COOPERSTOWN, NY – They come from Appalachia; Aichi, Japan; Wampum, Pennsylvania; Vallejo, California; and Cincinnati, Ohio.
They are sluggers, a slap hitter, an ace and a closer.
The quintet makes up one of the most diverse Baseball Hall of Fame classes in history, including three Black players and the first Japanese-born inductee.
Outfielder Ichiro Suzuki, starting pitcher CC Sabathia, reliever Billy Wagner and deceased Dave Parker and Dick Allen all will be inducted Sunday, July 27, into the Baseball Hall of Fame and Museum in front of a crowd that could be the largest in history.
“It’s an incredible Hall of Fame class,’ Hall of Fame closer Goose Gossage tells USA TODAY Sports. “These guys all come from different backgrounds and eras, but the thing I love about these guys is their respect for the game, and their place in history.’
CC Sabathia
Sabathia, the 2007 AL Cy Young winner who won 251 games, is hoping that his induction will help pave the way for more young Black pitchers in the game. He will be only the third Black pitcher to be elected into the Hall of Fame with only 15 Black pitchers who have won 20 games, with David Price the last in 2012.
“The one thing that keeps crossing my mind is who’s next?” says Sabathia, who is a special assistant to Commissioner Rob Manfred. “I’m on the search for who’s next and what I can do to get that person or kid on the mound and going in the right direction.’
Sabathia meets with young players today in camps across the country, letting them know that if a kid like him can make it out of Vallejo, they can do it, too.
“Especially with where I came from, just knowing that I’m going to be someplace where the best that ever played have been honored,’ Sabathia says, “is really amazing. When I was still playing, Reggie (Jackson) would tell me that having the Hall of Fame attached to my name would give me an edge in life. It’s going to be amazing to finally get there.”
Ichiro Suzuki
When Suzuki arrived in Seattle in 2001, he was already a star in Japan, but he had no idea whether his success would translate to the United States. Well, 3,089 hits, 10 All-Star selections and 10 Gold Gloves later, and he helped open the door for three-time MVP Shohei Ohtani and the current crop of Japanese players in MLB.
“We’re able to play this game because of players of the past,” says Suzuki. “Baseball is human beings playing against human beings, and to have the passion and the energy that is created by that is something that I really hope is still part of the game. That’s what I really value. It is very important to me that baseball continues to be a game that has the human element to it, with all the emotions and everything that comes along with having humans play this game. …
“If I can be of any help to the players, that’s why I’m here.”
Billy Wagner
Wagner, who already is allotting time for interruptions during his Hall of Fame speech to wipe away tears, will remind everyone that he came from poverty. His dinners often consisted of crackers and water while growing up in the homes of different relatives with his parents divorcing when he was 5, and attending 11 different schools.
“I was just a poor kid,’ Wagner said, “who didn’t back down.’
Wagner will let everyone know that he’ll continue to do everything in his power to help grow the game as a high school baseball coach, knowing it may not be the same as when he played, but the game still remains great.
‘Our game’s always going to evolve,’’ Wagner says, “and there’s always going to be parts that we like and we don’t like. Every era has that moment. … But I think the game on the field is as great as it’s ever been. But I guess the way we portray it, and push it forward, that’s the biggest thing.’
Dick Allen
Dick Allen, who died in 2020, represents the strength of fighting racism during his career. He received death threats playing in Little Rock, Arkansas, as the minor league team’s first Black player, and was later pelted with batteries and garbage playing for the Philadelphia Phillies.
Fergie Jenkins, who along with Bob Gibson were the only other Black Hall of Fame pitchers before Sabathia, vividly remembers the pain. They were not only teammates, but roommates in Little Rock.
“Dick was a real personal guy, I mean, he got along with everybody,’ Jenkins told USA TODAY Sports. “Nobody ever bothered me, but then Dick bought a car, and I think that was the wrong thing to do. They bannered that thing all of the time. They were always putting stuff on it. There were people in the stands who didn’t like him with name calling.
“It was just those times in segregation. We couldn’t stay with the same players on the road. We stayed in a brothel one year in the summer. Another year we stayed in a funeral home. We couldn’t eat in the same restaurants. We had to give our money to other players, have them order the food, and have them bring it back to us in the bus.
“I only stayed a month and a half. Dick was there all year. He never forgot it.’
Allen went on to become one of the greatest sluggers of his era, hitting 351 homers with a .534 slugging percentage, but his refusal to accept the bigotry and racial hatred in the country prevented him from getting the accolades he deserved.
“Dick Allen played the game in the most conservative era in baseball history,’ Hall of Famer Willie Stargell once said. “It was a time of change and protest in the country, and baseball reacted against all that. They saw it as a threat to the game. The sportswriters were reactionary too. They didn’t like seeing a man of such extraordinary skills doing it his way. Dick Allen was ahead of his time. His views and way of doing things would go unnoticed today.’’
Says Gossage: “He’s the greatest ballplayer I’ve ever seen play in my life. There’s no telling the numbers this guy could have put up if all he worried about was stats. He’s the smartest baseball man I’ve ever been around in my life. He taught me so much about pitching and how to respect the game. He’s probably the most misunderstood player in the history of the game.’
Dave Parker
The shame is that Allen, and Parker, aren’t alive to stand on the stage themselves to deliver their speeches. Parker, who died just a month ago from Parkinson’s, let his son know just what he wanted to convey before he died.
“That’s just heartbreaking,’ said Gossage, who was also teammates with Parker. “Dave was one of my all-time favorite teammates. He was a true five-tool player. He was like Dick. There was not one ounce of BS from those guys.’
Parker’s speech will remind folks of the leadership legacy he left behind. Sure, he was a fabulous player as an MVP, seven-time All-Star, three-time Silver Slugger winner, three-time Gold Glove winner, two-time batting champion and two-time World Series champion. Yet he will be remembered as one of the game’s finest team leaders, guiding the Pirates to the 1979 World Series title while mentoring Reds stars Barry Larkin and Eric Davis in Cincinnati.
“The Pirates meant a lot to me,’ Parker said in a Zoom call after learning of his election in December. “They were a great brotherhood, and they were always behind me. I could leave, come back, and everything is the same.’’
Now, they’ll be immortalized together, with Suzuki, Sabathia and Wagner on stage and Allen and Parker smiling from the heavens.
They’ll be enshrined in this beautiful hallowed place where Suzuki visited seven times, easily the most by an active player during his career. The next time he walks in he’ll see his plaque inside the gallery room alongside his new Hall of Fame teammates.
“Ichiro would go all of the time and I always wondered why,’ Sabathia said. “Now I know. It would have been super-motivating as a player. It’s almost like a church. It’s surreal to be in that room, especially now as a Hall of Famer, with my peers.
“When I walked in there, I almost came to tears. The way the sun beams through, it’s almost magical.’
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Who is getting inducted in the Baseball Hall of Fame?
The 2025 Baseball Hall of Fame class features five inductees
Ichiro Suzuki
CC Sabathia
Billy Wagner
Dave Parker
Dick Allen