COOPERSTOWN, N.Y. — The Baseball Hall of Fame has confirmed the team logos that will appear on the plaques of this year’s inductees. CC Sabathia will showcase the New York Yankees emblem, while Billy Wagner will represent the Houston Astros on his plaque.
The announcements were made on Monday, unveiling the cap selections for all five inductees. Ichiro Suzuki’s plaque will feature the Seattle Mariners logo, Dave Parker will display the Pittsburgh Pirates emblem, and Dick Allen will be associated with the Philadelphia Phillies.
Inductees and their families have a role in determining the team logo that will be engraved on their plaques, although the Hall of Fame ultimately makes the final calls.
Historically, players were allowed to choose their team logo until the 2001 induction ceremony. Following a controversy in 1999, where it was reported that the Tampa Bay Rays intended to financially reward Wade Boggs if he chose their logo for his plaque, the Hall decided to take control of this decision in 2002. Boggs was inducted in 2005, and his plaque bears the Boston Red Sox logo.
Sabathia had a notable career, spending the last 11 seasons of his 19-year professional journey with the Yankees, playing from 2009 to 2019, after earlier stints with the Cleveland Indians and the Milwaukee Brewers.
Ichiro Suzuki enjoyed a significant majority of his 19-season career with the Seattle Mariners, playing 14 seasons there between 2001 and 2012, returning for the 2018 and 2019 seasons. He also had brief tenures with the New York Yankees and Miami Marlins.
Billy Wagner made his mark with the Houston Astros during his first nine seasons in Major League Baseball, from 1995 to 2003, before moving on to play with teams including the Philadelphia Phillies, New York Mets, Boston Red Sox, and Atlanta Braves.
Dave Parker dedicated the first 11 seasons of his career to the Pittsburgh Pirates before continuing with the Cincinnati Reds, Oakland Athletics, Milwaukee Brewers, California Angels, and Toronto Blue Jays.
Dick Allen’s legacy includes nine seasons with the Phillies, alongside playing for teams such as the St. Louis Cardinals, Los Angeles Dodgers, Chicago White Sox, and Oakland Athletics.
The induction ceremony is scheduled to take place on July 27. Each plaque will display an image of the athlete as well as a brief summary of their career accomplishments, typically not exceeding 90 words, and will include mentions of all teams for which they played or managed.
