Tim Kurkjian breaks down Mariano Rivera becoming the first player to receive 100 percent of the votes into the Baseball Hall of Fame. (0:52)

Closer Mariano Rivera, designated hitter Edgar Martinez and starting pitchers Roy Halladay and Mike Mussina will be the newest members of the Baseball Hall of Fame. Rivera became the first player to be unanimously voted into the Hall, appearing on all 425 ballots.

The four were voted in by the Baseball Writers' Association of America on Tuesday. Of the four, Halladay and Mussina were first-round draft picks, though only Mussina was touted for stardom from the start of his career.

Before Rivera, the highest vote percentage to gain Hall entry belonged to Ken Griffey Jr. in 2016, when he received 99.3 percent (named on 437 of 440 ballots).

"This was just beyond my imagination," Rivera said on a conference call with reporters. "Just to be considered a Hall of Famer is an honor, but to be unanimous is just amazing."

Martinez, in his final year on the ballot, received 85.4 percent, culminating a late surge of support; he received just 27 percent four years ago, when his election felt like a remote possibility. Halladay, who died in 2017 when the plane he was piloting crashed into the Gulf of Mexico off the Florida coast, also received 85.4 percent of the vote, joining Rivera as a first-ballot inductee. Mussina received 76.7 percent of the vote, clearing the 75 percent threshold by seven votes.

Curt Schilling received 60.9 percent of the votes, while Roger Clemens and Barry Bonds -- whose cases are muddied by steroid accusations -- continued to make small gains, up from 57.3 percent and 56.4 percent, respectively, in 2018 to 59.5 percent and 59.1 percent. They have three years remaining on the ballot. Fred McGriff made a leap on his final year on the ballot but fell short at 39.8 percent, and now he moves over to the Veterans Committee.

Rivera signed for $3,000, was left unprotected in the 1993 expansion draft and struggled in his initial big league trial as a starter. Now he is not only a Hall of Famer, but the first player the BBWAA ever has unanimously elected.

Hall of Fame voting results Receiving the necessary 75 percent of votes, four were announced Tuesday as the Baseball Hall of Fame's Class of 2019. Here are the results from the 425 ballots cast. Name Votes Pct. Mariano Rivera 425 100% Roy Halladay 363 85.4% Edgar Martinez 363 85.4% Mike Mussina 326 76.7% Curt Schilling 259 60.9% Roger Clemens 253 59.5% Barry Bonds 251 59.1% Larry Walker 232 54.6% Omar Vizquel 182 42.8% Fred McGriff 169 39.8% Manny Ramirez 97 22.8% Jeff Kent 77 18.1% Billy Wagner 71 16.7% Todd Helton 70 16.5% Scott Rolen 73 17.2% Gary Sheffield 58 13.6% Andy Pettitte 42 9.9% Sammy Sosa 36 8.5% Andruw Jones 32 7.5% Michael Young 9 2.1% Lance Berkman 5 1.2% Miguel Tejada 5 1.2% Roy Oswalt 4 0.9% Placido Polanco 2 0.5%

Martinez signed for $4,000, hit .173 in his first minor league season and didn't get the opportunity to become a full-time starter in the majors until he was 27. He is now a Hall of Famer.

The late Halladay was a first-round pick but was once so lost in the majors that he had to go all the way back down to Class A to rebuild himself as a pitcher. He is now a Hall of Famer.

Mussina was an 11th-round pick out of Montoursville, Pennsylvania, in 1987, but he went to Stanford University and then was a first-round pick of the Baltimore Orioles in 1990. He is now a Hall of Famer.

Rivera, Martinez, Halladay and Mussina will join Lee Smith and Harold Baines -- who were selected in December by the Today's Game Era Committee -- in a unique Hall of Fame class: two closers, two designated hitters and two starting pitchers, including one with 203 wins, the fewest for a starting pitcher since the Veterans Committee elected Addie Joss in 1978 with 160 wins.

Tuesday's selections represent a much-beloved foursome:

• Rivera, the greatest closer of all time with a record 652 saves over his 19-year career, helped the New York Yankees win five World Series titles, becoming one of the most iconic players in the storied history of the franchise. His postseason performance was even more remarkable than his regular-season dominance, finishing 8-1 with a 0.70 ERA over 96 appearances and 141 innings. He recorded 42 postseason saves -- including 14 of two innings. That's more two-inning saves than all other relievers combined in the postseason while Rivera was active.

