Former Philadelphia Phillies Closer Earns Hall of Fame Induction After Long Wait

A former Philadelphia Phillies star was named to the Baseball Hall of Fame on Tuesday night, with another waiting in the wings.

Mar 4, 2005; Clearwater, FL, USA; Philadelphia Phillies pitcher Billy Wagner (13) in action during spring training against the Detroit Tigers at Jack Russell Memorial Stadium. | Lou Capozzola-Imagn Images

A former Philadelphia Phillies star is finally in the Baseball Hall of Fame after spending a decade on the ballot.

Announced during an MLB Network broadcast, ex-Philles closer Billy Wagner learned that he would be inducted into the Hall in the 2025 class.

Wagner had a 16-year career that was chock-full of dominant campaigns. He posted an overall 2.31 ERA and was named to seven All-Star teams. Widely considered to be the best left-handed reliever of all time it is only fitting that he make his way to Cooperstown.

The closer won't be remembered for his time in Philadelphia first, though he did spend two stellar seasons with the team.

Ahead of the 2004 season, he was traded to the Phillies. During his time there, his ERA was down to just 1.86 and he earned one of those All-Star nods.

It was a slow burn for Wagner to get the honor. At first, he looked like a long shot, but his vote share had shot up in recent years. He finally reached that coveted 75% threshold this time around.

The only downside to Wagner getting in was a lack of postseason success, but his regular season dominance was enough to push him past that.

A handful of other former Philadelphia players had different fates, however. Chase Utley, Bobby Abreu and Jimmy Rollins all also appeared again but did not make it.

Utley is the closest and appears to be a near lock to make it at some point soon. The six-time All-Star and four-time Silver Slugger was a member of the Phillies' 2008 World Series team.

He is without a doubt one of the best second basemen in MLB history and deserves to be enshrined in Cooperstown.

Abreu and Rollins are less sure things and both seem to need a boost in support to make it across the finish line.

Rollins has a bit more time seeing as though this was his fourth year on the ballot. Most of his numbers fall just short of the average Hall of Famer, but his impact on the game and balanced skillset should be rewarded.

This was Abreu's sixth time appearing on the ballot and while he did see a bump in votes, he still has a long ways to go before he makes it in.

Maybe these legends will see another jump in vote share next time around, Utley may even get enough to make it in next time around.