Barons Announce Hall of Fame Class of 2009
May 26, 2009 - Southern League (SL1)
Birmingham Barons News Release
HOOVER, AL - The Birmingham Barons announced Monday that four individuals have been selected for inclusion in the 2009 Barons Hall of Fame class. A public ceremony announcing the newest inductees will be held throughout the game during the Rickwood Classic, to he held at historic Rickwood Field this Wednesday, May 27, at 12:35 pm.
Each winter, a panel of current and former Barons executives, baseball historians, and Birmingham-area media members nominate candidates for the Hall based on their accomplishments in one of three categories: on-field (player, manager, or coach), front-office, or media. The candidates are trimmed to those with the greatest number of nominations, and the remaining individuals are then placed on a final ballot to be voted on for inclusion.
This year's class will include former players Sam Hairston and Pie Traynor, former Birmingham Barons and Birmingham A's General Manager Glynn West and Zipp Newman, the former Sports Editor of the Birmingham News. The group brings the total number of enshrined individuals to 20 since the Hall was formed in 2005.
A brief biography of each of the members of the 2009 class is listed below.
Sam Hairston
The patriarch of the Hairston family, Sam played for the Negro Leagues from 1945-1950 and even won the league's Triple Crown in 1950. But it was his stint with the Chicago White Sox that made his career truly unique and special. Hairston made his Major League debut in July of 1951, becoming the first American- born black player to play for the Sox. He would eventually return to the Barons as a coach in 1985 and remained with the team until he passed away in 1997.
Henry Hardin "Zipp" Newman
Zipp was the Dean of Southern Sportswriters. The youngest sports editor in the history of the Birmingham News at 25-years old, Newman spent 44 years as the official scorer for the Southern League. In 1969, he helped found the Alabama Sports Hall of Fame.
Harold Joseph "Pie" Traynor
Pie played only one season for the Barons, but he made it a memorable one. At just 22-years of age during the 1921 season, Traynor hit .336 and stole 47 bases while playing shortstop for the Barons. Traynor would go on to hit .320 in 17 seasons with the Pittsburgh Pirates. In 1948, he became the first third baseman to be elected into the Baseball Hall of Fame.
Glynn West
Glynn saw baseball from every vantage point. He started out as an operator of the old manual scoreboard at Rickwood Field in 1948 and wound up serving as the Birmingham Barons' General Manager from 1964-65 before returning to the role as the Birmingham A's General Manager in 1968. As the General Manager, West oversaw the desegregation of Rickwood Field and is also famous for convincing A's manager Gus Niarhos to convert Rollie Fingers from a starting pitcher to a relief pitcher.
First pitch for the Rickwood Classic will be thrown at 12:35 PM on May 27. An auction for the 2009 game- worn Rickwood Classic uniforms will be held throughout the game with the winners being announced at the conclusion of the contest. The winner will receive the full, game-worn uniform at the beginning of July.
In 2005, Lorenzo "Piper" Davis, Willie Mays, Carlton Molesworth, and A. H. "Rick" Woodward formed the Barons Hall of Fame's first induction class. They were followed in 2006 by Art Clarkson, Terry Francona, Wayne Martin, and Rondal Rollin. The 2007 class featured Joe Drake, Walt Dropo, Reggie Jackson, and Norm Zauchin. The 2008 class included Rollie Fingers, Rubin E. Grant, Burleigh Grimes and LeRoy "Satchel" Page. More information on all of these inductees and the criteria for nomination to the Hall can be found under the "About" tab at www.barons.com.
For information about this year's 14th Annual Rickwood Classic presented by State Farm Insurance, please call (205) 988-3200 or visit www.barons.com.
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