The National Baseball Hall of Fame and Museum is a history museum and hall of fame in Cooperstown, New York, operated by private interests. It serves as the central point of the history of baseball in the United States and displays baseball-related artifacts and exhibits, honoring those who have excelled in playing, managing, and serving the sport. The Hall's motto is "Preserving History, Honoring Excellence, Connecting Generations". Cooperstown is often used as shorthand for the National Baseball Hall of Fame and Museum.
Roger Eugene Maris was an American professional baseball right fielder who played 12 seasons in Major League Baseball (MLB). He is best known for setting a new MLB single-season home run record with 61 home runs in 1961. The record remained unbroken until 1998 and remained the American League (AL) record until Aaron Judge broke it in 2022.
The Veterans Committee is the popular name of various committees of the National Baseball Hall of Fame and Museum that elect participants other than recently retired players.
Maximillian George Carnarius, known as Max George Carey, was an American professional baseball center fielder and manager. Carey played in Major League Baseball for the Pittsburgh Pirates from 1910 through 1926 and for the Brooklyn Robins from 1926 through 1929. He managed the Brooklyn Dodgers in 1932 and 1933.
Fred Clifford Clarke was an American Major League Baseball player from 1894 to 1915 and manager from 1897 to 1915. A Hall of Famer, Clarke played for and managed both the Louisville Colonels and Pittsburgh Pirates. He was a left fielder and left-handed batter.
A center fielder, abbreviated CF, is the outfielder in baseball who plays defense in center field – the baseball and softball fielding position between left field and right field. In the numbering system used to record defensive plays, the center fielder is assigned the number 8.
William Robert Hamilton, nicknamed Sliding Billy, was an American professional baseball player in Major League Baseball (MLB) during the 19th-century. He played for the Kansas City Cowboys, Philadelphia Phillies and Boston Beaneaters between 1888 and 1901.
William Boyd McKechnie was an American professional baseball player, manager and coach. He played in Major League Baseball as a third baseman during the dead-ball era. McKechnie was the first manager to win World Series titles with two teams, and remains one of only two managers to win pennants with three teams, also capturing the National League title in 1928 with the St. Louis Cardinals. His 1,892 career victories ranked fourth in major league history when he ended his managing career in 1946, and trailed only John McGraw's NL total of 2,669 in league history. He was nicknamed "Deacon" because he sang in his church choir and generally lived a quiet life.
Kenton Lloyd "Ken" Boyer was an American Major League Baseball (MLB) third baseman, coach and manager who played with the St. Louis Cardinals, New York Mets, Chicago White Sox, and Los Angeles Dodgers for 15 seasons, 1955 through 1969.
Andrew Arthur Carey was an American professional baseball third baseman. He played in Major League Baseball for the New York Yankees (1952–1960), Kansas City Athletics (1960–1961), Chicago White Sox (1961), and Los Angeles Dodgers (1962).
Elections to the Baseball Hall of Fame for 2009 proceeded according to revised rules enacted in 2001 and further revamped in 2007. The Baseball Writers' Association of America (BBWAA) held an election to select from among recent players, and elected Jim Rice and Rickey Henderson.
The 1961 Major League Baseball season was played from April 10 to October 12, 1961. That season saw the New York Yankees defeat the Cincinnati Reds in five games in the World Series. The season is best known for Yankee teammates Roger Maris' and Mickey Mantle's pursuit of Babe Ruth's prestigious 34-year-old single-season home run record of 60. Maris ultimately broke the record when he hit his 61st home run on the final day of the regular season, while Mantle was forced out of the lineup in late September due to a hip infection and finished with 54 home runs.
Elections to the Baseball Hall of Fame for 1968 followed rules revised in June 1967, which returned the Baseball Writers' Association of America (BBWAA) to annual elections without any provision for a runoff. In the event, the BBWAA voted once by mail to select from recent major league players, and elected Joe Medwick. The Veterans Committee met in closed sessions to consider executives, managers, umpires, and earlier major league players. It selected two players, Kiki Cuyler and Goose Goslin. A formal induction ceremony was held in Cooperstown, New York, on July 22, 1968, with Commissioner of Baseball William Eckert presiding.
Elections to the Baseball Hall of Fame for 1967 included a special election, as the Baseball Writers' Association of America (BBWAA) held its first balloting in an odd-number year since 1955. The special election was held due to some ineligible players having received votes in the prior year's balloting, and the BBWAA wanting "to give those eligible every opportunity" to be selected.
Elections to the Baseball Hall of Fame for 1958 followed a system established after the 1956 election. The Baseball Writers' Association of America (BBWAA) voted by mail to select from recent major league players; they elected no one. The BBWAA was voting only in even-number years, with the Veterans Committee meeting only in odd-numbered years to consider older major league players as well as managers, umpires, and executives. For the first time since 1950, the induction ceremonies in Cooperstown, New York, were canceled because there was no one to induct, the second such occurrence in Hall of Fame history.
Elections to the National Baseball Hall of Fame for 2020 proceeded according to rules most recently amended in 2016. As in the past, the Baseball Writers' Association of America (BBWAA) voted by mail to select from a ballot of recently retired players. The results were announced on January 21, 2020, with Derek Jeter and Larry Walker elected to the Hall of Fame.
Elections to the Baseball Hall of Fame for 2023 were conducted according to the rules most recently amended in 2022. As in the past, the Baseball Writers' Association of America (BBWAA) voted by mail to select from a ballot of recently retired players, with the results announced on January 24. Scott Rolen, in his sixth year of eligibility, was the only player elected from the BBWAA ballot. Rolen had received 10.2% of the vote in his first year on the ballot in 2018, the lowest first-year percentage ever for a candidate eventually voted in by the BBWAA.
