Major League Baseball’s offseason has been filled with drama and excitement as many big-name players have changed teams either through trade or free agency.
While the offseason has been exciting for current players, it has also been exciting for former players as the Baseball Hall of Fame Class of 2025 has been voted on and announced.
Three players inducted into the Hall of Fame include Ichiro Suzuki in his first year on the ballot, CC Sabathia in his first year on the ballot, and Billy Wagner in his tenth year on the ballot.
Wagner was drafted in his senior year, and he was candid about how he learned to throw left-handed.
“A kid from across the street was coming over to my grandma’s house to play football with me and fell on my right arm,” Wagner said, via the MLB Network at X.
Billy Wagner broke his right arm as a child and learned to throw left-handed…the rest is Hall of Fame history. pic.twitter.com/bd8j04aS6v
— MLB Network (@MLBNetwork) January 25, 2025
Wagner revealed that a kid named Chip came to play football with him and ended up breaking Wagner’s right arm, causing him to learn to throw left-handed.
The left-handed pitcher entered the MLB in 1995 with the Houston Astros and retired after the 2010 season with the Atlanta Braves.
Wagner’s career stats include 853 appearances and a record of 47-40 with a 2.31 ERA, 422 saves and 1,196 strikeouts in 903.0 innings.
While Wagner likely would have realized that he would eventually have to be a left-handed pitcher, it’s interesting to think about what might have happened if Chip had never come to play football that day.
NEXT: Billy Wagner revealed why he is entering the Astros Hall of Fame
