Baseball’s 2019 Hall of Famers
Friday, January 25th, 2019January 25, 2019
On Tuesday, January 22, Major League Baseball (MLB) greats Roy Halladay, Edgar Martínez, Mike Mussina, and Mariano Rivera were elected to the National Baseball Hall of Fame in Cooperstown, New York. Rivera, the MLB career leader in saves, is the first player unanimously voted into the Hall of Fame, having received 100 percent of the possible votes in his first year of eligibility. Halladay, an outstanding starting pitcher who died in an airplane crash in 2017, was also elected on the first try. Voters named him on 85 percent of the ballots, well above the 75 percent required for election. Martínez, a slugging infielder and designated hitter, made the Hall with 85 percent of the vote on his tenth and final time on the ballot. Mussina, another starting pitcher, earned 77 percent of the vote on his sixth try. Former pitcher Lee Smith and outfielder-designated hitter Harold Baines, elected in December 2018 by the Modern Baseball Era Committee, will also be enshrined in the Hall of Fame on July 21, 2019. Joining the players will be broadcaster Al Helfer and sportswriter Jayson Stark.

The National Baseball Hall of Fame and Museum honors players and other individuals who have made outstanding contributions to the sport. It is located in Cooperstown, New York. Credit: National Baseball Hall of Fame and Museum
Panama-born Mariano Rivera, the greatest closing pitcher in MLB history, played 19 seasons for the New York Yankees from 1995 to 2013. Rivera started 10 games his rookie season, but quickly shifted to the bullpen, where he became the team’s regular closer in 1997. Rivera saved 43 games that season, and went on to record at least 28 saves in 15 consecutive seasons (averaging 40 over that period). He retired as the all-time career leader in saves (652). Rivera made 13 All-Star teams, was a key part of five Yankees World Series titles, and retired with a career 2.21 earned run average (ERA).

In 2019, Mariano Rivera became the first player unanimously voted into the National Baseball Hall of Fame. Credit: © Scott Anderson, Dreamstime
Colorado’s Roy Halladay pitched 16 seasons for the Toronto Blue Jays and Philadelphia Phillies from 1998 to 2013. Halladay stumbled through his first few MLB seasons, but he harnessed his talent in 2002 with a 19-7 record and a 2.81 ERA. In 2003, he won 22 games and the Cy Young Award as his league’s best pitcher. Halladay went on to make eight All-Star teams and win a second Cy Young Award in 2010. Injuries hampered his last seasons and he retired with 203 wins, 67 complete games, 20 shutouts, and a career 3.38 ERA.
Edgar Martínez, who was born in New York City but grew up in Puerto Rico, played 18 seasons with the Seattle Mariners from 1987 to 2004. Martínez did not earn regular playing time until 1990, when he started at third base and hit .302. Two years later he hit .343 to win the American League (AL) batting title. In 1995, now primarily a designated hitter, Martínez led the league in hitting again with a stout .356 average. He went on to hit .312 for his career, during which he was named to seven All-Star teams. He retired with 2,247 hits, 309 home runs, and an outstanding career on-base percentage of .418.
A son of Williamsport, Pennsylvania, Mike Mussina pitched 18 seasons with the Baltimore Orioles and New York Yankees from 1991 to 2008. A durable and consistent winner, Mussina started at least 24 games, pitched at least 150 innings, and had at least 11 wins from 1992 to the end of his career. He led the AL in wins in 1995 (19), made five All-Star teams, won seven Gold Gloves as his league’s best fielding pitcher, and reached the 20-win mark for the first time in 2008, his last season in the majors. Mussina retired with 270 wins and a career 3.68 ERA.
Maryland’s Harold Baines played 22 MLB seasons from 1980 to 2001. He spent the majority of his career with the Chicago White Sox, but he logged significant time with four other teams during his long career. Baines played outfield before transitioning into a full-time designated hitter. A remarkably consistent and productive hitter, Baines hit 20 or more home runs 12 times and drove in 80 or more runs 11 times. He made six All-Star teams and retired with 2,866 hits, 384 home runs, 1,628 RBI’s, and a career .289 batting average.
Lee Smith, a dominant closing pitcher, came out of Louisiana to play 18 seasons from 1980 to 1997. Known best for his early years with the Chicago Cubs, Smith pitched for seven other teams during his career. Smith led the National League (NL) in saves in 1983 (29) and averaged 33 saves his next four seasons with the Cubs. Pitching for the St. Louis Cardinals, Smith led the NL in saves in 1991 (47) and 1992 (43). In 1994, at age 36, he led the AL in saves (33) with the Baltimore Orioles. Smith retired with a career 3.03 ERA and a then-MLB record 478 saves, a mark that was later passed by fellow Hall of Famers Trevor Hoffman and Mariano Rivera.
Al Helfer, who called games for eight MLB teams from 1933 through 1969, joined the Hall of Fame as the 2019 winner of the Ford C. Frick Award for broadcasters. Jayson Stark, a beat writer for the Phillies for 20 seasons before covering baseball for ESPN and then The Athletic online magazine, earned entry as the 2019 winner of the J. G. Taylor Spink Award “for meritorious contributions to baseball writing.”
Hall of Fame voting is based upon a player’s record, playing ability, integrity, sportsmanship, character, and contributions to the team(s) on which the player played. Votes are cast by members of the Baseball Writers’ Association of America, which consists of writers with 10 consecutive years of service in the association. To be eligible, ballplayers must have spent at least 10 seasons in the majors and been retired for 5 years (exceptions are made in the case of severe injury or sudden death, such as with Roberto Clemente). Eligible players remain on the Hall of Fame ballot for 10 years, after which they can gain entry only though the select eras committees. The eras committees, made up of former executives, managers, players, and umpires, also chooses nonplayers such as Helfer and Stark for entry into the Hall of Fame.