• Martinez spent his entire career with the Mariners, staying in Seattle and becoming a franchise icon while other stars -- Griffey, Randy Johnson, Alex Rodriguez -- left. Martinez won two batting titles and hit .312 with 309 home runs over 18 seasons. He is one of just six players who began their careers after World War II and retired with a .300 batting average, .400 on-base percentage and .500 slugging percentage.

• Halladay finished 203-105 in his career with a 3.38 ERA, playing 12 seasons with the Toronto Blue Jays and the final four with the Philadelphia Phillies. He won two Cy Young Awards, one with each franchise, finished second two other times, threw a perfect game and tossed a no-hitter for the Phillies in the 2010 National League Division Series against the Cincinnati Reds. He also was one of the last great workhorses. During his peak from 2003 to 2011, he threw 61 complete games -- 30 more than the No. 2 guy (CC Sabathia).

• Mussina played 18 seasons, 10 with the Orioles and eight with the Yankees. He compiled a 270-153 record with a 3.68 ERA and 2,813 strikeouts. Mussina was a five-time All-Star and earned seven Gold Gloves. He never won a Cy Young Award, finishing second in 1999 behind the Boston Red Sox's Pedro Martinez.

play 0:41 Rivera compares unanimous hall selection to World Series win Mariano Rivera sits down with SVP to describe the feeling of finding out he was the first player unanimously elected to the Baseball Hall of Fame.

More than anything, however, these four players are a testament to hard work and perseverance -- and even a little good fortune.

The Yankees left Rivera, then a Class A player who had suffered an elbow injury, exposed in the 1993 expansion draft. The Marlins were reportedly set to take him, but the Rockies selected Brad Ausmus, meaning the Yankees couldn't lose any more players. The Yankees also nearly traded Rivera to the Mariners after Rivera posted a 5.51 ERA as a rookie in 1995. Instead, the Yankees moved him to the bullpen and one day in 1997, while playing catch with Ramiro Mendoza, his ball suddenly started moving. He had found his famous cutter.

"Mariano was a fierce competitor and a humble champion, which has made him such a beloved baseball legend," said Yankees managing partner Hal Steinbrenner. "Success and stardom never changed Mariano, and his respect for the game, the pinstripes and for his teammates and opponents alike makes this day such a celebration of his legacy. There will be many more great and talented relief pitchers, but there will never be another like him."

The Yankees didn't even wait until Rivera's final game to retire his No. 42 -- he was the last player in the major leagues to wear that number, grandfathered to him when No. 42 was retired in honor of Jackie Robinson in 1997.

"Wearing No. 42, representing Jackie Robinson, I assume he was the first No. 42 elected,'' Rivera said. "To be the last No. 42 elected to the Hall of Fame, and unanimously, is amazing.''

Rivera and Smith will be the seventh and eighth relievers in the Hall, joining Hoyt Wilhelm (1985), Rollie Fingers (1992), Dennis Eckersley (2004), Bruce Sutter (2006), Rich Gossage (2008) and Trevor Hoffman (2018).

Martinez spent most of three seasons in Triple-A, hitting .344 over 276 games. The Mariners wouldn't give him a full-time job. When Darnell Coles made a bunch of errors at third base early in 1990, Martinez finally got the chance to play. Martinez hit .302 that season and never stopped, topping .300 10 times, in part because of his great eye at the plate, as he routinely finished with more walks than strikeouts.

Martinez and Baines will join 2014 inductee Frank Thomas as the only Hall of Famers to play the majority of their games at designated hitter. David Ortiz will be eligible in 2022.

"I think the fact that Harold Baines and me got in this year is going to help the future of the DH for years to come,'' Martinez said.

As for the wait, Martinez said it might have been a blessing.

"I think the wait, I think I'm more mature right now. I think I've enjoyed it more at this point with my family, the way my kids are older now and it just has a lot of meaning, even more meaning now,'' he said. "The wait, actually it worked out well for me.''

Martinez's Hall of Fame classmates certainly couldn't get him out. The slugger was 11-for-19 (.579) lifetime against Rivera, 23-for-75 (.307) with five homers against Mussina and 8-for-18 (.444) against Halladay.

play 0:38 Martinez gets the Hall of Fame call Edgar Martinez receives the news that he has been elected to the Baseball Hall of Fame.

