A walking tour of the Hall of Fame: A Pirates Perspective

Last Updated 19 December 1999

I was in Cooperstown this weekend (January 1999) and really enjoyed my second trip to the Baseball Hall of Fame (HoF). There are a LOT of Bucco items displayed through out the Hall. For those of you who have never been (or haven't been in a while), here's a recap of some Bucco things I saw. I'm sure I missed much more, so I invite others to jump in with their rememberances too.

Maybe the best way to start your HoF tour is with a short 15-20 minute presentation in the Grandstand Theater. It is a well done piece that starts with several kids playing ball near twilight, and Tommy's Mom yelling for him to come home for dinner. Then, the screen explodes with various clips from MLB from various eras. There are video clips and still shots of Roberto Clemente, Willie Stargell, Bill Mazeroski (1960 HR), and Steve Blass jumping into the Pirate pile-up in 1971. At the end of the show, about a dozen HoF'ers baseball cards are featured in a large lighted display, and Roberto's is one of those few.
I missed the Clemente exhibit that had been displayed near the HoF library. It was changed in the last month or so. The HoF admission ticket though, did have a Clemente theme with a collage of a 1971-era Pirates jersey, cap, Clemente bat, three Clemente baseball cards and a 1973 Pirates patch that had Roberto's number 21. Oh - if there are any other active duty military members out there, the Hall of Fame provides free admission for those on active duty - just show your green ID card.

Around the HoF, there are numerous instances of Pirate-related items. I tried to take pictures of most of them. Still, there were several small Bucco-reminders that could easily be overlooked. The Clemente frosted outline on the glass that encases the evolution of the bat exhibit is one.
Sticking with the Clemente theme - in the Scouting section, one of the scouting reports that was displayed on a small card (maybe 5"x8") was Al Campanis's comments from 11/6/1952 about a young Puerto Rican player identified as "Robert" Clemente. "Well built, fair size, good agility. Will mature into a big man. Attending high school, but plays for Santurce. Has all the tools and likes to play. A real good looking prospect! He has written the commissioner requesting permission to play organized ball." Campanis rated Clemente as an A+ arm - good carry, + running speed, and A+ power. He gave young Roberto an A in fielding, hitting, accuracy, reactions, and base running. Though, in hitting, Campanis commented, "turns head, but improving."
The General Baseball History timeline on the second deck had at least three significant Pirate displays. The first focused on the 1900's-era Pirates with Honus Wagner, Fred Clarke, and Tommy Leach. They also displayed Honus' locker with a 1939-era jersey (I think). I recall that it had the Pirates in red across the chest, but I definately recall that the jersey had a zipper in it. Maybe it was a block lettered jersey making it a '42-'46 vintage.
The second display for the Bucs was of the 1925-era team and featured items from Pie Traynor, Kiki Cuyler, the Waner Brothers, and Max Carey. The third display was of the 1970-79 Bucs and featured a wax figure of Clemente, and the chair from Roberto's locker at Forbes Field. Willie Stargell is also featured, a pillbox cap and late-70's jacket. Did you know, that Stargell hit his (then) record setting 11 HRs in April with a Manny Sanguillen model Bat?
Also, along the baseball time line are several displays that you look down into. I was pleased to discover Maz's glove already enshined in Cooperstown. Harvey Haddix's glove and a ball from his 1959 pitching materpiece were also displayed. In the same case, were several Ralph Kiner awards: a silver cap, his HR #54 from 1949, and his mostly gaudy Babe Ruth crown for batting. Dale Long's bat from his 8 HRs in consecutive games was also displayed, but did you know that the left-handed Long also caught 2 games for the Cubs in 1958? Two of Dale Long's HR balls are also on display.

