Class of 2025 reflects on Induction Eve
The Class of 2025 is less than a day away from their entrance into immortality.
On Saturday, CC Sabathia, Ichiro Suzuki and Billy Wagner soaked in the moment and prepared for the afternoon of a lifetime on Sunday.
The late Dick Allen and Dave Parker will join Sabathia, Suzuki and Wagner in the National Pastime’s most exclusive fraternity at the Induction Ceremony set for Sunday at 1:30 p.m. on the grounds of Cooperstown’s Clark Sports Center.
Under sunny skies and mild temperatures, a pair of the 2025 electees, as well as a number of the more than 50 returning inductees, participated in the National Baseball Hall of Fame Invitational Golf Tournament at the Leatherstocking Golf Course on Saturday morning. Standing near the first tee, they talked about the emotions and whirlwind days leading up to the Induction Ceremony.
“Last night, Jane (Hall of Fame Chairman Jane Forbes Clark) had the garden party, and I’m looking around the party, and my favorite players are everywhere,” Sabathia said. “It’s like, should I be in here? You have those moments. Seeing Derek (Jeter), seeing Mo (Mariano Rivera), seeing Fergie (Jenkins), Dave Winfield, Ken Griffey. It’s incredible to be a part.”
As for his induction speech, arguably the most anticipated public speaking event Sabathia will ever make, he said: “It’s something I’ve been thinking about, I guess, since January. I’m super excited to be able to get a message across. So, I’m excited.”
While it’s often said how hard it is to get to Cooperstown, the Sabathia trip to the sport’s spiritual home became more complicated – as he shared on social media – when their vehicle became disabled along the way.
“We had a little breakdown on the way up, but it’s part of the story,” said the first-ballot Hall of Famer. “You know, if the six of us travel together, something’s going to happen. That’s just another part of a story that we could tell. While it was not a lot of fun in the moment, it’s fun now to tell the story.”
For Wagner, the southpaw closer with 422 saves over 16 seasons, it took 10 years on the BBWAA ballot before getting elected on his final try.
“It’s been a lot of fun,” Wagner said. “It’s good to see a lot of guys that I played with, and then your heroes. It’s just been overwhelming. And the support, the guys coming up and just making me feel comfortable, it’s been a lot of fun.”
Asked about his induction speech, Wagner claimed, “It’s as close to being done as it’s going to get. I’m not too worried about it. I pretty much have rehearsed it for about 10 years. So, it is what it is now.”
Wagner, when he received the news of his election to the Hall of Fame, was unabashedly emotional. He said on Saturday his induction ceremony may have a similar outcome.
“Well, 15 years of going through that, that’ll do it for you. I mean, you go through 15 years of criticism to get to this point. There’s not much you can do. Just the journey and the struggle to get to this point,” he said. “I think, the gamut of emotions when you’re going through this. I’m sure there’ll be tears tomorrow.”
Ichiro at the plate, Billy bringing the heat. That’s what loving the game looks like. pic.twitter.com/1suxlot6Ez
— National Baseball Hall of Fame and Museum ⚾ (@baseballhall) July 25, 2025
It was documented that Wagner and Ichiro, the day prior, found a local ballfield and batting cage and worked out together.
“Watching Ichiro play catch with my son, how much fun was that? I don’t know who had more fun, me or him,” Wagner said with a smile. “And then getting to be able to throw BP to Ichiro. I couldn’t believe how he barreled up every ball I threw. And I throw a really good BP.
“It was exciting to see how good Ichiro really is. Playing against him is one thing, but he’s still really good. He probably could go out there and give you a couple big quality ABs (at bats).”
At a media availability at the Clark Sports Center on Saturday, the Japan-born Ichiro, through an interpreter, addressed his still impressive and legendary work ethic as well as a number of other topics.
“When you retire from baseball, you almost kind of relax, right? That pressure is gone. But when you’re on the field, when you’re wearing a uniform, when I’m going to be working out with the players, I have to bring that same energy that the players have,” said the longtime Seattle Mariners right fielder who ended his big league career with 3,089 hits after spending nine campaigns in Japan collecting 1,278 safeties. “So, I need to be able to work out. I need to be able to have that same passion and same work ethic and same energy that the players have, even more, maybe, than the players, to be able to be with them and to work out with them and to help them. If I didn’t have that, I think that would be disrespectful to the players, and so I wanted to make sure that I have that energy, that passion, and bring that to them, to the field, every day.”
Having visited Cooperstown many times when he was a player, Ichiro said this weekend’s trip is different.
“When I was a player, I did come many times, but I had a purpose. I would come and get to go in the basement, look at some of the artifacts, and so there was a purpose,” Ichiro said. “This time around, though, I didn’t come to have one purpose to see something. I just wanted to experience Cooperstown. I wanted to kind of just enjoy it all and just kind of take it all in. And so that’s kind of the difference this time around.”
Asked how he was feeling with the clock clicking towards the Induction Ceremony, Ichiro admitted: “I’m just under a lot of pressure with the speech tomorrow. Very nervous…and I probably should be preparing more, but this morning, I actually went to the field and long tossed and kind of ran and did my workout. So, for me, I guess that was more important.”
After a long and exemplary career on the diamond, what did Ichiro consider the key to his immortality?
“I loved it,” he said.
A busy Saturday of events continued with the 2025 Awards Presentation, a midafternoon event held at the nearby Alice Busch Opera Theater. Cleveland Guardians voice Tom Hamilton received the Ford C. Frick Award for excellence in broadcasting and longtime Washington Post columnist Thomas Boswell was honored with the BBWAA Career Excellence Award for meritorious contributions to baseball writing.
“Every Opening Day, we always remind the fans, it’s not about the destination, it’s about the journey, the roller coaster ride that is a baseball season every day for six months,” Hamilton said. “For 36 years, we have been so blessed and fortunate to be a very small part of that journey in this great game of baseball.”
The Awards Presentation also featured a program celebrating Cleveland’s 1995 American League pennant with guests manager Mike Hargrove, front office executive Mark Shapiro and third baseman Jim Thome.
The day concluded with the Hall of Fame Parade of Legends along Main Street.
Bill Francis is the senior research and writing specialist at the National Baseball Hall of Fame and Museum
HALL OF FAME WEEKEND 2025
The eyes of the baseball world will be focused on Cooperstown July 25-28, with the legends of the game in town to see history unfold during Hall of Fame Weekend.