Halladay came up to Toronto as a prized prospect and had a 3.92 ERA as a rookie in 1999. Everything fell apart in 2000, however, and he had one of the worst seasons in major league history: 4-7 with a 10.64 ERA over 67⅔ innings. The next season, he started back in the Florida State League, with the Blue Jays hoping Halladay could fix things enough just so they could trade him. They sent him to Double-A to work with pitching coach Mel Queen, and the two rebuilt his mechanics -- starting the first session by not even letting Halladay throw a baseball. Halladay was back in the big leagues in July, and he won his first Cy Young Award in 2003.

In a statement, Brandy Halladay, Roy's widow, said that making the Hall of Fame was never his goal.

"His goal was to be successful every single day of his 16-year career," she said. "Tonight's announcement is the end result of that effort.

"If only Roy were here to personally express his gratitude for this honor, what an even more amazing day this would be."

Braden Halladay, Roy's oldest son who has signed to pitch at Penn State, tweeted a tribute to his father.

The only other player elected on the first ballot posthumously was Christy Mathewson in 1936. Roberto Clemente was elected by a special election in 1973 after dying in a plane crash on Dec. 31, 1972.

"It's well-deserved," former Phillies teammate Cole Hamels said of Halladay on MLB Network. "Just to understand the character he really had and what he meant to baseball -- he was by far the greatest pitcher for 10 years."

Mussina received 20.3 percent of the votes in his first ballot in 2014, but he had steadily gained support since. Armed with a nasty knuckle curveball, Mussina also got a push from the sabermetric community.

The head boys' basketball coach at Montoursville High, Mussina had just finished practice when his phone rang with the news he had been voted in.

"There was a girls' game coming in after us with people coming in for that, so I had to go hide somewhere in the other end of the building so no one could see me," Mussina said on MLB Network.

Mussina's 3.68 ERA will be the third highest in Cooperstown behind Jack Morris (3.90) and Red Ruffing (3.80), but writers gave him a break for pitching in the slugger-heavy AL East, with its cozy ballparks.

"You know they're small or hitter-friendly, it's just how it was,'' Mussina said. "I just kept trying to make adjustments.''

Mussina fell short of 300 wins and 3,000 strikeouts, but those traditional markers haven't been as crucial to modern voters. This proved more relevant: His 83 wins above replacement, per Baseball-Reference, rank 58th all-time. That's just ahead of first-ballot Hall of Fame pitchers Nolan Ryan and Tom Glavine.

Asked if his plaque would depict him wearing an Orioles or Yankees hat, Mussina said he couldn't make that decision -- and the Hall of Fame has the final say in such matters.

"I wouldn't be on this phone call if it wasn't for both places," he said.

"I played for both organizations and was proud to play for both and there's no way I could pick one over the other."

Mussina knew the votes were tracking as if he would be selected, but he wasn't sure until receiving the phone call.

"It's surprising, somewhat. [The vote totals were] steadily improving, but it was a pretty big jump from last year to this year," Mussina said.

"I knew it was going to be close, but it's pretty cool."

Information from The Associated Press was used in this report.</s>Rivera is joined by Roy Halladay, Edgar Martínez, and Mike Mussina in the Baseball Hall of Fame as part of the 2019 class.

The Baseball Writers Association of America has elected Mariano Rivera, Roy Halladay, Edgar Martinez, and Mike Mussina to the Baseball Hall of Fame as part of the 2019 class.

Rivera received votes from every single writer who submitted a ballot, becoming the first player to ever be unanimously indicted into the Hall of Fame. According to NBC Sports, Halladay and Martinez each received 85.4 percent of the votes and Mussina was listed on 76.7 percent of the ballots.

In the 19 seasons Rivera played major league ball, he spent the entire duration with the New York Yankees. The coaches initially used Rivera, 49, as a starter, but based upon his immense success, he quickly found himself in the bullpen and became known as the “greatest closer of all-time.” According to NBC Sports, he accumulated 652 saves, which was the most in baseball history. He possessed a 2.21 ERA and racked up 1,173 strikeouts in 1,282 2/3 innings.

“This is beyond my imagination,” he said in a conference call as reported by the Denver Post.

In the 96 postseason games in which he appeared, he had 42 saves out of 47 opportunities with a 0.70 ERA and a 110/21 K/BB ratio in 141 innings. He cinched the deal for five championships and earned five Rolaids Relief Awards. He also was named the MVP in the World Series, AlCS and an All-Star Game. He was selected for the AL All-Star team 13 times.

Halladay sadly is being inducted into the Hall of Fame posthumously. He tragically perished a few years after he retired while flying his plane off the coast of Florida. He spent the first 12 years of his 16-year career with the Blue Jays where he won the 2003 AL Cy Young Award. He was selected for the AL All-Star team six times. Halladay then was traded to the Phillies where he pitched a perfect game against the Marlins. He pitched a no-hitter against the Reds in his first postseason start, which led him to win the NL Cy Young Award.

