After the Baseball Hall of Fame's 2025 class was announced on Tuesday, everyone had the same question.
Who is the only person who did not vote for Ichiro Suzuki?
The Japanese superstar, along with former Yankees great CC Sabathia and former Mets closer Billy Wagner, cast more than enough votes for the Cooperstown nominee, just one vote short of unanimity.
Ichiro played 19 seasons in MLB after coming to the United States in 2001, quickly becoming a fan favorite en route to earning Rookie of the Year, MVP, Gold Glove, and Silver Slugger honors in his first season with the Mariners.
He went on to record 3,089 hits, 1,420 RBIs, 509 stolen bases, 10 Gold Gloves, two batting titles, 10 All-Star selections, and set an MLB single-season record with 262 hits in 2004. .
Overall, he received 393 votes out of 394 for Hall of Fame nominations.
Sportswriters, insiders and analysts made no secret of their disdain for the still anonymous 394th voter.
“Ichiro missed unanimity by one vote,” says Jon Heyman of the Post. I wrote to X. “Step forward, you dull skull.”
ESPN NFL analyst Damian Woody shared his thoughts on Cooperstown having its first Japanese-born player.
“Who's the cranial paralyzed person who didn't vote for Ichiro?” Former Jets star Asked in post by X.
Like everyone else, “Underdog MLB” podcaster Jared Calabis was frustrated.
“I don't know how you can look at Ichiro's body of work as a Hall of Fame voter and say, 'Oh, I don't get that.' he said.
Fox Sports analyst Ben Verlander called for action, at least for voters whose names have not yet been released.
“Ichiro missed out on being unanimously inducted into the Hall of Fame by one vote.'' he wrote. “Get out. Who didn't vote for Ichiro? And why?
Buster Olney, a longtime ESPN insider, said: probably be more diplomatic –Even if he was confused too.
“It will be interesting to see whether those who did not vote for Ichiro have a clear understanding of the reasons behind their decision,” he wrote.
