Mariano Rivera, Roy Halladay, Edgar Martinez and Mike Mussina were elected into the Baseball Hall of Fame on Tuesday, making up the 2019 class. Rivera did so by becoming the first unanimous selection in MLB history.
Rivera and Halladay both bade it on their first year on the ballot, while Martinez made it on his 10th and final opportunity, and Mussina in his sixth. They join Harold Baines and Lee Smith, who were voted in by the Today’s Game Era ballot this past December.
Rivera and Halladay were considered to be locks to make it as first-ballot candidates. Halladay received 85.4 percent of the vote. Martinez (85.4 percent) and Mussina (76.7) both fell just short a year ago, but made it comfortably this year.
Among the candidates who fell short of receiving the 75 percent needed to get into the Hall of Fame were Curt Schilling (60.9), Roger Clemens (59.5), Barry Bonds (59.1), Larry Walker (54.6), Omar Vizquel (42.8), Fred McGriff (39.8), Manny Ramirez (22.8), Jeff Kent (18.1), Scott Rolen (17.2), Billy Wagner (16.7), Todd Helton (16.5), Gary Sheffield (13.6), Andy Pettitte (9.9) Sammy Sosa (8.5) and Andruw Jones (7.5).
Former Los Angeles Dodgers players Michael Young (2.1), Ted Lilly (0), Derek Lowe (0), Juan Pierre (0) as well as Lance Berkman (1.2), Miguel Tejada (1.2) and Roy Oswalt (0.9) were among the players to fall off future Hall of Fame ballots. Five percent of the final vote is needed to remain.
Rivera, who played all 19 of his Major League seasons with the New York Yankees and was named an All-Star 13 times, won five World Series championships and has the most saves in the history of the sport with 652.
Halladay had an outstanding 16-year career with the Toronto Blue Jays and Philadelphia Phillies. He was named an All-Star eight times while winning two Cy Young awards. Unfortunately, he will not be able to see himself inducted this summer as he was tragically killed in a plane crash this past year.
Martinez is known to be one of the best designated hitters of all time. In his 18-year career with the Seattle Mariners, he was named an All-Star seven times in addition to winning five Silver Slugger awards and two batting titles.
Mussina spent his entire 18-year career in the American League East with the Baltimore Orioles and New York Yankees. In addition to five All-Star appearances, he won seven Gold Glove Awards and 270 career games.
The induction ceremony will be held Sunday, July 21, during Hall of Fame weekend in Cooperstown.
Candidates who will be eligible for the first time in 2020 are Derek Jeter, Bobby Abreu, Josh Beckett, Jason Giambi, Paul Konerko, Cliff Lee and Alfonso Soriano, among others.