In a statement from Brandy Halladay, his widow, she shared that he had never once played with the goal of making it into the Hall of Fame.

“His goal was to be successful every single day of his 16-year career,” she said. “Tonight’s announcement is the end result of that effort. If only Roy were here to personally express his gratitude for this honor, what an even more amazing day this would be.”

Martinez, 56, spent 17 years all with the Mariners. He was a full-time designated hitter and retired with a career .312/ .418/ .515 batting line along with 309 home runs and 1,261 RBI. He won two batting titles and led the league in RBI once (145 in 2000) and in doubles twice. He was nominated to the AL All-Star team seven times and won five Silver Slugger Awards.

Mussina, 50, played 18 seasons in the major league with 10 of those spent with the Orioles. The pitcher won 270 games and left the mound for retirement with a 3.68 ERA and 2,813 strikeouts across 3,562 2/3 innings. He was named to the AL All-Star team five times and won seven Gold Glove Awards.

Today’s Game Era Committee selected Harold Baines and Lee Smith to join these notable players in the 2019 Hall of Fame induction class. They will be inducted in Cooperstown in July.</s>Mariano Rivera, Roy Halladay, Edgar Martínez, and Mike Mussina have been elected to the Baseball Hall of Fame by the Baseball Writers Association of America as part of the 2019 class. The results were just announced on MLB Network. Rivera received votes from every single writer who submitted a ballot, becoming the first player ever to be unanimously inducted into the Hall of Fame. Halladay and Edgar Martínez each received 85.4 percent of the vote and Mussina appeared on 76.7 percent of ballots.

Rivera, 49, spent all 19 of his seasons in the majors with the Yankees. He was initially used as a starter, but quickly moved to the bullpen, becoming the greatest closer of all-time. He racked up 652 saves — the most in baseball history — during the regular season along with a 2.21 ERA anda 1,173 strikeouts across 1,283 2/3 innings. He saved his best work for the postseason. Rivera appeared in 96 postseason games, saving 42 saves in 47 opportunities with a 0.70 ERA and a 110/21 K/BB ratio in 141 innings. Rivera won five championships, five Rolaids Relief Awards, as well as MVP awards in the World Series, ALCS, and All-Star Game. He made the AL All-Star team 13 times.

Halladay, 40, will sadly be inducted into the Hall of Fame posthumously. Just a few years following his retirement, Halladay died while flying his plane off the coast of Florida. Halladay spent the first 12 years of his 16-year career with the Blue Jays, winning the 2003 AL Cy Young Award and making the AL All-Star team six times. The Jays traded him to the Phillies after the 2009 season. In 2010, Halladay threw a perfect game against the Marlins on May 29, 2010, which was the 20th in baseball history at the time. Halladay then pitched a no-hitter against the Reds in Game 1 of the NLDS, his first career postseason start. He unanimously won the NL Cy Young Award that year. Halladay had another great year in 2011, making the NL All-Star team and finishing a runner-up in Cy Young balloting. Starting in 2012, however, injuries began to get the best of him and his career was finished not long after.

Martínez, 56, played in the big leagues between 1987-2004, all with the Mariners. He spent the first eight years of his career before becoming a full-time DH, arguably the best of his era. He retired with a career .312/.418/.515 batting line along with 309 home runs and 1,261 RBI. He won two batting titles, led the league in RBI once (145 in 2000), led the league in doubles twice, and led the league in on-base percentage three times. Martínez made the AL All-Star team seven times and won five Silver Slugger Awards as well. This was Martínez’s 10th and final year on the ballot and he finally received enough support to earn enshrinement. Starting with his first year of eligibility in 2010, Martinez earned 36.2, 32.9, 36.5, 35.9, 25.2, 27.0, 43.4, 58.6, and 70.4 percent of the vote through last year.

Mussina, 50, has been a Sabermetric favorite since he first became eligible. The right-hander played 18 seasons in the majors, 10 with the Orioles and eight with the Yankees. He won 270 games, retiring with a 3.68 ERA and 2,813 strikeouts across 3,562 2/3 innings. Mussina made the AL All-Star team five times and won seven Gold Glove Awards. His traditional stats, beyond wins, don’t stack up quite as well compared to other Hall of Fame starters. However, Baseball Reference credits him with racking up 82.9 Wins Above Replacement, which is only a tick behind Hall of Famer Pedro Martínez’s 86.2.

