Legendary New York Yankees closer Mariano Rivera headlined the 2019 National Baseball Hall of Fame class, as he was the first baseball player ever elected with 100 percent of the vote.
The Baseball Writers’ Association of America also voted in Yankees pitcher Mike Mussina, Seattle Mariners slugger Edgar Martinez, and the late Toronto Blue Jays and Philadelphia Phillies ace Roy Halladay, who died in a plane crash in November 2017.
Rivera has a record 652 career saves and helped the Yankees win five World Series.
Mussina won 270 games in his career, which was spent entirely in the ultra-competitive AL East. He made his debut with the Baltimore Orioles in 1991 and signed with the Yankees in 2001.
Martinez helped pave the way for other designated hitters, such as David Ortiz and Edwin Encarnacion. The AL’s Outstanding Designated Hitter Award is now named after Martinez. He recorded 2,247 career hits and 309 home runs.
Halladay was a two-time Cy Young Award winner and one of the game’s most feared pitchers. He threw just the second no-hitter in postseason history with the Phillies in the 2010 NLDS.
