The Cooperstown candidacies of Carlos Beltran and Andruw Jones might benefit by the lack of slam-dunk newcomers to the 2026 Hall of Fame ballot.

Former New York Yankees Ichiro Suzuki and CC Sabathia, along with closer Billy Wagner, were voted into the National Baseball Hall of Fame on Tuesday, joining Cl

Carlos Beltrán is knocking at the door of Cooperstown. A steady increase in votes for the National Baseball Hall of Fame has the former Royal and longtime center fielder as close as ever to being elected in the coming year or two.

If Ichiro Suzuki misses unanimous election to the Baseball Hall of Fame, it would be by a handful of votes at most. For Carlos Beltran, CC Sabathia and Billy Wagner, a handful of votes may determine whether any or all of them join Suzuki as a member of the Hall of Fame Class of 2025.

Other bits of intrigue ahead of Tuesday's 6 p.m. announcement: Will CC Sabathia be a first-ballot Hall of Famer, and is this the year Billy Wagner gets in?

Ichiro Suzuki could become the first Japanese player in baseball’s Hall of Fame, and CC Sabathia, Billy Wagner and Carlos Beltrán also could be elected when results of the writers’ voting are announced.

Ichiro Suzuki, CC Sabathia and Billy Wagner are the newest inductees to the National Baseball Hall of Fame as it revealed its Class of 2025.

Ichiro Suzuki, CC Sabathia, and former New York Mets closer Billy Wagner were introduced as the newest members of the National Baseball Hall of Fame

NEW YORK — (AP) — Ichiro Suzuki could become the first Japanese player in baseball's Hall of Fame, and CC Sabathia, Billy Wagner and Carlos Beltrán ... 27 along with Dave Parker and Dick ...

The no-doubters appear to be a few years away as next winter's ballot doesn't include any slam-dunk first-ballot inductees.

Ichiro Suzuki could join Mariano Rivera as the only unanimous picks for baseball’s Hall of Fame and CC Sabathia, Billy Wagner and Carlos Beltrán also could be elected when results

The five newcomers, including Ichiro Suzuki and CC Sabathia, will be inducted into the Hall of Fame on July 27, 2025, in Cooperstown, New York.