Home British baseball Kendrick, Moores, and Wells inducted into British Baseball Hall of Fame

Kendrick, Moores, and Wells inducted into British Baseball Hall of Fame

by Joe Gray

bbhofThe inaugural class of inductees into the British Baseball Hall of Fame (www.bbhof.org.uk) has been announced, and there are three names on the list.

Ross Kendrick
Kendrick, the stand-out player for the Great Britain team of 1938 (recognized as the first World Champions), has been inducted under the “Baseball players” category.

Sir John Moores
Moores, who was instrumental in building British baseball’s “golden era” in the 1930s, has been inducted under the “Game builders” category.

Norman Wells, Sr
Wells, who has made numerous significant contributions to baseball in the Merseyside region from the end of World War II to the present day, has been inducted under the “Coaches, managers, umpires, and other officials” category.

As new names – from both contemporary and historical eras – are added annually, the list of inductees will grow and grow as the years go by to form a comprehensive record of those individuals with superlative contributions to and performances in the game of baseball in Great Britain.

Nominations for the 2009 class of the Hall of Fame had to receive at least six votes from the eight-person Board of Electors in order to be inducted.

The Board of Electors comprises individuals who have researched the history of British baseball, with an additional member being a representative from the board of the British Baseball Federation. Electors put forward nominations for each class and also vote on whether each candidate should be inducted or not. Nominations are also put forward by regional experts, who have been appointed to assist the British Baseball Hall of Fame with biographical details.

For biographies of the inductees and full information on the British Baseball Hall of Fame, please visit the official website – www.bbhof.org.uk.

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4 comments

Matt Smith October 13, 2009 - 7:08 am

It’s great to see the Hall of Fame open its doors to its first three inductees. All look like they firmly deserved their positions and it will be fascinating to see who joins them over the years.

Congratulations to everyone involved in putting the Hall of Fame together.

Reply
Joe Gray October 13, 2009 - 7:30 pm

Thanks for that Matt – much appreciated. I’d be lying if I said it hasn’t involved a lot of hard work for us. We can only hope that the fruits of our labours are as well received by others as they have been by you.

If it provokes debate about who is or who isn’t yet in the Hall, then so much the better as that’s all working towards raising the awareness of British baseball’s history to a level that it deserves.

For us, it’s always been about building the fairest and most solid structure we can for election into the Hall.

Joe

Reply
Joe Cooter October 16, 2009 - 5:09 pm

Why don’t you induct Bobby Thompson. who was born in Edinbourgh. Thompson of course being famous for his his homerun of Ralph Branca in that playoff game.

Reply
Joe Gray October 16, 2009 - 5:58 pm

Hi Joe C,

I am very happy indeed that the British Baseball Hall of Fame is already triggering debates of this nature. That’s one of the great things about it from a historical perspective.

In the case of Bobby Thomson, as with any other individual, it is not possible to give a single reason as their case for induction is voted on by a panel (assuming they have been nominated in the first place).

However, it’s a good example as he does neatly illustrate an important point about the British Baseball Hall of Fame.

Quoting from our induction categories and criteria document (http://www.projectcobb.org.uk/bbhof_induction.pdf):
“Election to the British Baseball Hall of Fame is for superlative contributions to and/or performances in the game of baseball in Great Britain (contribution to British baseball is essential, but baseball involvement in other countries may be considered in bolstering a case).”

So the focus is clearly on individuals who have made contributions to British baseball.

But while Thomson’s impact on baseball may have been overseas, that is not to say that he should not still be honoured by his motherland. One way that he is recognized is in the UK branch of SABR, which is named the “Bobby Thomson Chapter”. Additionally, the Edinburgh Diamond Devils named their home ground “Bobby Thomson Field”.

Regards,

Joe

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