There was plenty of celebrating on Tuesday evening for the three new members who were elected to the National Baseball Hall of Fame by the Baseball Writers' Association of America (BBWAA). Former Philadelphia Phillies closer Billy Wagner made it in on his final ballot and joins Ichiro Suzuki, CC Sabathia, Dick Allen and Dave Parker as the Class of 2025 inductees.
Unfortunately, the other three Phillies on the ballot fell short of the required 75 percent needed to gain entry into Cooperstown. Chase Utley, Jimmy Rollins and Bobby Abreu all missed this year but appeared on enough ballots to remain in the running in 2026.
Phillies teammates Chase Utley, Jimmy Rollins, Bobby Abreu fall short of Hall of Fame in 2025
Utley, the Phillies' second baseman from 2003 into 2015, was a superstar during their dominating run of five straight NL East titles from 2007 to 2011 and, of course, the World Series win in 2008. In his second year of Hall of Fame eligibility, Utley appeared on 39.8 percent of ballots. He finished with 28.8 percent in his first year of eligibility, so got a nice boost this time around.
Over his 16-year MLB career, Utley hit .275 with an .823 OPS (117 OPS+) through 1,937 games. He collected 1,885 hits, 259 home runs, 1,025 RBI and 1,103 runs scored. During his peak years from 2005 through 2010, he hit .298 with a .911 OPS and a 162-game average of 185 hits, 30 homers, 107 RBI and 117 runs scored. He was named an All-Star in five straight seasons (with a sixth All-Star season in 2014) during that stretch, won four Silver Sluggers and finished as high as seventh in NL MVP voting.
Utley's double-play partner, shortstop Jimmy Rollins, received 18 percent of the votes in his fourth year on the Hall of Fame ballot, a modest improvement from his 14.8 percent in 2024.
His 17-year career began with his debut in 2000, and he played for the Phillies through 2014 before spending a couple more seasons elsewhere. He won the NL MVP in 2007, was a three-time All-Star, four-time Gold Glover and was integral to the team's success in the 2000s. In 2,275 games, Rollins finished his career with a .264 batting average and .743 OPS, with 2,455 hits, 231 homers, 936 RBI, 1,142 runs scored and 470 stolen bases.
Abreu, in his sixth year on the ballot in 2025, got up to 19.5 percent. Like Rollins, the former Phillies outfielder appeared on just 14.8 percent of the ballots last year. In a playing career that spanned 18 years, Abreu spent from 1998 partway through the 2006 season with the Phillies and had the best seasons of his career in Philadelphia. In 2,425 career games, Abreu hit .291 with an .870 OPS, 2,470 hits, 288 home runs, 1,363 RBI and 1,453 runs scored.