| Welcome to the Cooperstown Crier |
|
||||||||||||
|
|
|
6-26-2007 By ERIC AHLQVIST Editor "2007 is a year like no other," said Hall of Fame President Dale Petroskey. "Every Hall of Fame Induction is special, but we're especially excited about this year because it gives us a chance to showcase to the world how special Cooperstown and our museum are. It's a wonderful opportunity." But, of course, not without its challenges: Crowd estimates run as high as 60,000 visitors for the weekend, which will begin Friday, July 27 and culminate with the Induction on Sunday, July 29 at 1:30 p.m. on the grounds of the Clark Sports Center. "We've been working closely with the village on things like traffic patterns, law enforcement and public safety," Petroskey said. "There's more of a level of coordination that's needed, but we started early and we feel we're in good shape." The biggest Induction Ceremony in Hall of Fame history was in 1999, when George Brett, Nolan Ryan and Robin Yount helped draw close to 50,000 visitors to Cooperstown. "1999 is the model we use as a framework," Petroskey said. Added Hall of Fame spokesman jeff Idelson on Tuesday: "We've had six years to think about it and a year since last year's Induction to figure out plans. At this point we're in reaction-mode. If we were planning now, we'd be in deep trouble." Ripken, possibly the most popular living baseball player, and Gwynn both retired in 2001. Both Ripken (Baltimore Orioles) and Gwynn (San Diego Padres) played their entire careers with one team, which helps add to their popularity, Petroskey said. "They both had chances to become free agents but decided not to," Petroskey said. "There is that level of commitment and loyalty that fans really respect, admire and appreciate." Of course, Ripken is also admired for his "Iron man" streak, surpassing Lou Gehrig's seemingly unbreakable record of 2,130 straight games in September of 1995. Ripken went on to play in 2,632 consecutive games. In June, USA Today ran a list of the Top 25 Sports Stories over the last 25 Years, and Ripken's streak was second only to the Red Sox winning the World Series in 2004 for the first time since 1919. Peter Schmuck was both a beat writer and columnist for the Baltimore Sun during most of Ripken's career, and said the streak sometimes overshadows what a great baseball player Ripken was. "There aren't too many people with both 400 home runs and 3,000 hits, and every one of them is in the Hall of Fame," Schmuck said. "The best way I can think of to describe Ripken is consistently relentless. He was always working on his game. He was famous for tinkering with his swing but he also took a lot of grounders every day and never took anything for granted." In the record breaking game at Camden Yards on Sept. 6, 1995, Ripken did an impromptu lap around the field after the game became official following the top of the fifth inning. "At first, I didn't even want the game stopped, but after 22 minutes of applause Bobby Bo (Bonilla) and Rafael Palmeiro pushed me out of the dugout," said Ripken during a conference call with reporters after his election last January. "I was kind of reluctant at first, but it became the best human experience of all my time in baseball. At the end of the lap, I couldn't have cared less if we continued playing the game." Schmuck said it was significant that Ripken hit a home run in both the record-tying game and the game in which he broke the streak. "Any time the spotlight was on him because of the streak he made a point to do something that showcased his ability as a baseball player too," Schmuck said. "He was a guy who could always rise to the occasion." During his orientation visit to the museum in May, Ripken said he choked up when holding artifacts related to Gehrig's career, which included the former Yankee's glove and jersey. "I wasn't obsessed with breaking the record," he said. "That was my job, I was put in there every day and that's how the streak started." Petroskey said that's one of the characteristics that makes Ripken so special. "Everyone can identify with getting up every day and going to work," he said. "Even if maybe you don't feel like it that day, you do your job. That's one of the reasons people love him." Ripken was a 19-time All Star, the Rookie-of-the-Year in 1982, and Most Valuable Player in 1983 and 1991. Like Gwynn, he accumulated well over 3,000 career hits, but unlike his fellow inductee, experienced the thrill of winning a World Series title in 1983. Ripken caught the final out of that World Series victory over the Philadelphia Phillies on a line drive to shortstop, and said it was his best moment in baseball. "Nothing has ever compared to that," he said in January. Despite all of his credentials, Ripken said he was apprehensive as he waited for a phone call informing him of the baseball writers' vote last January. "I just wanted to hear `You're in,"' he said. "And I was just relieved to hear those words. Although people speculate that it's a given, I didn't look at it that way." Gwynn was moved to tears. For five years you wonder what it's going to be like, but you can't imagine until you get the call," he said. "I lost it for a while, I just broke down." Gwynn said there were two things he always focused on when playing baseball: Work hard and have fun. Gwynn was unique for his era. Despite the fact that he played much of his career at a "power position" (right field is known for producing sluggers) during a time when home runs were at an all-time high, he was not a home run threat, never hitting more than 17 in any one season during his major league career. Instead, Gwynn made a name for himself by being one of the most consistent hitters for contact in the game's history. He struck out only 434 times in 9,288 career at-bats, and never batted below .309 in any full season, although he hit .289 in his rookie season. During an orientation tour of the Hall of Fame in May, Gwynn described himself as a "Punch and Judy" hitter. "I put the ball in play, and that's one of the things I'm most proud of," he said. "I was the type of player that took a while to get noticed, but once you did you could appreciate what I did. I'm glad there's a place in the game, and in the Hall of Fame, for a player like me. What I'm most proud of is my consistency." Gwynn, who was also selected by the Clippers in the 10th round of the NBA draft after attending San Diego State University, constantly studied his swing, always looking for some way, no matter how small, to improve his hitting. He became known as the pioneer of using video to study his swing. "Cal had a totally different approach to hitting," Gwynn said during his orientation tour of the Hall in May. "He's a feel guy and was always making adjustments, while I was always trying to do the same thing over and over. We've had a chance to talk over the last few months and he said studying his swing so much would screw him up. But the more information I could get, the better I was." "After his orientation tour, I had a chance to have dinner with Cal and his wife, Kelly," Petroskey said. "He was reading "The Jack Welch Lexicon of Leadership" (by former GE CEO Jack Welch). That shows you his commitment to being the best at everything he does." Also honored Sunday will be J.G. Taylor Spink Award winner Rick Hummel and Ford C. Frick Award winner Denny Matthews. |
Copyright 2007, Cooperstown Crier, Cooperstown, NY All rights reserved