Astros to retire new Hall of Famer Wagner¡¯s No. 13
Brian McTaggart
@brianmctaggartHOUSTON -- Fresh off his election into the National Baseball Hall of Fame in his final year on the ballot, Billy Wagner will receive the ultimate honor from the Astros.
The Astros announced on Tuesday that Wagner, the team¡¯s all-time saves leader, will have his jersey number retired this year. It'll be retired on Aug. 16 during Hall of Fame weekend.
Wagner¡¯s No. 13 will become the 10th number retired by the Astros, joining Jim Umbricht (No. 32), Don Wilson (No. 40), Jose Cruz (No. 25), Mike Scott (No. 33), Nolan Ryan (No. 34), Larry Dierker (No. 49), Jimmy Wynn (No. 24), Jeff Bagwell (No. 5) and Craig Biggio (No. 7).
Major League Baseball retired No. 42 for Jackie Robinson in 1997.
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When the Astros unveiled their inaugural Hall of Fame class in 2019, they proclaimed they would henceforth only retire jersey numbers of players who made the National Baseball Hall of Fame. Wagner will be inducted July 27 in Cooperstown, N.Y., with Ichiro Suzuki, CC Sabathia, Dave Parker and Dick Allen.
Wagner saved a club-record 225 games in his nine years with the Astros (1995-03), making three All-Star teams and finishing fourth in 1999 National League Cy Young Award voting. His ¡¯99 season was one of the most dominant by any closer in history. The lefty flame-thrower had 39 saves in 42 chances, a 1.57 ERA, 124 strikeouts and just 35 hits allowed in 74 2/3 innings. He held opponents to a .135 batting average and had 14.95 strikeouts per nine innings.
Wagner, who was traded to the Phillies in 2003 and went on to save 197 more games with the Phillies, Mets, Red Sox and Braves, will have an Astros cap on his plaque in Cooperstown. Biggio (2015 induction) and Bagwell (2017) are currently the only two players with Astros caps on their plaques.
¡°Everything began here for me,¡± Wagner said Sunday when asked why he chose the Astros cap. ¡°There¡¯s a long winning history here. Really, it was pretty easy to say that. Most relievers bounce around a lot as I did, but to have nine years with those guys is pretty special.¡±
Christian Walker, who signed with the Astros in December and slipped on a No. 13 jersey, will switch to No. 8. The last Astros player to wear No. 13 was Cooper Hummel last year. Wagner will be the first Astros player to have his number retired since Biggio on Aug. 17, 2008.