Michigan Baseball Hall of Fame Announces Class of 2025: Kaat, Deak, Bergman and Bocian
March 26, 2025 - Midwest League (MWL)
Lansing Lugnuts News Release
LANSING, Mich. - The Michigan Baseball Hall of Fame proudly announces its Class of 2025, Jim Kaat, Frank Deak, Dave Bergman and Terry Bocian. They will be inducted at Jackson® Field™ on Friday, August 15, prior to the Lansing Lugnuts' 7:05 p.m. game with the Dayton Dragons.
Originally founded on January 28, 2015, the Michigan Baseball Hall of Fame's mission is to honor the state's baseball heroes of yesterday, celebrate the national pastime today, and inspire the baseball fans and ballplayers of tomorrow.
The four-member class was decided from an initial 89-candidate ballot formed via nominations from throughout Michigan, and voted upon by a select committee consisting of Joe Block, Gary Gillette, Fred Heumann, Mario Impemba, Bill Killian, Geoff Kimmerly, Rich Maloney, Tim Staudt and Mark Uyl.
Born in Zeeland, Jim Kaat caught the eyes of Major League scouts while at Hope College, signing with the Washington Senators as a teenager and reaching the Majors before his 21st birthday. He earned the first of three All-Star nods four years later, winning 18 games and leading all of MLB with five shutouts. He went on to capture 283 victories in a 25-year career as well as 16 Gold Glove awards, then served as a national broadcaster for CBS, NBC, ESPN, ABC, MLB Network and TBS over the next three decades, winning seven Emmy Awards. Kaat was inducted into the National Baseball Hall of Fame in Cooperstown in 2022.
Frank Deak posted a remarkable .782 winning percentage as the head coach at DeWitt High School from 1968-1969 and 1980-1999, winning 567 games, including 16 League Championships, 13 District Championships, five Regional Championships, four trips to the Final Four, and the 1983 and 1993 State Championships. During that historic 1993 season, DeWitt won 33 consecutive games on their way to a 38-3 record, and Deak finished runner-up for National Coach of the Year. Following his retirement from DeWitt, Deak built the Lansing Community College baseball program, whom he coached for five seasons. He is a member of the Michigan High School Baseball Coaches Association Hall of Fame.
Dave Bergman was traded twice on March 24, 1984, first by the San Francisco Giants to the Philadelphia Phillies, and then, importantly, by the Phillies to the Detroit Tigers. In Detroit, Bergman found his new home, both on the field and off the field. He memorably capped a 13-pitch at-bat against Toronto's Roy Lee Jackson on June 4, 1984, with a game-winning three-run homer into the upper deck, going on to play the final nine seasons of his 17-year MLB career with the Tigers. Bergman then founded the 13U-18U Grosse Pointe Baseball Organization Redbirds, leading to hundreds of college baseball scholarships for Redbirds players, and further helped young ballplayers gain notice with his work in hosting the Michigan High School Baseball Showcase.
Terry Bocian, Aquinas College's beloved "Coach Bo," was the first Michigan college baseball coach to reach 1,000 career victories, accomplished over 30 sensationally successful seasons as the head coach for the Aquinas Saints: 1,079 wins in all, 30 consecutive postseason visits, 27 straight seasons with at least 30 victories, seven NAIA State Championships, 10 state runner-ups, 10 Michigan NAIA Coach of the Year awards and four Region Coach of the Year awards. Bocian also served as athletic director from 1978-2016, increasing the Saints' athletic teams from nine sports to 25. He was inducted into the NAIA Hall of Fame in 2000 and his uniform no. 13 was retired by Aquinas in 2004.
For more information on the Michigan Baseball Hall of Fame, visit michiganbaseballhall.org or call (517) 485-4500.
Midwest League Stories from March 26, 2025
- Dayton Dragons Team Preview, Part 7: Starting Pitchers - Dayton Dragons
- New Dragons Ownership Visits Dayton to Celebrate Start of 25th Season - Dayton Dragons
- Modern Woodmen Park Three-Peats as Nation's "Best Minor League Ballpark" - Quad Cities River Bandits
- Michigan Baseball Hall of Fame Announces Class of 2025: Kaat, Deak, Bergman and Bocian - Lansing Lugnuts
The opinions expressed in this release are those of the organization issuing it, and do not necessarily reflect the thoughts or opinions of OurSports Central or its staff.
