Billy Wagner

William Edward Wagner (born July 25, 1971), nicknamed "Billy the Kid", is an American former professional baseball pitcher who played 16 seasons in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the Houston Astros, Philadelphia Phillies, New York Mets, Boston Red Sox, and Atlanta Braves from 1995 to 2010. A seven-time All-Star and the 1999 National League (NL) Rolaids Relief Man Award winner, Wagner is one of only eight major league relief pitchers to reach 400 career saves. A left-handed batter and thrower, Wagner stands 5 feet 10 inches (1.78 m) tall and weighs 180 pounds (82 kg). A natural-born right-hander, Wagner learned to throw left-handed after fracturing his arm twice in his youth. Wagner's career 11.9 strikeouts per nine innings pitched (K/9) is the second highest of any major league pitcher with at least 900 innings pitched (Kenley Jansen). His career 2.31 earned run average, .187 batting average against, and 0.998 WHIP are the lowest of any left-handed pitcher in the live-ball era. He finished in the top ten in saves in the NL ten times, and in the top ten in games finished nine times. In 2025, Wagner was elected to the Baseball Hall of Fame.