I’ve been buzzing around this idea for a long time — as you might know, I have long wanted the Baseball Hall of Fame to expand its concept of what makes a Hall of Famer. It doesn’t seem like they will do that. I get it. The Hall of Fame is a venerable place, founded 90 years ago, and it is mostly a museum that honors, celebrates, and remembers the players and people at the heart of this great game.
And then, inside that museum, is a plaque room that commemorates the greatest players in baseball history. Most of the greatest players in baseball history are in there. Some are not. Some in there are not, in my view, among the greats. This is inevitable. People disagree about what the plaque room even is, much less the merit of individual players. Should Barry Bonds have a plaque? Roger Clemens? Mark McGwire? Pete Rose? Some say yes. Some say no.
Again, it depends on what you believe the Baseball Hall of Fame plaque room is.
I’m tired of those fights. To someone who believes the plaque room is a holy place and should not include players who cheated or did particularly bad things, the argument door is closed. To someone who believes the greatest players belong in the Hall of Fame and that the plaque room is already filled with players who cheated and did particularly bad things, the argument door is closed. We’ve been talking past each other for decades.
What I’d rather talk about are the people who have made baseball the great game it is, but are not in the Hall of Fame. Some of them are players, sure. Many of them are not. They are managers, coaches, scouts. They are writers. They are architects. They are broadcasters. They are mascots. They are actors, poets, philosophers, fans. They are people you include when telling the story of baseball because they have enriched the game in meaningful ways.
I’m calling the place: The Baseball Garden.
My goal is to fill up The Baseball Garden here in a series over the next 160 or so days leading up to my book FIFTY SEASONS.
There’s a lot to be worked out, but I wanted to let you in right from the start — I have created a Google Form where you can nominate anyone you would like for the Baseball Garden. Duane Kuiper. The San Diego Chicken. Geena Davis. Your grandfather. Anyone you think has made a meaningful impact on baseball and your life as a baseball fan.
Two quick caveats: One, Hall of Famers are not eligible. Or maybe it’s better to say that their spirit is already in The Baseball Garden.
And two, we are not talking about “greatness.” That’s the Hall of Fame’s purview. This is all about the people who have made the game better. As such, in your nomination, I’d love personal stories. Telling me about, say, Dale Murphy’s OPS or listing his awards will not be as moving or persuasive as telling me about the time you met Dale and what that meant to you.
I’m asking you to nominate one person at a time … but you can come back and nominate as many people as you like.
Here is the Google Form. I can’t wait to see who you nominate.
We need a clarification. If a broadcaster already has received the Frick Award from the Hall of Fame, does that make him ineligible for the garden? Vin is obvious, but so are many others.