Billy Wagner, one of the best and most reliable relievers of his era, fell a few percentage points short of being inducted into the Baseball Hall of Fame as Joe Mauer, Adrian Beltre and Todd Helton were elected Tuesday.
Wagner received 73.8% of the vote. For a player to be inducted into the Hall of Fame, he needs 75% of the votes. According to CBS Sports, Wagner fell just five votes short of the cutoff.
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Billy Wagner, No. 15 of the New York Mets, stands in the dugout before the 79th MLB All-Star Game at Yankee Stadium on July 15, 2008 in the Bronx, New York. (Rich Pilling/MLB via Getty Images)
Mauer and Beltre were inducted into the Hall of Fame in their first year on the ballot. Helton was in his sixth year. Wagner was in his ninth year on the ballot, meaning he has only one year left to reach Cooperstown on the Baseball Writers Association of America ballot.
Wagner told MLB.com that it was “very disappointing” to miss out.
“I can't hide it. I'm frustrated, but on the other hand, I'm grateful to God that I had the opportunity to participate in the ballot. I'm really grateful to everyone who participated in voting. ” he said. “They deserve it.”
The baseball world was also upset that Wagner was not inducted into the Hall of Fame.
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Billy Wagner of the Houston Astros pumps his fist while celebrating his 39th save of the season, helping the Astros defeat the St. Louis Cardinals 2-1 in St. Louis. (COTT ROVAK/AFP via Getty Images)
Former MLB pitcher CJ Nitkowski was one of them. He wrote in X: “The fourth-most strikeouts of any left-handed relief pitcher in history, and the fourth-best pitcher of all time, missed out on being inducted into the Hall of Fame by five votes on his ninth try. It's brutal.”
He was also upset that some writers were only putting Manny Ramirez and Alex Rodriguez on the ballot.
Ben Verlander called it “crazy” that Wagner hasn't been inducted yet.
Wagner was named an All-Star seven times during his 16-year career. He played for the Houston Astros, Philadelphia Phillies, New York Mets, Boston Red Sox, and Atlanta Braves until his retirement. He was named an All-Star in his final season in 2010.
Former Houston Astros pitcher Billy Wagner during Houston Astros Hall of Fame Weekend at Minute Maid Park on August 12, 2023 in Houston. (Bob Levy/Getty Images)
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He finished his career with a 2.31 ERA, a sub-.190 batting average against batters on both sides of the plate, and 422 saves. He is likely to win next year, when players like Ichiro Suzuki are scheduled to be on the ballot for the first time.
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