As America’s 250th birthday approaches this summer, the National Baseball Hall of Fame and Museum, located in Cooperstown, New York, has plans to honor the sport’s longstanding connection to the Armed Forces.
During Memorial Day Weekend, organizers will host the “Hall of Fame Military Classic: A Tribute to Service and Sacrifice”, featuring hall of famers of the past who are suiting up in celebration.
“Baseball and this country grew up together,” said Jon Shestakofsky, Vice President of Communications and Content for the National Baseball Hall of Fame and Museum.
"Soldiers were playing baseball during the Civil War, and then after the war, soldiers brought the game back to various corners of the country, and our national pastime continued to grow from there.”
Several supporting events are also planned for the weekend in Cooperstown, including the Hall of Fame’s Night at the Ballpark program, where legends and former players will greet fans throughout Doubleday Field. Organizers say it won’t be an autograph session, but a chance for fans to take pictures and make memories, as everyone gears up for the game.
Shestakofsky tells Military.com the best part of the weekend of events will be the chance to highlight baseball’s military roots.
“What’s really exciting about this game is there’s so many Hall of Famers and recently retired players who have a connection to the military,” said Shestakofsky. “There’s a lot of passion for this event, for the service and sacrifice of members of the Armed Forces as a chance to show why this game is so meaningful to our country.”
The Hall of Fame Military Classic will feature more than two dozen former big leaguers and Hall of Famers who will serve as managers and coaches in a seven-inning legends game that will also include a pregame home run contest.
Some of the legends expected to be on hand include the names Wade Boggs, Rollie Fingers, Todd Helton, Tony La Russa and Joe Torre, with more Hall of Famers expected to be announced in the coming weeks.
There’s also a full roster of other former MLB players, including Nick Ahmed, Jonny Gomes, Danny Graves, Ian Kennedy, Jonathan Lucroy, Josh Reddick, Todd Zeile and Brad Ziegler, with more set to be announced this spring.
“It’s gonna be a really fun, exciting legends game at DoubleDay field,” said Shestakofsky. “We’ll look for a lot of different fun ways to point out important military connections and stories throughout that game.”
Another name participating in the weekend of festivities will be 1981 World Series champion Rick Monday. He’s well known for taking an American flag away from protesters who were trying to set it on fire at a game at Dodger Stadium in Los Angeles in 1976. That same flag will be on exhibit at the Hall of Fame from Memorial Day Weekend through Labor Day Weekend.
Members of the Louisville Slugger Warriors, an amputee baseball team that consists of military veterans, active duty personnel, and wounded warriors, will also take the field.
There’s also the Cooperstown Classic Clinic for children ages 7-12 on Friday, May 22, at Doubleday Field. Hall of Fame Military Classic participants will lead the Clinic.
Also, as part of the weekend, guests can golf with legends at Leatherstocking Golf Course on Otsego Lake. Individuals, pairs or foursomes of all skill levels are welcome to join the tournament. A Hall of Fame member or former major leaguer will join each foursome and serve as the team captain.
A scramble-format tournament and fundraiser will wrap up the weekend of baseball with a military twist.
“We have a really special connection, and we’re excited to celebrate,” said Shestakofsky. “Secretly, we are an American history museum. We show where baseball fits into American integration and history.”
