Philly Leader

The Baseball Writers' Association of America has unveiled the 2025 Hall of Fame ballot, highlighting some of the sport's notable figures. Leading the first-time nominees are Ichiro Suzuki, CC Sabathia, and Billy Wagner. Each player has a strong case for induction into Cooperstown.

Ichiro Suzuki, known for his remarkable career spanning both Major League Baseball and Japan's Nippon Professional Baseball, is part of the Majors’ 3,000-hit club. His accolades include being the 2001 Rookie of the Year and American League MVP, alongside ten seasons with over 200 hits, ten All-Star selections, and ten Gold Glove Awards.

CC Sabathia is remembered as one of MLB's most reliable starting pitchers. A six-time All-Star and 2009 World Series champion with the Yankees, Sabathia won the AL Cy Young Award in 2007. He joins an elite group of pitchers with at least 250 wins and 3,000 strikeouts.

Billy Wagner enters his final year on the ballot as a strong candidate for induction. Last year he received 73.8% of votes but needs to surpass 75% for enshrinement. Known for saving 422 games with a career ERA of 2.31 over 903 innings, Wagner could become just the ninth relief pitcher in the Hall.

Returning candidates Andruw Jones (61.6% last year) and Carlos Beltrán (57.1%) have made progress but require significant increases in votes to reach induction status this year.

Notably present on this year's ballot are Alex Rodriguez and Manny Ramirez, both associated with performance-enhancing drugs which may affect their chances despite their impressive careers.

Other returning candidates include Chase Utley (28.8%), Omar Vizquel (17.7%), Bobby Abreu (14.8%), Jimmy Rollins (14.8%), Andy Pettitte (13.5%), Mark Buehrle (8.3%), Francisco Rodríguez (7.8%), Torii Hunter (7.3%), and David Wright (6.2%).

Voters have until December 31 to submit ballots with results announced on January 21 via MLB Network. Inductees will be honored during a ceremony on July 27 in Cooperstown, New York.