Billy Wagner
Wagner was the first MLB pitcher I ever saw throw 100 mph in person. Even from a somewhat distant seat this was impressive, and yet, like Abreu, Phillies fans didn’t embrace Wagner. Wagner, in turn, dismissed Philly, certainly by the time he left. Those old enough may recall him being booed by Phillies fans when his pitch speed dipped to 98 after several 100-mph deliveries.
His shortstop at the time recalled that.
However, Wagner had 422 saves with five different teams. His career ERA was 2.32 and his WHIP a sterling 0.998. In his last (age-38) season, he was 7-2 with a 1.73 ERA and a WHIP of 0.865 for Atlanta in 2010. Remarkable.
Going into Tuesday, the lefty looked as though he had a real shot at election this year, after trending steadily upward (with one small dip) in HOF voting percentage. He booked 51 percent in ’22.
However, he didn’t make it. He moved up, true, but only had the third highest total – 68.1 percent, behind the number one vote getter and Todd Helton. Gamblers might put money on his election next year, following that healthy jump in percentage.
Scott Rolen
Scott Rolen shares a problem with Abreu and Wagner. He was among the best and perhaps the best player on largely bad Phillies teams. This led to – see if you perceive a theme developing – poor relations with Philadelphia fans, eventually.
This wasn’t the case for the slick-fielding third baseman early on with the team, though. He was a rare Phillies Rookie of the Year in 1997. After a while, however, the .281 career hitter turned on the team he felt wasn’t sufficiently committed to winning. He requested a trade and then became persona non grata in the Delaware Valley permanently when he declared himself delighted by his trade to “baseball heaven,” St. Louis.
There he drove in 124 runs in ’04, and won his fifth, sixth, and seventh Gold Gloves.
He approached Tuesday’s announcement having won over 63.2 percent of the Hall voters in ’22.
That total was the highest among those not voted in last winter, and made Rolen’s election this year sort of predictable. He scraped in by five votes (76.3 percent), very, very likely to the great annoyance of most Phillies fans. They know Scotty will likely be wearing a Cardinals hat on his Hall of Fame plaque.