Iceman Celebration Day 2016 - Baseball Hall of Fame

I made it through the Baseball Hall of Fame in record time (something that I would rectify later by going through a second time) and found myself in the Plaque Gallery, which contains all of the members elected into the National Baseball Hall of Fame. In this hallway, each election class has it's own section from the 1st class in 1936 (Christy Mathewson, Honus Wagner, George Herman "Babe" Ruth, Tyrus Raymond "Ty" Cobb and Walter Perry Johnson) to 2015's Craig Biggio, Randy Johnson, Pedro Martinez and John Smoltz (Ken Griffey Jr. and Mike Piazza would be inducted this summer). This section contained the best of the best and I was here to see it.

 

Each year the Baseball Hall of Fame presents the Ford C. Frick award to a broadcaster in recognition for their contribution to baseball. Frick was the NL President from 1934 - 1951 and MLB Commissioner from 1951 - 1965. He was also instrumental in the establishment of the HoF. Our very own Bob Uecker was awarded in 2003 and his induction speech is legendary. You all know Ueck and how amazing he is, so there's nothing left for me to do here.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

I have talked a lot about the artifacts that were within this building, but I haven't said much about the building itself. This museum was as much a work of art as the art that is within it. It had a stark modern design that was in contrast to the old "trapped in time" town that surrounded it. I felt a sense of comfort and nostalgia while walking through these halls. When I did stop to look up and around (instead of at the historical items) I got a better understanding of this place as a whole. It was then that I realized how amazing this place truly was and how fortunate I was to have spent a few days in this town.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

If you are on this site checking out my pictures, then I'm just going to assume that you know me. And because you already know me, I don't have to tell you how big of a fan I am of the Milwaukee Brewers. Besides working at Miller Park for the last 15 years, this team has been a huge part of my life since before you were born. I'm not going to bore you with statistics, but the 4 players with Brewers ties that have been inducted in the Hall of Fame (Hank Aaron, Rollie Fingers, Robin Yount and Paul Molitor) all deserve to be there and their numbers have justifiably been retired by the team. Of those players only Molitor and Yount are wearing Brewers caps on their plaques.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

There are 3 players in the Hall of Fame with Milwaukee Braves ties - the legendary Henry "Hank" Aaron, Eddie Matthews and Warren Spahn. I obviously never got to see any of them play (how old do you think I am?), but I kind of wish that I did. Looking at their numbers and career accomplishments tells part of the story, but there is no way that I can truly appreciate how amazing they were at the game of baseball. Players like this just don't exist today.  They have established records that will never be broken now that the game has changed.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

There was a spot in the Hall of Fame for greats like Henry Rowengartner, Harry Doyle, Rick "Wild Thing" Vaughn, "Crash" Davis and Ebby Calvin "Nuke" LaLoosh. While these players were all fictional, it was good to see the Hall of Fame pay tribute to the movies and their influence on popular culture. I love baseball movies. From Angels in the Outfield to The Sandlot, Brewster's Millions, A League of Their Own, Hardball and Field of Dreams; baseball is as much of a part of the movies as it is a part of our lives. And I'm OK with that.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

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