, Carsten Charles Sabathia, and Billy Wagner’s life changed on January 21 when they received the most exciting news of any former baseball player’s life: that they would be inducted into the National Baseball Hall of Fame.

The Athletic's Jayson Stark took a deep dive into the Hall of Fame chances for a couple modern day closers with Billy Wagner receiving enshrinement this year.