COOPERSTOWN, N.Y. - One created baseball’s foremost dynasty, one transformed the role of the men in blue, and one notched the first hit in the first professional game.
That’s the impressive legacy of baseball pioneers Jacob Ruppert, Hank O’Day and James “Deacon” White, who are finally about to receive the recognition they deserve with induction into the National Baseball Hall of Fame and Museum.
The three men represent the Class of 2013 and they’ve all been dead for more than 70 years, making today’s festivities something out of the ordinary. For only the second time in 42 years, baseball writers failed to elect anyone to the Hall of Fame, sending a firm signal that stars of the Steroids Era - including Barry Bonds, Sammy Sosa and Roger Clemens, who didn’t even come close in their first year of eligibility - will be judged in a different light.
“When December rolled around and the ballots were out for completion, it started to dawn on us that there was a better-than-likely chance that the writers might not come to a 75 percent vote on anyone this year,” Hall of Fame President Jeff Idelson said. “Disappointed? Yes, because we feel there are candidates on the ballot who certainly deserved consideration. But surprised? No.”
Approval on 75 percent of returned ballots is needed for induction, and with pitchers Greg Maddux and Tom Glavine and slugger Frank Thomas eligible for the first time next year, Bonds, Sosa and Clemens figure to be on the outside looking in for a while.
The Baseball Writers’ Association of America last failed to elect a player in 1971, when former New York Yankees great Yogi Berra fell just short. Back then, the Veterans Committee selected Dave Bancroft, Jake Beckley, Chick Hafey, Harry Hooper, Joe Kelley, Rube Marquard, Satchel Paige and George Weiss.
This time, the 16-member Pre-Integration Era Committee dug deep into the archives to elect an owner, an umpire and a player who had significant roles in baseball’s earliest decades.
Ruppert, who was born in Manhattan in 1867, went to work for his father in the family brewing business instead of attending college. He also fashioned a military career, rising to the rank of colonel in the National Guard, and served four terms in Congress from 1899-1907 before becoming president of the Jacob Ruppert Brewing Co. upon the death of his father in 1915.
Interested in baseball since he was a kid, Ruppert and Tillinghast Huston purchased the Yankees prior to the 1915 season for $480,000, then proceeded to transform what had been a perennial also-ran in the American League into a powerhouse.
Miller Huggins was hired as manager soon after Ruppert gained control of the franchise, then Ruppert snared Babe Ruth in a 1919 trade with the Boston Red Sox, a deal that changed the dynamics of the sport. Four years later, Ruppert had Yankee Stadium constructed and “The House That Ruth Built” became baseball’s mecca. Ruppert also hired general manager Ed Barrow from the Red Sox in 1921, and together they won 10 AL pennants and seven World Series in 18 seasons.
O’Day was born on the rural west side of Chicago in 1859, played ball as a kid with his older brothers, and after completing his education apprenticed as a steamfitter while pitching for several local teams. He turned pro in 1884, but his arm suffered mightily in seven years of action and he retired not long after leading the New York Giants to the National League pennant in 1889 and pitching a complete game to clinch the 19th century precursor to the modern World Series.
During his playing days, O’Day umpired occasionally and was so proficient he was hired in 1895. After working a season in the minor leagues, he joined the National League in 1897 and went on to umpire more than 4,000 games. His greatest contribution to baseball was convincing everyone associated with the game to treat the men in blue with dignity. Despite repeated physical and verbal assaults from players and fans, O’Day maintained his signature code of fairness, often ignoring enormous bribes to favor the home team, and his colleagues eventually adopted his pioneering ways.
White, a barehanded catcher, was one of major-league baseball’s earliest stars. In fact, he was the first batter in the first professional game May 4, 1871, and laced a double. An outstanding hitter, White, who grew up in Caton, N.Y., near Corning, was regarded as the best catcher in baseball before switching to third base late in his nearly 20-year career.
A deeply religious man, White earned the nickname “Deacon” and was dubbed “the most admirable superstar of the 1870s” by Bill James in his Historical Baseball Extract. A left-handed batter, White played for the Cleveland Forest Citys, Chicago White Stockings, Cincinnati Reds, Buffalo Bisons, Detroit Wolverines and Pittsburgh Alleghenys. He had a .312 batting average and accumulated 2,067 hits, 270 doubles, 98 triples, 24 home runs and 988 RBI before retiring in 1890.
White died in 1939 in Aurora, Ill., and six years later Hall of Famer Connie Mack, a teammate of White’s in Buffalo, wrote in a letter that White merited induction.
Sports, Pages 29 on 07/28/2013