Ray Hathaway Elected to South Atlantic League Hall of Fame
Published on May 5, 2011 under South Atlantic League (SAL1)
Asheville Tourists News Release
Ray Hathaway, who managed the Asheville Tourists for six seasons during the 1950s and 1960s, has been elected to the South Atlantic League Hall of Fame. SAL president Eric Krupa made the announcement on Thursday afternoon, with Hathaway joining former Gastonia Rangers player Mike Hargrove and Frank Perdue, the former president of Perdue Farms, in the Class of 2011.
A resident of Weaverville, N.C., Hathaway was the manager of the 1961 Asheville Tourists, champions of the South Atlantic League with an 87-50 record and considered to be the best team in Asheville history. The former pitcher, who had a cup of coffee in the major leagues with the Brooklyn Dodgers in 1945, took over the Tourists' dugout helm in 1951 in the Tri-State League before returning for the 1953 and 1954 campaigns. The Tourists won the Tri-State League regular-season title in 1954. Hathaway rejoined the Tourists in 1961 and remained in the Land of the Sky through the middle of the 1964 slate, when he switched places with Gastonia skipper Bob Clear.
"The Asheville Tourists are thrilled to a legend of our franchise receive one of the most prestigious honors in our game," said Tourists president Brian DeWine. "Ray Hathaway owned the Tourists' record for managerial victories for more than four decades. He brought the city some of the best professional baseball it has ever seen, and we are extremely honored that he will be representing the Tourists and the Asheville franchise in the South Atlantic League Hall of Fame."
Hathaway's managerial career started in 1947 when he guided the Santa Barbara Dodgers to the California League championship. He also won the Ohio-Indiana League title as skipper of the Zanesville Dodgers in 1948. In addition to his Asheville tenure, his other managerial stints include the Pueblo Dodgers in the Western League (1949-50, 1956-57), Newport News Dodgers in the Piedmont League (1953), Elmira Pioneers in the Eastern League (1955), Tri-City Braves in the Northwest League (1958), Columbus/Gastonia Pirates in the South Atlantic League (1959), Savannah Pirates in the South Atlantic League (1960), Raleigh Cardinals in the Carolina League (1965), Lewiston Broncs in the Northwest League (1967), Arkansas Travelers in the Texas League (1969), Savannah Indians in the Southern League (1970), Jacksonville Suns in the Dixie Association (1971), Portland Beavers in the Pacific Coast League (1972) and the Wilson Pennants in the Carolina League (1973). Over the course of his 25-year managerial career, Hathaway won 1,441 games.
The late Bob Terrell, long-time sports editor of the Asheville Citizen-Times, said, "If I were starting a major league franchise, I would hire Ray Hathaway as my manager. He had the unique ability to get the most out of his players and was a master of baseball strategy that led to a lot of wins for his teams."
The Tourists will honor Hathaway for his election to the SAL Hall of Fame at a game to be determined during the 2011 season. The Hall of Fame induction ceremony will be held at the SAL All-Star Luncheon on Tuesday, June 21, in Salisbury, Maryland, home of the Delmarva Shorebirds.
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