Subscribe
Follow Us
Several Houston Astros' legends reacted to Billy Wagner's selection into the Baseball Hall of Fame. The former closer's road to Cooperstown began in Houston in 1995. During his nine years with the Astros, Wagner racked up several accolades, such as being named to the All-Star team three times, winning the NL Rolaids Relief Man Award in 1999, and combining for a no-hitter in 2003.
Craig Biggio and Jeff Bagwell, who both have plaques in Cooperstown and are former teammates of Wagner, shared their thoughts on the star closer's induction. These comments came from an interview with Astros' beat writer for MLB.com, Brian McTaggart.
Bigio explained Wagner's impact on the field for what was a perennial playoff team.
“We had a lot of success over the years together, and you're not having the success we had without a Billy Wagner. When can you turn the ball over to a guy like that in the ninth inning, it's game, set, match, usually. For us to have that at the back end of a team that was very successful for a long period of time, totally deserving of him getting his credit. I’m just happy for him, man.”
Jeff Bagwell detailed Wagner as a teammate off the field during his time in Houston.
“I'm ecstatic (on Billy's induction). It's so cool, the fact that the three of us played together and especially played together in some of our primes. That was an amazing feat, and to wear an Astros cap would be the ultimate thing to have the three of us together all in the same place. Even when things were bad, he (Wagner) was always positive and ready to take the ball the next day. He’s everything you could ever want in a closer and one of the most dominating closers of all time.”
Billy Wagner deserves his flowers for his fantastic career
The Tannersville, Virginia native finished his career eighth all-time in saves at 422. Wagner played for five franchises over his 16-year career, racking up seven All-Star appearances. One of the only caveats in the all-time great relief pitcher's career was his production dipping in October. It is important to note that Wagner does not have the most significant sample size here, as he gave up 13 runs in 11.2 innings pitched in the postseason.
Nevertheless, this is still a deserving addition to what is probably the hardest Hall of Fame to get into in professional sports. Only the best of the best make it to Cooperstown, and during his prime, Wagner was among the cream of the crop in baseball at his position. These all-time great Astros like Wagner, Bagwell, and Bigio paved the way for a franchise that would go on to see even more success a few decades later.
