Ichiro Suzuki headlines latest Baseball Hall of Fame class, two others inducted in Cooperstown


this National Baseball Hall of Fame Three more plaques will be awarded this summer.

Ichiro SuzukiCC Sabathia and Billy Wagner all received the sport’s highest honor on Tuesday and are headed to Cooperstown.

Ichiro is the first Japanese-born player to receive Hall of Fame honors. He received 99.7% of the votes, just one vote shy of becoming the second player to receive a unanimous vote. Players need at least 75% of the votes to be elected.

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Ichiro at Tokyo Dome

Seattle Mariners right fielder Ichiro Suzuki (51) waves to fans after the game against the Oakland Athletics at Tokyo Dome. (Darren Yamashita-USA TODAY Sports)

Ichiro joined the major leagues in 2001 as a high-profile Japanese prospect, and in nine seasons playing in his native country, he won three MVPs and was selected to seven All-Star appearances. After joining the Seattle Mariners at the age of 28, he immediately won the American League MVP and helped the Mariners win a record 116 games that year.

From 2001 to 2010, Ichiro was selected to the All-Star Game every season and won the Gold Glove Award each time. During this time, he won three Silver Slugger Awards and two batting titles while posting a .331 average and .806 OPS. In 2004, he set a single-season record with 262 hits and was the only player in MLB history to have more than 200 hits in 10 consecutive seasons. He also stole over 500 bases and was one of only seven men to record 3,000 hits and 500 stolen bases.

After his 11th MLB game, his career average never dropped below .300. He retired with a .311 average, 3,089 hits and a 60.0 WAR. He is one of only 21 players in the live-ball era (since 1920) to have at least 10 seasons with a .300 batting average (qualifying hitter), and only seven players to achieve that level in 10 consecutive years one. Ichiro spent most of his career with the Mariners, with stops with the Yankees and Marlins.

Ichiro Suzuki looks on

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

Sabathia received recognition as did Ichiro In his first year on the ballot. He was one of only 19 pitchers in the 2000s to reach 3,000 strikeouts. He finished in the top five in Cy Young Award voting every year from 2007 to 2011, winning the award in 2007. One of those seasons was the 2008 season, when he finished fifth in the NFC voting despite being drafted from July, when Cleveland of the American League faced the Brewers of the National League. However, in his brief time with Milwaukee (17 starts), he pitched seven complete games and had a 1.65 ERA, with plenty of work coming his way as the Brewers make a push for the postseason. Completed over three days of rest.

The lefty won a World Series with the Yankees in 2009, his first season on a contract that was the largest ever for a pitcher at the time. He struggled from 2013 to 2015 with a 4.81 ERA as alcoholism took a toll on his career and life. After rehabbing, though, he re-established himself as an elite pitcher and posted three straight seasons with an ERA below 4.00. Overall, he retired after the 2019 season with a 3.74 career ERA, 3,093 strikeouts, 251 wins and six All-Star selections. He dislocated his shoulder in the final pitch of his MLB career, and he quipped that he kept pitching until he couldn’t pitch anymore.

CC Sabathia salutes crowd

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

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Wagner came within five votes of qualifying last year, his final year of eligibility. While he even admitted that the wait was a “nightmare,” his numbers certainly screamed that he deserved the credit.

Among relievers with more than 500 innings since 1920, his 11.9 strikeouts per nine innings rank fourth in MLB history. His 422 saves ranked seventh and his 2.31 ERA ranked second behind Mariano Rivera. Wagner was elite from start to finish — in fact, his lowest ERA in a season came in his final season, when he posted a 1.43 ERA in 2010. He had the highest strikeout rate and lowest batting average among pitchers with over 900 points. bureau.

Wagner, who played for the Astros, Phillies, Mets, Red Sox and Braves, was a seven-time All-Star and a two-time Cy Young Award vote-getter. Sabathia received 86.6% of the vote, while Wagner received 82.5%.

Billy Wagner pitches

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 selected by the Classical Era committee last month, and the five of them will be enshrined in history together this summer.

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