On Tuesday, the Baseball Writers Association of America elected Ichiro Suzuki, CC Sabathia, and Billy Wagner into the National Baseball Hall of Fame. Ichiro’s election was a foregone conclusion ahead of the official announcement — he was included on every single publicly revealed ballot and ultimately missed a unanimous selection by a single vote — and his singular career stood out as an easy inclusion into the inner circle of the sport’s greatest players.
And while Ichiro deserves to bask in every honor and celebration, I can’t help but look towards the future and the other former Mariner on the ballot: Félix Hernández.