Congratulations to Rivera, Halladay, Martínez, and Mussina. They will join Harold Baines and Lee Smith in the 2019 Hall of Fame induction class. Baines and Smith were voted in by the Today’s Game Era Committee last month. The group of six will be inducted into Cooperstown in July.

Players that got between five and 75 percent of the vote will reappear on next year’s ballot. Those include: Curt Schilling (60.9%), Roger Clemens (59.5%), Barry Bonds (59.1%), Larry Walker (54.6%), Omar Vizquel (42.8%), Manny Ramirez (22.8%), Jeff Kent (18.1%), Billy Wagner (16.7%), Todd Helton (16.5%), Scott Rolen (17.2%), Gary Sheffield (13.6%), Andy Pettitte (9.9%), Sammy Sosa (8.5%), Andruw Jones and (7.5). Fred McGriff got 39.8% of the vote in his 10th and final year on the ballot, so he is no longer eligible, but he can be considered by the Today’s Game Era Committee.

Dropping off the ballot with less than five percent of the vote: Michael Young (2.1%), Lance Berkman (1.2%), Miguel Tejada (1.2%), Roy Oswalt (0.9%), Placido Polanco (0.5%), Rick Ankiel (0), Jason Bay (0), Freddy Garcia (0), Jon Garland (0), Travis Hafner (0), Ted Lilly (0), Derek Lowe (0), Darren Oliver (0), Juan Pierre (0), Vernon Wells (0), and Kevin Youkilis (0).</s>CLEVELAND, Ohio -- Closer Mariano Rivera, starting pitcher Roy Halladay, starting pitcher Mike Mussina and designated hitter Edgar Martinez were elected to the National Baseball Hall of Fame by the Baseball Writers Association of America (BBWAA). Voting results were announced Tuesday evening, Jan. 22, on MLB Network and mlb.com.

Rivera became the first player to be named on 100 percent of the ballots (425 of 425). Halladay and Martinez received 85.4 percent and Mussina 76.7 percent.

The quartet joins outfielder/DH Harold Baines and closer Lee Smith in the Class of 2019. Baines and Smith were elected by the Today's Game Era Committee in December.

I am privileged to be a BBWAA voter for the Hall of Fame. I chose eight players; maximum number allowed was 10. A player needed to be named on 75 percent of ballots cast (319 of 425).

Here is my quick thought on each player on the 2019 ballot, listed in alphabetical order. Some observations carried over from previous years' ballots because my thoughts on those players had not changed. My selections are in bold, with inductees in CAPS:</s>The greatest closer and designated hitter of all time will join a dominant starter in being honored in Cooperstown this summer.

Mariano Rivera and Roy Halladay were voted into the Baseball Hall of Fame in their first year of eligibility, while Edgar Martinez was elected in his final year on the writers' ballot and Mike Mussina edged over the threshold.

Rivera was named on all 425 ballots from 10-year members of the Baseball Writers' Association of America, the first-ever unanimous selection to the Hall of Fame. Ken Griffey Jr. had set the mark at 99.32 percent in 2016.

Halladay polled at 85.4 percent in his debut and Martinez netted the same number of votes to end a decade of waiting to get the call, while Mussina's 76.7 percent just cleared the 75 percent standard for induction.

They will be honored July 21 in Cooperstown, N.Y., along with fellow Class of 2019 members Lee Smith and Harold Baines, who were elected by the Today's Game Era Committee in December.

Larry Walker had the biggest jump among those who missed the cut, going from 34.1 percent in 2018 to 54.6 this time. He'll have one more shot to make it in on the writers' ballot next year before falling off.

Other contenders who saw increases from 2018 included Curt Schilling (51.2 percent to 60.9), Roger Clemens (57.3 to 59.5), Barry Bonds (56.4 to 59.1).

Fred McGriff failed to make the cut despite a surge in support from 23.2 to 39.8 percent in his final year on the writers' ballot but will be a strong contender for election by the Today's Game Era Committee.

Though Hall of Fame voters have traditionally struggled with how to handle relievers, Rivera was a no-doubter. His 652 career saves are an all-time record and he was one of the most dominant postseason pitchers ever, posting a 0.70 ERA in 96 playoff games as he helped the Yankees win five World Series titles.