If you are looking for a more modern display of Bucco items, the Baseball Today exhibit on the second floor features a locker of each team's current uniforms, caps, batting helmets, socks, shoes, Media Guide, jacket, and a sign with the former franchise names (Alleghenies and Innocents), retired numbers, and current manager. I had to draw the HoF's attention to the Pirate locker though - they had an incorrect gray crown cap with a *gold* P instead of a black one. The lady at the desk said the staff would look at it next week. She also said that those uniform items are generally provided by the teams (many us remember the initial snafu where the Pirates received a manufacture error cap that was at PirateFest '97).
Also in that Baseball Today room, there are 20 poster-sized baseball cards hanging from the ceiling. In addition to stars like Barry Bonds and Frank Thomas, there was one card featuring a 1996-era Al Martin; yes, Al Martin is in the Hall of Fame. Just beyond the locker display, as you head for the Grand Stand Theater, the Bucco on deck circle from Forbes Field is displayed. I noticed it was signed by Steve Blass ('64-'74). In the season highlights section, at the top of the escalators, the 1997 Cordova-Rincon combined no-hitter was mentioned with a display of each player's cap (and action photo from another game), and a ball from the no-no was also displayed. It seemed odd to me though, that the no-hitter was not listed in the 1st floor no-hit games displays (but neither was an other combined no-hitter).
The no-hitter display did have a mention of the 1951 Cliff Chambers no hitter, 1959 Harvey Haddix masterpiece (thankfully), 1969 Bob Moose shutout of the Mets, 1970 Dock Ellis LSD-induced no-hitter, and 1976 John Candelaria no-no. If you roam to the next exhibit, you'll see that the Bucs introduced the first batting helmet to the majors in 1953. A hard batting helmet became mandatory in the NL in 1956, and MLB rookies had to add the ear flap for protection in 1983. The Pirates enjoyed almost an exclusive display of helmets in this exhibit.

In the Post season play area, there was a nice display of Maz's bat, helmet, a ticket stub to Game 7 of the 1960 Series, and even the Rosin bag that Ralph Terry used in that game. They also had many years of World Championship rings on display. There was also on display Kent Tekulve's cap littered with Stargell stars.

In the Ballparks section, there was a nice display for Forbes Field and a box seat that I paused and had a picture taken with. I also found a picture of the Bucs from the last NY Giant game at the Polo Grounds. #21 (Clemente) and #24 (Dick Groat) are clearly seen making their way to the clubhouse after the game (9/29/57). There are several Bucco uniforms on the evolution of the uniform exhibit, but also the lost uniforms of the Seattle Pilots (with scrambled eggs on their bill) and a halo over the California Angels cap was also shown. There are a few mentions of All Star games in Pittsburgh and several Bucco baseball cards on display on the third floor also.

Other passing mentions of the Pirates: an early 1900's box score in the scribes and mikemen area; Bob Prince picture as a Ford Frick Hall of Fame broadcaster; and the original early 50's Angels in the Outfield poster in the Baseball at the Movies exhibit. Still back in the back of the first floor of the museum near the libray, a display of central New York area players who went on to the big leagues featured former Bucs Dave Cash and Andy Van Slyke. The Negro League exhibit had several references to the Pittsburgh Crawfords and Homestead Grays.

The Museum shop is greatly expanded from my last trip there in 1994. A Santurce jersey with #21 from Clemente's Puerto Rician League days was for sale in the gift shop. The HoF Gallery will soon expand into the Baseball Art area just behind it. A large McGwire, Sosa, Griffy, vs Maris display greeted us in the entrance lobby. I enjoyed stopping along the way and sitting on benches/seats from Connie Mack Stadium, Ebbetts Field, Wrigley, and Yankee Stadium (and others).
There was snow in Cooperstown this weekend. The crowd at the HoF wasn't more than about 12 visitors on Friday, and perhaps 30 people on Saturday. My friend Mike and I had the museum almost to ourselves. In fact, we were greeted at one sports shop on Main Street as the "only tourists in Cooperstown".

Please add any other comments you might have from your visits to Cooperstown. If you have any interest in the Ommegang Belgian-style brewery, e-mail me off list.

Beat 'em Bucs,

Glenn

A few notes that my friends added:
Denis said (about the Grand Stand Theater presentation): Unless they have updated him out of it since the last time I saw it, this thing also features authentic "welcome-to-the-ballpark" announcements from a number of P.A. guys, one of whom was the late Art McKennan. "Good afternoon ladies and gentlemen, and welcome to Three Rivers Stadium..."

And (on batting helmets): If memory serves, this wasn't just a batting helmet; Branch Rickey tried (for a while) to get guys to wear them in the field, too. Is that right? Yep. They were John Olerud before his time. You'll see early Maz/Roberto photos with the hard hat on in the field. I think the last year was around 1956.

Other items seen around the Hall of Fame museum:
Rennie Stennett's 7-for-7 bat from his 1976 day against the Cubs at Wrigley.
A Barry Bonds rookie bat and Doug Drabek Cy Young season jersey in the "Today's Stars" exhibit.

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