The biggest first-time vote-getters in baseball Hall of Fame history

The unparalleled brilliance of the Rivera as a reliever was undeniable when his time for Cooperstown arrived. Of the 131 players elected by the BBWAA, Rivera was the first to be elected unanimously, appearing on all 425 ballots cast. Rivera spent his entire 19-year-career with the New York Yankees, setting all-time records for regular season saves (652), games finished (952). In addition, he won five World Series championships, was named MVP of the 1999 Series and set postseason records for saves (42) and lowest ERA (0.70).

Over two decades with the New York Yankees, ‘The Captain’ became one of the most consistent and clutch performers in history. He possessed a knack for the big moment, contributing many of the biggest plays that paved the way to five World Series titles for the Yankees during his tenure. His 3,465 hits are the sixth-most all time and the most by a shortstop. He owns an additional 10 postseason records and was World Series MVP in 2000. As a result, he became the position player with highest vote percentage of all time, appearing on 396 of 397 ballots, falling one elusive vote short of following his longtime teammate Rivera as the second unanimous selection in history.

The Kid was the face of the MLB during his 22-year career, playing with a joy and impact that were both undeniable and often awe-inspiring. It showed when his name first appeared on Hall of Fame ballots, as Griffey received the most support among Hall voters in the 80-year history of the ballot. Griffey appeared on all but three of the 440 ballots received, becoming the first player in history to appear on 99 percent of them. A 13-time All-Star and 10-time Gold Glove winner with 630 career home runs, Griffey’s fame endures as arguably the sport’s last true crossover star.

Seaver held the record for highest voter percentage for 24 years, after receiving 98.84 percent of votes in 1992. Owner of 311 wins and three Cy Young Awards, Seaver appeared on 425 of 430 ballots. Of the five ballots he was absent on, three were submitted blank in protest of the exclusion of Pete Rose from the Hall. Seaver became the first player to wear a New York Mets cap on his Hall of Fame plaque.

With seven no-hitters (along with 12 one-hitters) and the all-time record of 5,714 strikeouts on his resume, Ryan blazed his way straight to Cooperstown. His 27 seasons were the most of any player in modern history, with his longtime dominance fueled by arguably the greatest fastball of all time. As a result, Ryan garnered 98.79 percent of the vote in his first year on the ballot, with his 491 votes being the most ever received by a player in history.

Baseball’s beloved ironman, Ripken rode an accomplished all-around career to an incredible showing at the gates of Cooperstown. Following a career that saw him play in a record 2,632 straight games, compile 3,184 hits, 431 home runs, two MVP Awards and 19 All-Star appearances, Ripken appeared on 98.53 percent of ballots. He endures as one of the great ambassadors and personalities in baseball history.

Although he was surrounded by legends such as Babe Ruth, Honus Wagner, Walter Johnson and Christy Mathewson, no player received a higher percentage of the vote in baseball’s inaugural Hall of Fame class than Cobb. The fiery Georgia native got 98.2 percent of the vote, appearing on 222 of 226 ballots. Cobb’s excellence on the field overrode the divisiveness of his personality and playing style, as he set 90 MLB records during his career. This includes his career .366 batting average, which is still the highest in baseball history over 90 years since his final game.

No Hall of Fame class in prior history featured two headliners who topped 95 percent of the vote in the same year, let alone 98 percent, but that is exactly what the class of 1999 did when Brett’s 98.2 percent total joined Nolan Ryan’s 98.79 percent figure. The Kansas City Royals great has more hits (3,154) than any other third baseman in history and is the only player to win a batting title in three different decades (1976, 1980 and 1990).

Aaron retired as baseball’s all-time home run king, with 755 career long balls. He also owned or still owns records for most All-Star selections (25), runs batted in (2,297), extra-base hits (1,477) and total bases (6,856). As a result, he became the second player in history to appear on more than than 97 percent of ballots (97.83 percent).

A 15-time All-Star and eight-time batting champ, "Mr. Padre" was one of the most treasured players of all time, as his 97.61 percent voting count clearly showed. Gwynn played his entire career with the Padres and is one of 46 players in history to reach the Hall of Fame after spending his career with one franchise. He joined another such player, Cal Ripken Jr., in the class of 2007, a dual induction that set a record for induction ceremony attendance, with 75,000 onlookers paying their respects.

With five Cy Young Awards, 303 wins and 4,875 strikeouts to his credit, no left-handed pitcher has ever reached the Hall with more acclaim than Johnson. The 6-foot-10 hurler was one of the most imposing presences on the mound in MLB history, becoming the only pitcher to throw a no-hitter and win a Cy Young Award in both leagues. He was elected with the support of 97.3 percent of the electorate.