Halladay didn't get nearly as many chances in October, but his postseason debut was one for the record books — a no-hitter against the Reds in Game 1 of the 2010 NLDS. The durable right-hander won Cy Young awards in both leagues, with the Blue Jays in 2003 and the Phillies in 2010, and led his league in complete games seven different times even as working nine innings became a lost art. Halladay died in a plane crash Nov. 7, 2017, at age 40.

Martinez made it to the majors as a third baseman but ended up setting the standard for designated hitters, to the point that the annual award for the best DH is named after him. He collected 2,247 hits in 18 seasons with the Mariners and had a .418 career on-base percentage, which ranks just outside the top 20 all-time.

Mussina was a consistent force in the Orioles’ and Yankees’ rotations, posting at least 11 wins for 17 consecutive years and topping 200 innings 11 times.

This election continued the recent trend of multiple players making the cut after no one was elected from the writers' ballot for the class of 2013. Those who just missed out this time will like their chances next year, with Derek Jeter the only apparent Hall lock set to debut on the 2020 ballot.

Others from the current group who will return to the ballot in 2020 after receiving at least 5 percent of the vote: Omar Vizquel (42.8), Manny Ramirez (22.8), Jeff Kent (18.1), Scott Rolen (17.2), Billy Wagner (16.7), Todd Helton (16.5), Gary Sheffield (13.6), Andy Pettitte (9.9), Sammy Sosa (8.5) and Andruw Jones (7.5).

Notable first-year candidates falling off the ballot include Michael Young (2.1), Lance Berkman (1.2), Miguel Tejada (1.2), Roy Oswalt (0.9) and Placido Polanco (0.2).</s>There are few players in baseball history of whom it can be said unequivocally that they were the best ever at their position, but among them is longtime New York Yankees closer Mariano Rivera. And Tuesday, Rivera became the first unanimous selection to the Hall of Fame.

Rivera, baseball’s all-time leader in saves and a 13-time all-star, was named on all 425 ballots cast by 10-year members of the Baseball Writers’ Association of America.

He heads a four-player contingent elected to Cooperstown. Also gaining election were two-time Cy Young Award winner Roy Halladay, the late ace of the Toronto Blue Jays and Philadelphia Phillies; longtime Seattle Mariners designated hitter Edgar Martinez, one of the most feared hitters of the 1990s; and former Baltimore Orioles and New York Yankees ace Mike Mussina.

Rivera and Halladay were on the ballot for the first time, Mussina was on his sixth year on the ballot, and Martinez made it into Cooperstown on his 10th and final try. To gain election, a player must be named on at least 75 percent of ballots. Halladay and Martinez each received 363 votes, or 85.4 percent. Mussina garnered 326 votes (76.8 percent).

Rivera, Halladay, Martinez and Mussina will be inducted — along with former closer Lee Smith and designated hitter Harold Baines, who were elected in December by the 16-person Today’s Game Era — at a ceremony July 21 in Cooperstown, N.Y.

Falling just short — again — were Roger Clemens and Barry Bonds, arguably the best pitcher and hitter of their time, but also two of the players most associated with the so-called steroid era. Both were on the ballot for the seventh time and will have three more chances before falling off the writers’ ballot.</s>The only suspense for Yankees great Mariano Rivera on Tuesday was whether he would become the first to be unanimously election into Baseball Hall of Fame.

He did it!

Another amazing record for an amazing baseball legend ... an amazing man.

For years, it's been a foregone conclusion that baseball's great regular-season and postseason reliever would be immortalized with a plaque in Cooperstown.

Rivera will be inducted on Sunday, July 21 with a 2019 Hall of Fame class that includes fellow Yankees pitching great Mike Mussina, Roy Halladay and Edgar Martinez - all four gained the necessary 75 percent of the BBWAA vote for election - plus elected Today's Game Committee candidates Lee Smith and Harold Baines.

Here are 50 top highlights from Rivera's career, which included all 19 of his big-league seasons pitching for the Yankees from 1995-2013:</s>Mariano Rivera, the New York Yankees' closing pitcher who posted a record 652 saves over his 19-year career, is the first player to be unanimously selected for Major League Baseball's Hall of Fame.

Two other pitchers, the late Roy Halladay and Mike Mussina, and slugger Edgar Martinez were also elected.

Rivera received all 425 votes cast by the Baseball Writers Association of America. The stars all received at least 75 percent of the ballots cast. Players must be retired for five years to be eligible for the honor.

In 2014, Rivera told NPR that as he grew up in poverty in Panama, he had far different expectations from life.

"I wanted to be a mechanic. So I would have saved all the money that I make to open my own shop," he said.

