Former Marlins rival elected to the Hall of Fame

The Miami Marlins saw a former player get inducted into the Hall of Fame yesterday. This was big news as the player is one of the greatest of all time. The Fish now saw a former rival pitcher get inducted as well. I'm of course talking about the newest member of the MLB Hall of Fame: Billy Wagner. Did he deserve being inducted?

Former Miami Marlins rival pitcher Billy Wagner has been inducted into the MLB Hall of Fame.

Billy Wagner had a dominant career as a closer. He pitched for the Houston Astros from 1995 to 2003. He pitched to a 2.53 ERA/2.81 FIP, with 12.4 K/9 and 3.4 BB/9 in 464 games and 504.1 innings pitched. He also accumulated 225 saves for that time. It was a very solid performance, and certainly established him as one of the best closers in the Major Leagues. He didn't win any titles in Houston, but that of course wasn't his fault.

Wagner moved on to the Philadelphia Phillies for the 2004 and 2005 seasons. In those seasons, he pitched to a very dominant 1.86 ERA/2.59 FIP, with 10.4 K/9 and 1.9 BB/9 in 120 games and 126.0 innings pitched. He accumulated 59 saves. He once again failed to win anything, and once again it was certainly not his fault. He moved on to the New York Mets for the 2006 to 2009 seasons. He only played there for about half of that 2009 season. He was traded to the Boston Red Sox mid-season.

For his time with the Mets from 2206 to 2008, he pitched to a 2.40 ERA/2.89 FIP, with 10.8 K/9 and 2.5 BB/9 in 181 games and 187.2 innings pitched. He accumulated 101 saves. In that 2009 season, he pitched to a 1.72 ERA/2.33 FIP, with 14.9 K/9 and an alarming 4.6 BB/9. He did it in 17 games and 15.2 innings pitched. He did not have any saves. Billy Wagner finished his career in 2010 with the Atlanta Braves. He pitched to a 1.43 ERA/2.10 FIP, with 13.5 K/9 and 2.9 BB/9, in 71 games and 69.1 innings pitched. He accumulated 37 saves that season.

Did Billy Wagner deserve to be elected into the MLB Hall of Fame? I would say so, yes.