Billy Wagner will be the 12th former Astros player or manager to go into the Baseball Hall of Fame. There are more on the way.

On January 21, 2025, all-time great closer Billy Wagner was elected to the Hall of Fame. A version of this story originally ran in December 2020.

Billy Wagner doesn’t do subtlety. He comes right at you, with a blazing fastball and straight talk. So, if anyone wondered which team’s cap he will choose for his Hall of Fame plaque, he wore an Astros polo on a Zoom call with reporters Tuesday night.

HOUSTON - Former Houston Astros pitcher Billy Wagner is headed to Cooperstown. Wagner was elected to the MLB Hall of Fame Class of 2025. Wagner will be officially inducted, along with Ichiro Suzuki and CC Sabathia, in Cooperstown, New York on Sunday, July 27.

After 10 attempts, former Astros closer Billy Wagner finally reached the Hall of Fame, joining Ichiro and CC Sabathia in the class of 2025.

Wagner, one of the game's all-time great relievers, made the cut during the final year of his eligibility on the Baseball Writers Association of America ballot, receiving 82.5% of the vote. Wagner would've been removed from the ballot if he didn't meet the voting requirement in 2025, and it's clear just how much it meant to him to get the nod.

Billy Wagner fell just short in his quest to enter the Baseball Hall of Fame last January. The legendary former Houston Astros closer projects to qualify for Cooperstown when the results for the class of 2025 are announced Monday night.

In a video posted on X by sports writer Jose de Jesus Ortiz, Wagner leaned against a pool table while taking the call. He listened for more than 15 seconds before he put his hand on his face, fighting tears and hunching over. “Thank you,” he eventually said to the person on the other end of the phone.

Billy Wagner fell short of election to the Baseball Hall of Fame last year in agonizing fashion. Five votes separated the former Houston Astros closer from securing a place in Cooperstown in his penultimate appearance on the writers’ ballot.

It may have come down to the wire in terms of eligibilty, however, Billy Wagner has finally heard his name called to the National Baseball Hall of Fame.

Billy Wagner fell just five votes short of induction into the Baseball Hall of Fame last January, making 2025 his 10th and final eligible year on the ballot for enshrinement in Cooperstown. The former Houston Astros closer finally broke through Tuesday night.