Roy Halladay, who won two Cy Young Awards and made eight All-Star appearances, played for the Toronto Blue Jays and the Philadelphia Phillies. Winning 203 games in his 16-year career, he was known as a workhorse, posting 67 complete games — the most in the major leagues — since 2000. He is also the third posthumous Hall of Fame inductee. Halladay died in November 2017 when he crashed the airplane he was flying into the Gulf of Mexico near the Florida coast.

Edgar Martinez was a .312 hitter in his 18 years with the Seattle Mariners. He hit 309 home runs, won two batting titles and was a seven-time All-Star. Martinez is also one of three inductees — the others were Frank Thomas and Harold Baines — who played most of their careers as designated hitters.

Mike Mussina played 18 years for the New York Yankees and Baltimore Orioles, winning 270 games, striking out 2,813 batters and posting a career 3.68 earned run average. He was a five-time All-Star who won at least 11 games every year from 1992 to 2008. He also won seven Gold Gloves — an award for the top fielding position players.

As baseball fans earlier in the day awaited the news of which past stars would make the cut and have his name officially ranked with the game's immortals, ESPN reminded readers that there had never been a unanimous selection to the Hall.

Barry Bonds and Roger Clemens, two stars tainted by the widespread reaction against performance-enhancing drugs in baseball, both fell short of the 75 percent vote threshold. Bonds received 59.1 percent and Clemens 59.5 percent. Both were in their seventh year of eligibility.

Rivera, Halladay, Martinez and Mussina will be officially inducted into the Hall of Fame at a ceremony in Cooperstown, N.Y., this summer.</s>The Baseball Writers Association of America has officially released its 2019 Hall of Fame voting results. As expected, four players will be inducted into Cooperstown this July: pitchers Mariano Rivera, Roy Halladay and Mike Mussina, as well as designated hitter Edgar Martinez.

Rivera's legacy is that of the best reliever of all time as well as the first player to ever receive 100 percent of the vote. He finished his 19-year career with 652 saves, 13 All-Star Game appearances, five Rolaids Relief Awards, five World Series titles, and MVP Awards from an All-Star Game, ALCS, and World Series. Rivera was as dominant, reliable, and likable as any pitcher we've seen. This was Rivera's first year on the ballot.

Halladay's induction will, unfortunately, be of the posthumous sort after he died in a plane crash in November 2017. During a 16-year career, he won two Cy Young Awards and received the nod in eight All-Star Games. He also won 203 games and figures to be remembered as one of the last true workhorses thanks in part to his 250-inning season in 2010. As with Rivera, this was Halladay's first year on the ballot.

Mussina probably should've been voted in earlier, but he'll join his former teammate Rivera on what was his sixth try. He never won a Cy Young Award, but he did claim seven Gold Gloves and make five All-Star Games during his 18-year career. He won 270 games and finished with more than 3,500 career innings.

At last there's Martinez, the lone position player inductee. He earned entrance on his 10th and final try after facing a long road thanks to his association as a DH. Martinez was a seven-time All-Star and five-time Silver Slugger who also won a pair of batting titles. He hit .312/.418/.515 (147 OPS+) with 309 home runs over parts of 18 seasons.</s>Mariano Rivera figures to make quick work of his Hall of Fame ballot appearance, just as he did of opposing batters, and could even set another record when voting is announced Tuesday: for highest percentage of ballots.

No one has ever been a unanimous Hall of Fame selection. Ken Griffey Jr. holds the mark for the top percentage at 99.32 when he was on 437 of 440 ballots two years ago.

Rivera was picked by all 217 voters totaled through Monday afternoon by Ryan Thibodaux's Hall of Fame vote tracker, about half the expected ballots.

Bill Ballou of The Telegram & Gazette in Worcester, Mass., wrote in November that because he didn't plan to vote for Rivera, he wouldn't submit a ballot.

“He has had a long career, albeit in a role I do not value, a role I equate with a PAT kicker in football or a shootout guy in hockey,” Ballou wrote. “Rivera could be the first Hall of Famer elected unanimously. I think I'm right about closers, but not so much that I would deny Rivera a chance to be the first unanimous Hall of Famer.”

Roy Halladay also appeared headed to election in his first appearance on the Baseball Writers' Association of America ballot while Edgar Martinez seemed likely to join them in his 10th and final appearance. Mike Mussina also could gain the honor, but Barry Bonds, Roger Clemens and Curt Schilling probably will fall short while getting closer.

