Billy Wagner’s road to the Baseball Hall of Fame began with a humble summer in Auburn, New York. COOPERSTOWN, N.Y. — Before Billy Wagner became one of the most dominant relief pitchers in baseball history, he was a quiet 21-year-old arriving in a compact truck to begin his pro career in the small city of Auburn, New York.

But Wagner, who played safety, was only on the football team in the fall of 1990, when he was a Ferrum freshman. Dave Davis, then the defensive coordinator for the football team,

And by next year, Baseball Hall of Fame relief pitcher Billy Wagner will also have a permanent marker in his hometown. A native of Tazewell, where he pitched in high school, Wagner learned in January that he’d been elected to this year’s Hall of Fame class. A local hero, there are signs on each end of town celebrating his big-league career.

Rain threatened the National Baseball Hall of Fame’s Class of 2025 Induction Ceremony, with the unfortunate possibility of the event being forced to a small, indoor venue. But thankfully, the weather and baseball gods didn’t let that happen to this large,