The 2019 Baseball Hall Of Fame Class Includes The First Unanimous Inductee In History

The 2019 Baseball Hall of Fame class has been circled for some time as one that had the potential to be special. In addition to a loaded list of stars that deserved to get enshrined in Cooperstown, the possibility existed of the first player in history to unanimously get voted into the Hall of Fame.

The class was announced on Tuesday evening, and as it turned out, history was indeed made. Legendary New York Yankees closer Mariano Rivera became the first player to see his box checked on every ballot, as all 425 voters correctly decided that the greatest closer in baseball history deserved to make it in. With this honor, Rivera exceeded the 99.3 percent of ballots that included Ken Griffey Jr. in 2016. (Also: Ken Griffey Jr. should have been an unanimous Hall of Fame inductee, but I digress.)

Rivera wasn’t the only player to make it in on his first time on the ballot. The late, great Roy Halladay, who passed away in a plane accident in 2017 and pitched for the Toronto Blue Jays and Philadelphia Phillies during his decorated career, made it in with 85.4 percent of the vote.

In a sign that shows there is some justice in the world every now and then, Seattle Mariners designated hitter Edgar Martinez finally is headed to Cooperstown as well. This was the 10th time Martinez appeared on the ballot, and despite the fact that he is largely considered the best designated hitter ever, it took him quite a long time to get honored. Like Halladay, Martinez appeared on 85.4 percent of ballots.

Rounding out the class is Mike Mussina, the former ace for the Yankees and Baltimore Orioles. “Moose” makes it in during his sixth year on the ballot, just narrowly exceeding the 75 percent threshold needed to get enshrined in Cooperstown by appearing on 76.7 percent of ballots.

While the big story is Rivera, it’s an excellent class with four guys who unquestionably belong in the Hall of Fame. Only four other players appeared on at least half of the ballots. Curt Schilling came the closest, followed by the pairing of Roger Clemens and Barry Bonds, with Larry Walker being the final player to exceed the 50 percent plateau. To see the full voting results — which included two Baseball Writers Association of America members voting for Placido Polanco — head here.