COOPERSTOWN - With 1,406 career stolen bases left in the wake of his speedy cleats, it's hard to imagine Rickey Henderson walking anywhere.
Perhaps that was why it was so hard for the 2009 National Baseball Hall of Fame and Museum inductee to walk away from the game, as he said in his speech at the induction ceremony Sunday at the Clark Sports Center.
"I love the game of baseball. That's why it was so hard for me to walk away from the game," Henderson said. "I thought if Satchel Paige can still play in major league baseball at the age of 45, then with my dedication, hard work and desire, I can play the game until my body said it was time to hang it up."
With the same determination Henderson displayed on the basepaths, he sprinted into the Hall on his first ballot with 94.8 percent of the vote. His fellow inductee Jim Rice made it in on his last ballot, earning 76.4 percent of the vote in his 15th and final year of eligibility. The Veterans Committee elected Joe Gordon with 10 of their 12 votes.
Tony Kubek, whose broadcast career included coverage of the Toronto Blue Jays and New York Yankees for 30 years, was honored with the Ford C. Frick Broadcasting Award. Nick Peters, also known as "The Greek," has covered more San Francisco Giants games than anyone in a 47-year career and he was honored with the J.G. Taylor Spink Award for meritorious contributions to baseball writing.
For Henderson, not only was it hard to walk away from the game, but it was hard to get interested in it at first. If not for Babe Ruth Baseball coach Hank Thomas "tricking" Henderson into playing by coming by to pick him up with a glazed donut and cup of hot chocolate, "the greatest leadoff hitter" may never have led off a game in the first place.
Then in high school, a counselor bribed him into playing baseball, he said. She paid him a quarter every time he got a hit, a run or a stolen base. After 10 games, the total came to $22.
In the minor leagues, coach Tom Treblehorn gave Henderson lessons on baserunning, he said.
"I had not perfected how to take a lead or how to slide," Henderson said. "Tom asked me to come to practice early every day and work on my sliding and base running skill. I guess, Tom, that hard work paid off for me, and I am very grateful."
Henderson continued thanking coaches and owners, mentioning Billy Martin as the manager who got the most out of him and taught him respect for the game.
The lessons he learned from everyone he thanked led to Henderson's major league career records in stolen bases (1,406) and runs scored (2,295). He hit .279 in his career with 3,055 hits, 297 home runs and 1,115 RBIs. He holds the record for home runs to lead off games with 81 and unintentional walks at 2,129.
Henderson was a 10-time All-Star and the American League Most Valuable Player in 1990. He led the league in steals 12 times, recorded over 100 steals in three seasons and set the single-season record for steals at 130 in 1982.
Fittingly, the inscription on his plaque begins "Faster than a speeding bullet."
Superman, the greatest leadoff hitter, or just Rickey (which he said he never really called himself, he just talks fast), he closed his speech by thanking the fans of the nine teams he played for and all baseball fans, including the 21,000 who came to Cooperstown Sunday to share the moment with him. He then spoke of The Greatest, Muhammad Ali.
"I would like to say my favorite hero was Muhammad Ali. He said at one time, "I am the greatest." That is something I always wanted to be," Henderson said. "And now that the Association has voted me into the Baseball Hall of Fame, my journey as a player is complete. I am now in the class of the greatest players of all time. And at this moment, I am very, very humble. Thank you."
Jim Rice came into the league to play left field for the Boston Red Sox, following in the footsteps of some of the greatest to play there. He was preceded by Carl Yastrzemski - who was on hand to honor Rice - and Ted Williams in left field.
Rice hit .298 in his career with 382 home runs and 1,451 RBIs. He is the only player in the history of baseball to have three straight seasons with 35 home runs and 200 hits. He hit 20 or more homers 11 times and had eight 100-RBI seasons. He was the American League MVP in 1978 with a league-leading 46 home runs, 139 RBIs 213 hits. He was an All-Star eight times.
Shortly after Rice took the podium and began his speech, a fan yelled out and called Rice the best or the greatest or some other superlative. It was perfect timing, as Rice had just reached the portion of his notes about what he actually was called.
"I am a husband called Rice. I am a father called Dad. I am a brother called Ed. I am an uncle called Uncle Ed. I am a grandfather called Papa," Rice said. "I am a friend that doesn't call, some of my friends know that, and sometimes best not called at all. Finally, and I do mean finally, I am Jim Rice called a baseball Hall of Famer."
Finally, after 14 years of not being elected into the Hall, Rice was recognized by the Baseball Writers Associated of America as one of the best.
He said the wait, though, didn't bother him. What matters is that he got the call from the Hall, not when he got it.
When he got it, by the way, he was parked in front of the TV.
"I really don't think I would have gotten a news flash while watching my favorite soap opera, the Young and the Restless every day at 12:30," Rice said. "And that's what I was doing. [Hall of Fame president Jeff Idelson] knows when he called I was watching the Young and the Restless."
Rice talked about the emotions of that day by likening it to other once-in-a-lifetime moments like when he met his wife, had his first child, sat through graduations, met his first grandchild.
"And then after 15 years, you get a phone call that you thought you'd never get," Rice said. "Your aspiration's realized. Your tears overflow. Because you know now that the highest honor of your career means so much more than you ever thought it would mean before."
Rice went on to thank Don Zimmer, who he called a father figure, and hitting instructor Johnny Pesky. Then finally, the thousands of friends, family and fans sitting in front of him Sunday.
"And here we are in 2009, and I'm standing amongst baseball's elite, in front of my family, friends and fans, proudly accepting baseballs pinnacle of professional achievement," Rice said. "I cannot think of anywhere I would rather be than to be right here, right now with you, and you."
Gordon, known as "Flash," died in 1978. His style at second base with the New York Yankees and Cleveland Indians earned him his nickname and his range, nine All-Star selections and AL MVP award in 1942 helped earn him the nod from the Veterans Committee. Gordon won five World Series rings, led the league in assists four times and double plays three times. He set a home run record for second basemen, finished with more than 100 RBIs four times and hit 20 or more home runs seven times.
He finished his career in baseball as a manager for parts of five seasons with Cleveland, Detroit and Kansas City, when they were the Athletics.
His daughter, Judy Gordon, accepted the award for him and spoke about his career for a while and what it was like to grow up with Joe Gordon as her father. Then she spoke about his humble beginnings in Arizona mining camps, sometimes living in a tent. She spoke about Joe Gordon, the man, instead of just the ballplayer.
She closed her speech with a note of gratitude for what the enshrinement of her father means to her and her family.
"He had insisted against having a funeral," she said. "And as such, we consider Cooperstown and the National Baseball Hall of Fame as his final resting place, to be honored forever."
