Ichiro Suzuki Inducted into New Baseball Hall of Fame, 2 Others Elected to Cooperstown

The National Baseball Hall of Fame will have three more plaques this summer.

Ichiro Suzuki, CC Sabathia and Billy Wagner headed to Cooperstown on Tuesday with the sport’s highest honor.

Ichiro is the first Japanese player to receive the Hall of Fame honor. He received 99.7% of the vote and was one vote shy of second place. Players need at least 75% of the vote to be selected.

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Ichiro joined the majors in 2001 as Japan’s top prospect, hitting .353 in nine seasons while playing in his home country, winning three MVPs and being a seven-time All-Star. Joining the Seattle Mariners at age 28, he had a breakout season, winning the AL MVP and helping that year’s Mariners to 116 wins.

From 2001 to 2010, Ichiro was named an All-Star every season and won the Gold Glove Award each time. During that time, he posted a .331 average and .806 OPS, earning three Silver Slugger Awards and two batting titles. In the year He set the all-time single-season record with 262 in 2004 and is the only player in MLB history to record 10-straight 200-plus seasons. He also stole over 500 bases and is one of seven with 3,000 hits and 500 stolen bases.

After 11 MLB games, his career average never dipped below .300. He retired with a .311 average, 3,089 hits and 60.0 WAR. In the straight ball era (since 1920), he is one of only 21 players to hit at least 10 seasons .300 (among qualified hitters), and only seven to hit 10 consecutive years. Ichiro spent most of his career with the Mariners, earning pit stops with the Yankees and Marlins.

Former Seattle Mariners outfielder Ichiro Suzuki throws the ball into the dugout before throwing the first pitch against the Houston Astros at T-Mobile Park. (Joe Nicholson-USA TODAY Sports)

Sabathia, like Ichiro, received criticism in his first year at the polls. He is one of 19 pitchers to record 3,000 strikeouts and dominate the 2000s. From 2007 to 2011, he finished in the top five of the Si Yang Award every year, winning the award in 2007. One of those seasons, however, was the 2008 campaign, although he was traded when he finished fifth in the NL voting. Cleveland in the American League for the National League Brewers in July. However, in his brief stint with Milwaukee (17 starts), he threw seven complete games and pitched to a 1.65 ERA, with most of that work coming on three days’ rest as the Brewers made a postseason push.

The lefty won the World Series with the Yankees in 2009, the largest contract ever given to a pitcher in his first season. He struggled from 2013 to 2015, posting a 4.81 ERA as his alcoholism took a toll on his career and his life. After a rehab, however, he reinvented himself as a good pitcher and recorded three more seasons under a 4.00 ERA. Overall, he retired after the 2019 season with a 3.74 career ERA, 3,093 strikeouts, 251 hits and six starts. In his last MLB career, he dislocated his shoulder, and said he stopped until he couldn’t.

New York Yankees starting pitcher CC Sabathia (52) salutes the fans during a ceremony before the game between the New York Yankees and the Toronto Blue Jays at Yankee Stadium. (Vincent Carchietta-USA TODAY Sports)

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Wagner earned the nod in his final qualifying year after coming up five votes short last year. And while he admits the wait is a “nightmare,” the numbers certainly scream respectable.

Among relievers with 500-plus innings since 1920, his 11.9 strikeouts per 9 innings are fourth in MLB history. His 422 saves are the seventh-most, while his 2.31 ERA is second only to Mariano Rivera. Wagner was prolific from start to finish – in fact, his lowest ERA in a single season was tied in 2010 when he posted a 1.43 ERA. He also has the lowest batting average among pitchers at 900 and 900 plus. innings

Wagner, who spent time with the Astros, Phillies, Mets, Red Sox and Braves, was a seven-time All-Star and twice received Cy Young Award votes. Sabathia received 86.6% of the vote, Wagner received 82.5% of the vote.

Billy Wagner of the Houston Astros against the San Diego Padres on April 23, 2000 in San Diego, California. (Sports News via Getty Images via Getty Images)

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Dave Parker and Dick Allen were elected to the Classics Committee last month, and the five will form together this summer.

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