SAL1 Charleston RiverDogs

Charleston Baseball Hall of Fame Announces 2008 Candidates

Published on June 30, 2008 under South Atlantic League (SAL1)
Charleston RiverDogs News Release


The finalists, in alphabetical order, for the Class of 2008 include:

- Tim Cook: Middleton High grad ('75) who pitched at Newberry ('76-'78); record holder who was the NAIA Player of the Year ('76); played on the USA World Cup Team ('77) and was a member of the Newberry team that played in the ‘ 77 NAIA World Series; drafted by Milwaukee Brewers; started in AA but made it to AAA for the Brewers and later the Padres; lives in Summerville and has helped American Legion and high school teams;

- Irish Abney Danehay: One of the most sought-after young catchers in the country in 1939 when the Cleveland Indians offered him a contract; was catching for the General Asbestos and Rubber Co. team in North Charleston at the time and had one more year of college; World War II put an end to his aspirations to play big league ball but he played minor league and semi-pro baseball until he was well into his 40s; deceased;

- Bryce Florie: Hanahan product who signed out of high school; played with Boston Red Sox, San Diego Padres, Milwaukee Brewers and Detroit Tigers; continues to work with youngsters in the area;

- Ben Jones: Played two seasons as a RiverDog (‘05-‘06) and became Charleston's all-time professional leader in career home runs (35) and RBI (165); ranks sixth all-time in hits (251) and ninth in batting average (.292) in Charleston pro baseball history; led team with 21 home runs in ‘06, which also ranks fifth all-time in a single-season; led team in batting average in ‘05 (.288) and 2006 (.298); led team in RBIs in ‘05 (77) and ‘06 (88); named to SAL Midseason All-Star team in ‘05;

- Danny Jones: The first recreation director for the Cooper River Park & playground Commission in ‘55; brought the first Little (later Dixie Youth), Pony and Colt leagues to South Carolina; first Dixie Youth Baseball Commissioner; leader in establishing AAU in the state; 3-time president of SC Recreation & Park Society; created the Danny Jones Pool (first 55-meter pool in the area) in ‘58 in North Charleston and ultimately swimming competition; deceased;

- Alfred von Kolnitz: Served as athletic director for the College of Charleston in the 1930's; played baseball at CofC; also played three seasons of major league baseball (1914 and 1915 with the Cincinnati Reds and 1916 with the Chicago White Sox); he played in 115 career games with 48 hits in 226 at bats (.212 average); deceased;

- Larry Mogg: Local sportswriter who covered everything from American Legion baseball to Clemson's national championship in football for The News and Courier and The Charleston Evening Post from ‘73-‘85; his passion was baseball, from little league to major league; died of heart disease in 1985 at age 41;

- Walt Nadzak: Retired in 2000 after a 15-year stint as Director of Athletics at The Citadel; was instrumental in the creation of Joseph P. Riley, Jr. Park; is credited with moving and ultimately making the Southern Conference Baseball Tournament a successful fixture in Charleston;

- T. Ashton Phillips: Local entrepreneur who gave graciously to local baseball programs from youth leagues to the college programs; was a co-owner of the Charleston RiverDogs until his death in 2006;

- Charlie Smith: Local Chicora/North Charleston standout at all levels; played professionally for 10 years (‘60-‘69) with the Chicago Cubs, Chicago White Sox, New York Yankees and New York Mets; career average of .239, 594 hits covering 771 games; deceased;

- D.K. Walters: Veteran American Legion coach; coached West Ashley Legion for approximately 25 years; recorded several state titles; deceased;

- Richard Wieters: St. Andrews & Citadel great; two-time Southern Conference Player of the Year; 1st team All-American (DH); played for the Atlanta Braves and Chicago White Sox minor league organizations; member of The Citadel Athletic Hall of Fame; longtime youth coach who also was an assistant at Charleston Southern.

The Class of 2007 included the 1955 Cannon Street YMCA team and The Citadel's 1990 College World Series team, Modie Risher and Anthony Jenkins. Ty Cline, Mike Cook, Gary McJunkin and Coach Chal Port comprised the Hall of Fame's Class of 2006. It marked the first time that amateurs and teams were considered for induction.

In the Hall of Fame's inaugural year in 2003, James Island's Gorman Thomas and Holly Hill's Willie Randolph were enshrined as the first members. David Cone was inducted in 2004 and John Candelaria received the nod in 2005.

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South Atlantic League Stories from June 30, 2008


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