The backbone of the Atlanta Braves’ dynastic run throughout the 1990s and early 2000s, Jones is the only switch-hitter in history to hit .300 with 400 home runs for his career. An eight-time All-Star and 1999 National League MVP, Jones received 97.2 percent of the vote last winter. Along with Ken Griffey Jr., Jones is one of only two No. 1 overall draft picks to make the Hall.

No pitcher whose career has begun since 1950 has won more games than Maddux, who notched a total of 355. The absolute master of commanding the strike zone, Maddux was the first pitcher in history to win four consecutive Cy Young Awards while working to an MLB-low 1.98 ERA over the four-year span. He is the only pitcher to win 300 games and reach 3,000 strikeouts while walking fewer than 1,000 batters in his career. "Mad Dog" walked into Cooperstown with the support of 97.2 percent of voters.

Over the course of 18 years spent entirely with the Philadelphia Phillies, Schmidt established a career that is widely considered the greatest ever by a third baseman. A three-time NL MVP, he led the league in home runs a record eight times en route to 548 in his career. A 12-time All-Star and 10-time Gold Glove winner, Schmidt appeared on 96.5 percent of ballots.

A 14-time All-Star, Bench became the youngest MVP in baseball history when he won the award in 1970, the first of two times he would claim it. Often considered the greatest catcher in history, Bench led the "Big Red Machine" to four World Series appearances, including consecutive wins in 1975 and 1976. Bench remains the only catcher in history to reach Cooperstown with more than 90 percent of the vote on his first ballot.

The first pitcher in history to win four Cy Young Awards, Carlton briefly held baseball’s all-time record for strikeouts in a career. In 1972, he won 27 games, which accounted for 46 percent of the Phillies’ victories that year. Carlton’s 329 wins are fourth-most in the live ball era, while his 4,136 strikeouts are the fourth most in history. Carlton appeared on 95.8 percent of ballots on his first appearance, the second-highest vote ever for a pitcher at the time of his induction.

If anybody stands as proof of the difficulty of chasing a consensus vote en route to the Hall, it's Ruth. He changed the game in an irreversible fashion via the long-ball home runs and still endures as the greatest icon in the history of the sport. His career total of 714 and single-season best of 60 endured as iconic numbers long after his retirement. Despite his heroic stature in the game, Ruth received "only" 95.1 percent of the vote for the inaugural Hall of Fame class in 1936, tied for the second-highest vote total in his own class.

The "Flying Dutchman" was one of the most respected and admired players of his time. His 95.1 percent of the vote in the first class of the Hall of Fame equaled that of Babe Ruth and finished behind only his longtime contemporary Ty Cobb. As powerful as he was quick of foot, Wagner was well ahead of his time in the skill set he brought as a shortstop and is still considered by some to be the best to ever play the position.

While at times it seemed as if Rickey would never actually stop playing long enough to get in, baseball’s greatest leadoff hitter did eventually land in Cooperstown. When he did so, he arrived with the MLB records for most stolen bases (1,406), runs scored (2,295) and leadoff home runs (81). In a career that spanned 25 years, Henderson led his league in steals 12 times and was named AL MVP in 1990.

It seems incredible that Mays’ name is just now appearing on this list, considering that he may be the greatest all-around ballplayer ever born. However, the runaway consensus numbers that many contemporary Hall of Famers receive were not a thing of his era, when many all-time greats such as Joe DiMaggio somehow were not even elected in their first year of eligibility. Mercifully, that was not the case for Mays, who, after a career that included 660 home runs, 3,283 hits and 24 All-Star selections, was elected with 94.7 percent of the vote.

"Yaz" joined Johnny Bench in an impressive two-man class for the Hall in 1989. He reigned as baseball’s last player to accomplish the Triple Crown for 45 years. Yastrzemski was an 18-time All-Star and three-time batting champion. He raked in 3,419 hits in his 23-year career, all spent with the Red Sox.

A prodigy who debuted at age 17 and posted a 24-win season before his 21^st  birthday, Feller spent his entire 18-year career with the Cleveland Indians. He led the American League in strikeouts seven times and wins six times, and he threw three no-hitters. He won 266 career games despite losing the better part of four years to military service between the ages of 23 and 26. Feller joined Jackie Robinson as the two inductees in the Cooperstown class of 1962.

An All-Star in 14 of his 21 seasons, if Jackson was anything, he was indisputably a winner. A member of five World Series-winning teams between the Athletics and Yankees, and a two-time World Series MVP, Jackson’s teams finished in first place 10 times in his career. He hit 563 career home runs with another 18 postseason homers as well. Jackson was the only inductee in the class of ’93.