Rivera set the career saves record with 652 in 19 seasons plus 42 more in the postseason. The New York Yankees didn't even wait until his final game to retire his No. 42 — he was the last player in the major leagues to wear that number, grandfathered when No, 42 was retired in honor of Jackie Robinson in 1997.

Rivera's efficiency was renowned on a Yankees' dynasty that he helped win five World Series titles: He retired the side in order in 229 of his 491 three-out saves. according to the Elias Sports Bureau. He broke the previous mark of 601 saves, set by 2018 inductee Trevor Hoffman.

Rivera made a weepy exit in September 2013 when teammates Derek Jeter and Andy Pettitte went to the mound to remove him against Tampa Bay in what turned out to be his finale. After the final out, Rivera went back to the mound where he became famous and gathered a bit of his workplace to take home.

“I wanted to get some dirt, just stay there for the last time, knowing that I ain't going to be there no more,” he said.

Halladay's election will be tinged with melancholy. The two-time Cy Young Award winner died in November 2017 at age 40 when the airplane he was piloting crashed into the Gulf of Mexico off the coast of Florida. He went 203-104 with a 3.38 ERA in 12 seasons with Toronto and four for Philadelphia.

In 2010, he pitched a perfect game against the Marlins in May, then threw a no-hitter against Cincinnati in the NL Division Series opener — only the second no-hitter in postseason history after Don Larsen's perfect game for the Yankees against Brooklyn in the 1956 World Series.

Halladay retired at age 36 because of back injuries.

“I want to continue to do things I enjoy doing, spend time with my family,” he said when making the announcement. “The biggest thing is I'm trying to avoid surgery.”

Halladay was tracking at 92.6 percent, an overwhelming choice.

Martinez received 36.2 percent support in his first ballot appearance in 2010, well short of the 75 percent needed. He rose from 27 percent in 2015 to 43.4 percent the following year, to 58.6 percent in 2017 to 70.4 percent last year, when he fell 20 votes shy of the 317 needed.

“We are trending up, next year may be the year,” he tweeted after the 2018 vote.

Martinez hit .312 with 309 home runs in 18 seasons with Seattle, like Rivera spending his entire career with one organization. He was tracking at 90.8 percent support this year; players' final totals usually drop by 5-7 percent from the vote-tracker.

Martinez would join 2014 inductee Frank Thomas as the only players in the Hall who played a majority of their games as a designated hitter. David Ortiz is likely to make it three when he becomes eligible in 2022.

Six players were inducted last year, included four voted in by writers — one shy of the record set in the first year of balloting in 1936.

Pitcher Lee Smith and designated hitter/outfielder Harold Baines were elected last month by the Today's Game Era Committee and also will be inducted on July 21. Rivera and Smith will increase relievers at Cooperstown by 25 percent to eight, joining Hoyt Wilhelm (1985), Rollie Fingers (1992), Dennis Eckersley (2004), Bruce Sutter (2006), Rich Gossage (2008) and Hoffman.

Including Smith and Baines, 25 people have been voted in since 2014.

Mussina was 39 when he retired after going 20-8 in 2008 and becoming the oldest first-time 20-game winner. He was 270-153 with 2,813 strikeouts in 18 seasons for Baltimore and the Yankees, and had he remained active he had a chance to reach 300 wins and 3,000 strikeouts.

“My numbers match up well with guys who are in the Hall of the Fame,” he said when he retired.

Mussina got 20.3 percent of the vote in his first appearance, rose to 43 percent in 2016, 51.8 percent the following year and 63.5 percent in 2018. This is his sixth appearance, and he was tracking at 81.6 percent.

Bonds and Clemens, both on for the seventh time, also are gaining as younger voters appear less inclined to withhold support because of allegations of steroids use. Bonds rose to 56.4 percent last year from 36.2 in his first appearance, and he was tracking at 70.5. Clemens increased from 37.6 percent in 2013 to 57.3 last year and was tracking at 71.

Schilling, also in his seventh appearance, rose from 51.2 last year to 70.5 in this year's tracker. Their best chance could come in 2021 when no first-time candidates are odds-on favorites. Jeter heads the newcomers on the 2020 ballot.
The National Baseball Hall of Fame announces the results of voting by the Baseball Writers' Association of America (BBWAA) to determine players to be formally inducted in July 2019. Roy Halladay, Edgar Martínez, Mike Mussina, and Mariano Rivera are elected and will join Harold Baines and Lee Smith, elected by a Hall committee in December 2018, at the induction ceremonies in Cooperstown, New York. Rivera is the first player ever to be elected unanimously by the BBWAA.