JETER TO JOIN CLASS OF 2021

BOARD MEETS,

CANCELS HALL’S

2020 INDUCTION

By LIBBY CUDMORE • Special to www.AllOTSEGO.com

COOPERSTOWN – Derek Jeter will have to wait another year to get into the Baseball Hall of Fame.

“Being inducted into the Hall of Fame will be an incredible honor, but the health and safety of everyone involved are paramount,” said Jeter.

“I respect and support the decision to postpone this year’s enshrinement and am looking forward to joining current Hall of Famers, fans, staff and my family and friends in Cooperstown in 2021.”

The Board of Directors met today and voted unanimously to cancel the annual Hall of Fame Induction ceremony, which has been held in Cooperstown every year since 1961, citing health and safety concerns associated with the COVID-19 pandemic.

“Induction Weekend is a celebration of our National Pastime and its greatest legends, and while we are disappointed to cancel this incredibly special event, the Board of Directors’ overriding concern is the health and well-being of our new inductees, our Hall of Fame members, our wonderful fans and the hundreds of staff it takes to present the weekend’s events in all of its many facets,” said Jane Forbes Clark, Hall chairman.

“The Board of Directors has decided that the Class of 2020 will be inducted and the 2020 Award Winners will be honored as part of next summer’s Hall of Fame Weekend, taking place July 23-26, 2021.”

The Class of 2020 – Derek Jeter, Marvin Miller, Ted Simmons and Larry Walker – will be inducted on Sunday, July 25, 2021, in Cooperstown, alongside any new members elected as part of the Hall of Fame Class of 2021.

The Hall of Fame has held an Induction Ceremony in Cooperstown every year since 1961. An Induction Ceremony was not held in 1950, 1958 and 1960 after voting resulted in no new electees, while no elections were held in 1940, 1941 and 1943. In 1942, Rogers Hornsby was elected but an Induction Ceremony was not held due to travel restrictions related to World War II.

Next summer’s Induction Ceremony will be the first since 1949 to combine multiple classes of electees. The first four Classes of Hall of Fame members, elected from 1936-39, were all enshrined on June 12, 1939, the day of the Museum’s formal opening. The Classes of 1946 and 1947 were inducted together in 1947, and the Classes of 1948 and 1949 were inducted together in 1949.

The Awards Presentation on Saturday, July 24, 2021 will recognize the Hall of Fame’s 2020 and 2021 Award Winners, including 2020 J.G. Taylor Spink Award winner Nick Cafardo, 2020 Ford C. Frick Award winner Hawk Harrelson and the winner of the 2020 Buck O’Neil Lifetime Achievement Award, David Montgomery.

“I fully understand and agree with the Board’s decision,” said Class of 2020 Hall of Fame member Larry Walker. “It is most important to do the right thing for everybody involved, and that means not putting any participants in jeopardy, whether Hall of Famers or visitors. I realize how serious this situation has become and how many lives have been lost.”

“It’s clear that cancelling this year’s Induction Ceremony was the appropriate decision,” said Class of 2020 Hall of Fame member Ted Simmons. “I commend the Board for making this decision under these difficult circumstances, particularly in New York, a state severely hit by the pandemic. This was the wisest and smartest thing to do, given the existing environment and the danger that this pandemic presents.”

The National Baseball Hall of Fame and Museum remains closed to the public.