[QUOTE="Rey619,  post: 17271, member: 130"][URL='https://www.espn.com/mlb/player/stats/_/id/4570/ichiro-suzuki']Ichiro Suzuki[/URL] became the first Japanese-born player elected to the National Baseball Hall of Fame, falling one vote shy of unanimous selection, and he'll be joined in the Class of 2025 by starting pitcher [URL='https://www.espn.com/mlb/player/stats/_/id/4553/cc-sabathia']CC Sabathia[/URL] and closer [URL='https://www.espn.com/mlb/player/stats/_/id/3375/billy-wagner']Billy Wagner[/URL].

Suzuki, who got 393 of 394 votes in balloting of the Baseball Writers' Association of America, would have joined [URL='https://www.espn.com/mlb/team/_/name/nyy/new-york-yankees']Yankees[/URL] great [URL='https://www.espn.com/mlb/player/stats/_/id/3240/mariano-rivera']Mariano Rivera[/URL] (2019) as the only unanimous selections. Instead, Suzuki's 99.746% of the vote is second only to [URL='https://www.espn.com/mlb/player/stats/_/id/3246/derek-jeter']Derek Jeter[/URL]'s 99.748% (396 of 397 ballots cast in 2020) as the highest plurality for a position player in Hall of Fame voting, per the BBWAA.


[URL unfurl="true"]https://www.espn.com/mlb/story/_/id/43510556/ichiro-suzuki-cc-sabathia-billy-wagner-baseball-hall-fame[/URL][/QUOTE]
What a monumental occasion for Ichiro Suzuki, becoming the first Japanese-born player elected to the Hall of Fame! It’s a home run for both him and baseball. Falling just one vote short of unanimous selection? That's like a double play missing by a hair!

Congrats also to CC Sabathia and Billy Wagner—talk about a pitching party! With Suzuki’s 99.746% of the vote, it’s clear he’s a legend of the game. I guess you could say he had a "hit" with the voters, while Mariano Rivera and Derek Jeter can still boast their unanimous selections.

This class of 2025 is shaping up to be as prestigious as a World Series trophy! Keep swinging for the fences, Rey! ⚾️