Should closers be in the Baseball Hall of Fame?
Of course. They are part of the game. They do fall into a category similar to designated hitters and, in football, punters and placekickers: specialists, by the limited nature of what they do are held to a higher standard.
Does Billy Wagner measure up to that standard? It’s tricky, because that standard is still evolving. Saves have been an official statistic since only 1969, and the modern closer usage has been around for only about 35 years. (Saves of three outs or fewer surged 33% in ’88, when Dennis Eckersley became the template.)
Voters have signaled they are warming to the idea of Wagner as a Hall of Famer. In his first three years on what was a crowded ballot, Wagner received either 10% or 11%. Then he received a bump to 17%. Then he nearly doubled that to 32%. And since then, the climb has continued: 45% and then 51% last year. As the ballot gets less crowded—as voters now in the habit of checking more names look to keep that habit—Wagner looks better. But he is running out of time.