Southern League Hall of Fame

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Established2013 (2013)
Dissolved2021 (2021)
TypeProfessional sports hall of fame
Southern League
Hall of Fame
A white home plate reading "Hall of Fame" with a bulb of cotton below and a gold banner reading "Southern League" above
Established2013 (2013)
Dissolved2021 (2021)
TypeProfessional sports hall of fame
A man in a plaid suit
Billy Hitchcock, president of the Southern League from 1971 to 1980, was part of the first class of inductees in 2014.

The Southern League Hall of Fame was an American baseball hall of fame which honored players, managers, coaches, umpires, owners, executives, and media personnel of the Southern League of Minor League Baseball for their accomplishments and/or contributions to the league and its teams. The Hall of Fame inducted its first class in 2014 and its last in 2020. A total of 45 people were inducted.[1] It had no physical location, but plaques listing each year's inductees were placed in the league's office in Marietta, Georgia.[2]

In July 2013, the Southern League Board of Directors met to determine the first members of the league's Hall of Fame class. They were to be inducted in 2014 in conjunction with the celebration of the 50th anniversary of the league's foundation in 1964. Former league presidents Billy Hitchcock, Jim Bragan, and Don Mincher were unanimously selected. They and ten others, one chosen by each of the league's ten teams, were recognized as the inaugural Hall of Fame class at the 2014 Southern League All-Star Game in Chattanooga, Tennessee.[3]

Nomination and election methods varied in succeeding years. For the 2015 class, each team nominated up to three individuals for consideration. A 31-person voting committee of Southern League and Minor League Baseball personnel then narrowed the list to ten inductees, selecting one from each organization for induction.[4] A tie vote for the Birmingham Barons' nominees resulted in the election of both Rollie Fingers and Frank Thomas.[5] A Special Consideration Ballot was introduced that year, which allowed teams to nominate anyone who had made significant contributions to teams from the league's predecessors: the original Southern League (1885–1899) and Southern Association (1901–1961).[5] Harmon Killebrew became the first inductee to be elected via the Special Consideration Ballot in 2015.[5] A similar format was assumed in 2016, wherein each team and members of the voting committee submitted nominations but only the top three were chosen for induction by a 30-member voting committee.[6] The size of the voting panel fluctuated from year to year: 20 members in 2017,[7] 23 in 2018,[8] and 34 in 2019.[9] For 2020, the Hall of Fame committee endorsed a special proposal by league president Lori Webb to induct Frances Crockett Ringley, baseball's first female general manager.[10] Following the 2020 season, which was cancelled due to the COVID-19 pandemic before it began,[11] Major League Baseball assumed control of Minor League Baseball.[12] The Hall of Fame has since become dormant.

Sixteen Southern League Hall of Famers have also been inducted in the National Baseball Hall of Fame and Museum: Sparky Anderson, Rollie Fingers, Tom Glavine, Roy Halladay, Trevor Hoffman, Reggie Jackson, Randy Johnson, Chipper Jones, Harmon Killebrew, Tony La Russa, Edgar Martínez, Willie Mays, Ryne Sandberg, Frank Thomas, Alan Trammell, and Larry Walker.[13]

