|
Hall of Fame Class 20 - TCBA Pays Tribute to #42 Jackie Robinson- Chipper Jones also to enter Hall |
|
|||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
|
“I’m not concerned with you
liking or disliking me. All I ask is that you respect me as a human being.” #42 Jackie Robinson
Chipper Jones |
Voting for the TCBA Players’ Hall of Fame Class
20 concluded this week with voters selecting two more players to join the
elite club. In a continuation of a theme from recent ballots, voters seemed
willing to recognize the contributions of Retro league players. In this year’s
balloting, it was impossible for the league to not recognize the historic
contributions of Jackie Robinson.
In his first year of eligibility, Robinson attracted 92.9% of the ballots,
almost identical of that given to current TCBA Hall of Famer Willie Mays. Jackie
broke the TCBA color barrier in 1948, signing a contract with Steve Lyon’s Chesapeake
Regnads, a team that had lost 125 games the prior
season. Robinson’s impact was immediate. Appearing in all 154 games, #42
batted .306, leading the Regnads to 89 wins and a
division championship. In 1950, Robinson’s 223 hits and .372 average would lead
the league, and he would once again lead Chesapeake to a division crown. A
controversy arose in 1950 when Steve Lyon traded Jackie to the rival Baltimore
Orioles. At the end of that season, Lyon’s Franchise #2 was removed from his
control and transferred to Don Mahley’s Fortney Gators.
It wasn’t until 2012 that Lyon was allowed another TCBA franchise. Jackie
would continue his excellent play with the Orioles, contributing to a division
crown in 1953. The Baltimore franchise was shifted to Cleveland in 1955,
where Robinson formed a strong partnership with Craig Shifflett. The Spiders
were a rebuilding team, and Shifflett used Robinson’s leadership skills to
help mold his team for future success. After a 110-loss season in 1957, however,
Robinson racked his bat and retired from TCBA. Jackie
Robinson’s contribution to TCBA is immeasurable. Beyond his superlative
baseball skills, Jackie set a standard of respect for everyone of us to
emulate. Chipper Jones was acquired in the
1996 Rookie Auction for $133,000 by Jim McEneaney’s Long Islanders. His
contribution was immediate, helping the Islanders to a Metro Division crown
in his first season and laying the first blocks of foundation for his
reputation as a winner. Five more times Jones would lead the Islanders to the
post-season, including a World Series victory in 2000. Despite
his contributions to the Islanders’ winning ways, the arrival of David Wright
in Long Island signaled the end of Chipper’s reign. He was traded to
division-rival Newark in March of 2007 for Wily Mo Pena, a non-descript
reliever and cash. Chipper
understood the business side of baseball, and immediately set about
reaffirming his role as a winner, helping the Eagles to a Wildcard appearance
in 2008. He was traded one more time, at the conclusion of the 2008 season,
to Fargo for Edwin Encarnacion. What may have appeared one-sided at the time,
the trade provided Fargo with a veteran presence in Jones. Four times the Jones-led
Fungoes hit the post-season, including their
momentous 2011 World Series victory. Chipper retired after the 2013 season,
recognized as a class act and a winner in every respect. Earl
Averill and Lance Berkman received solid support and
will each appear on a future ballot. All the other
candidates, including Bob Lemon and Omar Vizquel, have
been removed from future Hall of Fame consideration due to lack of
support. Voting
for Class 21 will be held in September 2019. The vote totals for Class 20 are
listed below: Class 20 Voting Totals:
*Appeared on the list for the final
time. Source: TCBA Encyclopedia |
. |
|
|||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
|
|
|
|
|
|||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
|
|
|
|||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