The Splendid Splinter did not have anything close to a warm relationship with the press throughout his career; however that did not deter voters from giving him his due. Williams remains the last player to hit .400 in a season and is the all-time record holder for career on-base percentage, at .482. A .344 career hitter and a six-time batting champion with four home run titles (en route to 521 in his career), Williams’ goal of being the "greatest hitter who ever lived" is one he realized.

From 1941 to 1963, Musial called Sportsman’s Park in St. Louis his home, representing the Cardinals at 24 All-Star Games. A .331 lifetime hitter with 3,630 hits, 475 home runs, seven batting titles and three National League MVP honors to his credit, Musial is one of the most accomplished hitters in baseball history. At the time of his retirement, he owned 17 MLB and 29 National League records. In later years, his harmonica made regular appearances at induction weekend and Hall of Fame events.

A brilliant all-around player for the Pittsburgh Pirates, Clemente endures as a breakthrough icon for Latino players in Major League Baseball. His brilliance in right field earned him an outfield record-tying 12 Gold Gloves, and Clemente hit .317 lifetime and finished with exactly 3,000 hits for his career. A tremendous humanitarian, his life tragically ended in a plane crash in 1972 while delivering survival supplies to a post-earthquake Nicaragua. Following his death, the standard five-year waiting period was waived for his posthumous induction into the Hall of Fame.

Over the course of his 19-year career with the Baltimore Orioles, Palmer was privy to a handful of unique distinctions. He is the only pitcher in history to pitch in a World Series in three different decades — while also picking up a title in the 1960s, '70s and '80s. He also is a member of the only rotation to feature four 20-game winners, which the Orioles did in 1971. The three-time Cy Young Award winner appeared on the most first-time ballots by a pitcher since Bob Feller 27 years prior to Palmer's induction.

"Hoover" brought his defensive wizardry to the hot corner in Baltimore for 23 seasons, tied for the most years with one team in MLB history. Over the course of his tenure, he won 16 Gold Gloves, a record at the time of his retirement, and he helped the Orioles to two World Series titles. In the 1970 Series, Robinson hit .429 with two home runs in addition to pulling off a mesmerizing defensive play that led Cincinnati Reds manager Sparky Anderson to wisecrack that he was “starting to see Brooks in (his) sleep."

A 10-time All-Star, two-time NL Cy Young Award recipient and 305-game winner, Glavine was one of the steadiest pitchers of any era. He reached Cooperstown by baffling opponents on the outside corner of the plate with his ability to constantly switch speeds. He led the National League in wins five times and was the second-winningest pitcher of the 1990s behind longtime teammate Greg Maddux.

Along with Tony Gwynn, Boggs was the premier contact hitter of his era. He won the AL batting title in five of his first seven seasons, hitting no lower than .357 in any of those five years. He is one of four players in history to win four consecutive batting titles. Boggs was a member of every American League All-Star team from 1982 to 1992 and hit .369 in his career at Fenway Park over an astonishing 3,803 plate appearances.

“The Wizard” is the foremost defensive maestro to ever take a glove to shortstop. Due to his seemingly endless range in all directions, Smith set the MLB record for most assists in a career, with 8,375. He won 13 consecutive Gold Glove Awards, from 1980 to 1992, while making 15 All-Star Game appearances in his 19-year career. Smith’s 44.2 defensive Wins Above Replacement (WAR) level are the most in MLB history by nearly five wins.

One of the most dazzling and dominant pitchers in history, Martinez commanded the game on the mound during one of the most offensively favorable eras in MLB history. In a seven-year span from 1997 to 2003, Martinez went 118-36, struck out 1,761 batters against 315 walks and owned a 2.20 ERA, winning five ERA titles during the span. He owns the seventh-highest winning percentage in history, at .687. He reached Cooperstown to the delight of thousands of his Dominican countrymen as the second pitcher from the Dominican Republic to be elected to the Hall. (Juan Marichal is the other.)

Along with Walter Johnson, Mathewson was one of two pitchers included in the first group of inductees to the Hall of Fame. With a 373-188 record and 2.13 ERA, he is the only pitcher in history to register in the top 10 of both categories. A precision control pitcher who relied on his devastating screwball to rake in five NL strikeout crowns, "Matty" was the only member of the initial Hall of Fame class to die before his induction.

A .328 career hitter with the Minnesota Twins and California Angels, Carew brought home seven batting titles in his career. He also made 18 consecutive All-Star appearances as a second and first baseman, tied with Carl Yastrzemski for the second-most in American League history. Carew won AL MVP honors in 1977 when he hit .388 with 239 hits, 16 triples and 100 RBI. His number, 29, is retired in both Minnesota and Anaheim.