Key
Year The year of induction
Position(s) The inductee's primary playing position or role
Team(s) The team(s) for which the inductee was recognized
Method Election method
BOD Board of Directors
SCB Special Consideration Ballot or special proposal
VC Voting committee
† Inductee is a member of the National Baseball Hall of Fame and Museum[13]
Inductees
Year Name Position(s) Team(s) Career Method Ref(s).
2020 Sparky Anderson† Manager Asheville Tourists 1968 VC [10][14]
2018 Curt Bloom Broadcaster Huntsville Stars/Birmingham Barons[a] 1991–2024 VC [8][15]
2014 Jim Bragan League president Southern League 1981–1994 BOD [3][16]
2016 Peter Bragan Jr. Team president/owner Jacksonville Suns 1985–2015 VC [6]
2014 Peter Bragan Sr. Team president/owner Jacksonville Suns 1984–2012 VC [3][17]
2015 Scott Brosius Second baseman Huntsville Stars 1989–1990 VC [5][18]
2014 J. Frank Burke General manager/owner Chattanooga Lookouts 1995–2014 VC [3][19]
2014 Mike Darr Outfielder Mobile BayBears 1998 VC [3][20]
2015 Carlos Delgado Catcher Knoxville Smokies 1993 VC [5][21]
2019 Joe Engel Team president Chattanooga Lookouts 1929–1965 SCB [9][22]
2015 Rollie Fingers† Pitcher Birmingham A's 1967–1968 VC [5][23]
2018 Terry Francona Outfielder/manager Memphis Chicks/Birmingham Barons[b] 1980–1981, 1993–1995 VC [8][24]
2018 Andrés Galarraga First baseman Jacksonville Suns 1984 VC [8][25]
2017 Tom Glavine† Pitcher Greenville Braves 1986 VC [7][26]
2019 Roy Halladay† Pitcher Knoxville/Tennessee Smokies 1997, 2001 VC [9][27]
2014 Billy Hitchcock League president Southern League 1971–1980 BOD [3][28]
2015 Trevor Hoffman† Pitcher Chattanooga Lookouts 1991–1992 VC [5][29]
2014 Rosemary Hovatter Team executive Huntsville Stars 1985–2014 VC [3]
2014 Bo Jackson Outfielder Memphis Chicks 1986 VC [3][30]
2014 Reggie Jackson† Outfielder Birmingham A's 1967 VC [3][31]
2015 Randy Johnson† Pitcher Jacksonville Expos 1987 VC [5][32]
2015 Chipper Jones† Shortstop Greenville Braves 1992 VC [5][33]
2017 Gabe Kapler Outfielder Jacksonville Suns 1998 VC [7][34]
2015 Jason Kendall Catcher Carolina Mudcats 1994–1995 VC [5][35]
2015 Harmon Killebrew† Third baseman Chattanooga Lookouts 1957–1958 SCB [5][36]
2017 Tony La Russa† Second baseman/manager Birmingham A's/Barons/Mobile A's/Knoxville Sox[c] 1965–1967, 1978 VC [7][37]
2020 Edgar Martínez† Third baseman Chattanooga Lookouts 1985–1986 VC [10][38]
2018 Willie Mays† Outfielder Birmingham Black Barons[d] 1948–1950 SCB [8][39]
2014 Don Mincher General manager/owner/league president Huntsville Stars/Southern League[e] 1985–2011 BOD [3][40]
2014 Dale Murphy Catcher Savannah Braves 1976 VC [3][41]
2019 Sal Rende First baseman/manager Chattanooga Lookouts/Memphis Chicks[f] 1978–1982, 1987–1988 VC [9][42]
2020 Frances Crockett Ringley General manager/owner Charlotte O's 1976–1987 SCB [10]
2014 Ryne Sandberg† Manager Tennessee Smokies 2009 VC [3][43]
2016 Larry Schmittou Team president/owner Nashville Sounds 1978–1984 SCB [6]
2015 Razor Shines First baseman/manager Memphis Chicks/Birmingham Barons/Chattanooga Lookouts[g] 1981–1983, 2004–2005, 2014 VC [5][44]
2016 John Shoemaker Manager Jacksonville Suns 2001, 2005–2008 VC [6][45]
2020 Brian Snitker Manager Greenville/Mississippi Braves[h] 2002–2005 VC [10][46]
2015 Frank Thomas† First baseman Birmingham Barons 1990 VC [5][47]
2014 Alan Trammell† Shortstop Montgomery Rebels 1976–1977 VC [3][48]
2020 Wade Vadakin Batboy Mobile BayBears 1998–2019 SCB [10]
2014 Tim Wakefield Pitcher Carolina Mudcats 1991, 1993 VC [3][49]
2019 Larry Walker† Outfielder Jacksonville Expos 1987 VC [9][50]
2016 Larry Ward Broadcaster Chattanooga Lookouts 1989–present VC [6][51]
2015 Turner Ward Manager Mobile BayBears 2011–2012 VC [5][52]
2015 Lou Whitaker Second baseman Montgomery Rebels 1977 VC [5][53]

Notes

References

External links

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