Artifacts From Class Of 2022 Form New Exhibit At Baseball Hall Of Fame

For a museum that doesn’t pay for donations, the Baseball Hall of Fame is batting 1.000.

That’s especially true on Induction Weekend, when the seven-man Class of 2022 will be enshrined in outdoor ceremonies at Clark Sports Center in Cooperstown Sunday.

A slew of priceless artifacts from the new class has already found a home in the Central New York museum.

Among them is the bat used by Gil Hodges to hit the first home run in the history of the New York Mets, in the fourth inning of the first Opening Day game on April 11, 1962. Hodges, a star first baseman who spent the bulk of his playing career with the Brooklyn Dodgers, later managed the 1969 Miracle Mets to a world championship.

Another home run artifact, donated by longtime Red Sox DH David (Big Papi) Ortiz, was the ball he hit for the first of his 541 career long balls.

Both are part of the museum’s 2022 Inductees Exhibit, saluting the careers and accomplishments of Hodges, Ortiz, and fellow inductees Bud Fowler, Jim Kaat, Minnie Minoso, Tony Oliva, and Buck O’Neil. Ortiz, Oliva, and Kaat will give their own speeches at the annual induction ceremonies, while incumbent Dave Winfield, a strong supporter of the Negro Leagues Museum in Kansas City, is expected to speak for the late Negro Leagues stars.

Hodges will also be inducted posthumously. Kaat, the only pitcher to win 16 consecutive Gold Gloves, has donated his first to the museum.

Oliva, his teammate with the Minnesota Twins, contributed the American League Championship Series ring he earned after helping the Twins win the 1965 AL pennant.

Fifteen years later, Minoso became a rare five-decades player when he donned a Chicago White Sox jersey. That is also part of the 2022 Inductees Exhibit.

The Buck O’Neil Legacy Seat from Kauffman Stadium has also made it to Cooperstown. The Kansas City Royals give the seat daily to a community member who reflects O’Neil’s values of good sportsmanship. O’Neil was a first baseman and manager for the Kansas City Monarchs, where incumbent Hall of Famer Satchel Paige also played, and later became the first black coach in the major leagues when he was hired by the Chicago Cubs.

Fowler, the only Hall of Famer born and raised in Cooperstown, was affiliated with more than 60 teams, some of which he founded as a pioneer in black baseball. A map representing many of those towns and cities has found a prominent spot in the new display.

Fowler, born before the Civil War, spent much of his baseball career in the 19th century.

The 2022 Inductees Exhibit is located on the third floor of the venerable museum, which is opposite the Cooperstown Post Office on Main Street. The display will remain in place until next spring.

Ortiz was chosen by the Baseball Writers Association of America while then other six inductees were selected by a pair of rotating Eras Committees.

More than 50 incumbent Hall of Famers are expected to watch from their seats on stage. Most will also participate in a Parade of Legends that ends on a red carpet that leads into a private reception at the Hall of Fame. With the addition of the Class of 2022, the Baseball Hall of Fame will have 340 members, 75 of them living.

Admission to the inductions is free.