1957 Class Adds Four More Players to Hall of Fame
Balmoral, Oxford, June 3 (BP) – The Braeland Baseball Hall of Fame membership grew significantly larger this year as the Baseball Reporters Association of Braeland (BRAB) voted to add four new players in this year’s class. Ever since it took over the Hall of Fame voting in 1950, a vote it once shared with a six-member Hall of Fame panel, the BRAB has elected just one player per season – and in just four of the past nine seasons to boot.
But the President of BRAB, Hespeler Star sports reporter, Rhys Gardner, stressed that this is more of a reflection of a strong ballot rather than any shift in voting philosophy.
“This is arguably the strongest field of eligible players since the Hall was established,” observed Gardner,
“so it’s really no surprise that this year’s class saw multiple players get the call. In fact, I’m a little surprised more were not inducted as I personally felt that as many as six players had strong enough cases to receive the necessary votes to get in this year. We’ll have to wait and see if that trend continues. But the baseball association has no interest in creating a bottleneck just for the sake of it. If there happens to be a slew of candidates that are viewed as ‘no-doubters’, such as this year, then there will be no delaying on the Association’s part in voting them in.”
Gardner was one of thousands attending the first induction ceremony to be held on the grounds of the newly inaugurated Hall of Fame in Balmoral – an inauguration that was delayed by over two years due a devastating tropical cyclone that tore through southwest Braeland in April 1955. Balmoral and Kingston were the hardest hit of the country’s major population centers. The Hall of Fame construction site, already well under way, was a total loss necessitating a complete rebuild. But judging from the reaction of the attendees to the stately new facility, the extra wait was worth it.
This year’s class sees one pitcher and three position players added to the Hall. The total number of members now stands at 16, comprised of seven pitchers and nine position players (with a breakdown of 1-C, 2-2B, 2-SS, 1-LF, 1-CF and 2-RF).
Newly Inducted Players
Teams:
Queensland Eagles – 1937-1941
Kingston Pelicans – 1941-1953
Notable Achievements:
Player of the Week: 16
Batter of the Month: 10
Babe Ruth Awards: 1 (1937-38)
Ball Hawk Awards: 2 (1 each at 2B, SS)
All-Star Selections: 12
All-Braeland Teams: 3
United Cup Championship: 1 (1944-45)
Other Selected Achievements:
2 x WL RBI Leader (1945-46, 1950-51)
2 x EL WAR Leader (1937-38, 1938-39)
2 x WL WAR Leader (1943-44, 1944-45)
Hit first Cycle in United Leagues’ history: October 9, 1937
First in Career RBI: 1,433
Second in Career WAR: 89.18
Second in TB: 3,960
Third in Career HR: 293
Third in Career Hits: 2,536
Third in Career Runs: 1,343
Hall of Fame Metrics:
JAWS: 70.9 (average HOF SS – 51)
Black Ink: 14 (average HOF – 29)
Gray Ink: 199 (average HOF – 141)
HOF Standards: 66 (average HOF – 45)
HOF Monitor: 201 (average HOF – 143)
Induction Pct: 80.0; first year
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Teams:
Balmoral Giants – 1938
Embro Suns – 1939-1953
Notable Achievements:
Player of the Week: 16
Batter of the Month: 8
Babe Ruth Awards: 3
All-Star Selections: 9
All-Braeland Teams: 7
Other Selected Achievements:
6 x EL RBI Leader (1940-41, 1941-42, 1943-44, 1945-46, 1946-47, 1949-50)
3 x EL Doubles Leader (1940-41, 1943-44, 1945-46)
2 x EL Hits Leader (1941-42, 1943-44)
2 x EL WAR Leader (1940-41, 1945-46)
2 x EL SLG Leader (1945-46, 1946-47)
2 x EL OPS Leader (1945-46, 1946-47)
Holds record for most RBI in a season: 148 (1940-41)
Holds record for second-most RBI in a season: 145 (1941-42)
Second in Career RBI: 1,325
Hall of Fame Metrics:
JAWS: 53.1 (average HOF 1B – 45)
Black Ink: 58 (average HOF – 29)
Gray Ink: 217 (average HOF – 141)
HOF Standards: 50 (average HOF – 45)
HOF Monitor: 217 (average HOF – 143)
Induction Pct: 77.9; first year
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Teams:
Brunswick Legends – 1937-1949
Wolseley Unions – 1950-1953
Wellington Athletics – 1953
Notable Achievements:
Pitcher of the Month: 7
Satchel Paige Awards: 3
All-Star Selections: 10
All-Braeland Teams: 3
United Cup Championships: 5
Pennant Series MVP: 1 (1941-42)
Other Selected Achievements:
2 x EL ERA Leader (1941-42, 1948-49)
3 x EL WHIP Leader (1941-42, 1944-45, 1946-47)
4 x EL HR/9 Leader (1942-43, 1945-46, 1947-48, 1949-50)
3 x EL BB/9 Leader (1941-42, 1944-45, 1946-47)
2 x WL BB/9 Leader (1950-51, 1951-52)
6 x EL Pitcher WAR Leader (1942-43, 1945-46, 1946-47, 1947-48, 1948-49, 1949-50)
First in career Wins (251)
First in career Pitcher WAR (96.24)
Third in career K (1,730)
First in career postseason CG (16), IP (188.0), HA (201), K (91), Pitcher WAR (4.97)
Hall of Fame Metrics:
JAWS: 79.0 (average HOF SP – 56)
Black Ink: 39 (average HOF – 34)
Gray Ink: 251 (average HOF – 165)
HOF Standards: 47 (average HOF – 34)
HOF Monitor: 187 (average HOF – 123)
Induction Pct: 90.3; first year
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Teams:
Fort Richmond Generals – 1939-1943
Kingston Pelicans – 1943-1953
Notable Achievements:
Player of the Week: 11
Batter of the Month: 7
Babe Ruth Award: 3
Ball Hawk Award: 1
All-Star Selections: 9
United Cup MVP: 1 (1945-46)
All-Braeland Teams: 7
Other Selected Achievements:
3 x WL Batting Champion (1945-46, 1946-47, 1947-48)
4 x WL OBP Leader (1944-45, 1945-46, 1946-47, 1947-48)
2 x WL SLG Leader (1945-46, 1947-48)
3 x WL OPS Leader (1945-46, 1946-47, 1947-48)
3 x WL WAR Leader (1945-46, 1946-47, 1947-48)
Led Western League in HR 4 times (Led ULB in HR 3 times)
Led Western League in RBI 2 times (Led ULB in RBI once)
Holds career post-season records for Hits (90), Singles (64) and RBI (53)
Hall of Fame Metrics:
JAWS: 65.3 (average HOF C – 65)
Black Ink: 25 (average HOF – 29)
Gray Ink: 177 (average HOF – 141)
HOF Standards: 57 (average HOF – 45)
HOF Monitor: 172 (average HOF – 143)
Induction Pct: 96.6; first year
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