It won't be official until the voting is released, but Ichiro Suzuki is heading to the Hall of Fame. The Japanese outfielder is expected to be one of the names inducted into Cooperstown in the 2025 Baseball Hall of Fame class.

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The bar has been set outrageously high. When it comes to the New York Yankees, being a closer means being compared to the best closer in the game's history: Mariano Rivera. So Devin Williams will come into the Bronx and be well aware of the expectations when he takes the ball to close out games for the Yankees.

On Tuesday, the former MVP, 10-time All-Star and two-time batting champion was named among the three-player class for the Baseball Hall of Fame. He was joined by CC Sabathia and Billy Wagner. And while there was no surprise as to Ichiro’s induction, there total vote tally was a shock.

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?

While there was plenty to celebrate with Suzuki’s induction, there was one upsetting aspect: Ichiro failed to make it in unanimously by one vote. Suzuki was voted for on 393 out of 394 possible ballots, meaning one voter left the 10-time All-Star off their ballot.

Ichiro Suzuki was among the few Japanese players who transitioned well from Japan's Nippon Professional Baseball to Major League Baseball.

Ichiro will join Ken Griffey Jr., Edgar Martinez and Jackie Robinson as the only jerseys retired by the Mariners.

Cooperstown welcomes a star-studded new class in 2025, as the Baseball Hall of Fame announced Tuesday its newest members, as voted by the Baseball Writers' Association of America.

The fact that there has only been one unanimous selection in the history of BBWAA voting renders the distinction almost meaningless.

Global baseball's hit king Ichiro Suzuki became the first Japanese-born player elected to Major League baseball's Hall of Fame on Tuesday, just one vote shy of unanimous selection.- More hits than Rose - Ichiro was 27 when he made his debut with the Mariners in 2001,

New York Mets catcher Paul Lo Duca, left, congratulates closer Billy Wagner by patting him on the cap after the Mets 4-3 win over the New York Yankees in 2006. Billy Wagner was unhittable as a pitcher and now he’s officially a baseball immortal.