History Lessened: Thoughts on the Hall of Fame Game's demise

There will be no more signs announcing a big league exhibition game at Doubleday Field. AP

Regarding the Hall of Fame Game: You are completely wrong on this one, Tom. Just because you were starry eyed doesn't mean all of us need the "wholesome" experience. If you want innocence go to a minor league game in Chillicothe, or River City, or somewhere else in the independent minor leagues. Just remember, if baseball hadn't gotten so big in the past twenty years, it wouldn't have been able to foster as many related industries such as sports media. Don't lament baseball's fortune -- it has contributed to yours as well.
-- Jason Kaminsky, Johnstown, PA

A: I think you missed my point. I'm not lamenting baseball's growth, only giving recognition to what gets lost along the way, like stopping to take a snapshot. I've been to independent league games. I coach youth baseball. And I will tell you this: those who play baseball in the major leagues do play it with joy in their hearts, too. The pressure, the money, and the trappings make for a very different environment. But you cannot play 162 games in 180 days without a love for the game.

I lived in Cooperstown in the early 1990s, and you forgot to mention that even then the game had become an afterthought. Most of the players on the field were minor leaguers and scrubs brought along just for the game, most of the stars drove into town in time for warm-ups and left as fast as possible after the last pitch. The romance of the game was long gone even then, and it was silly and disappointing for any true fan there. As is often the case with baseball, the past is much better when viewed through the fog of nostalgia.
-- David Charney, Mercer Island, WA

A: I mean, what do you want them to do, hang around for a picnic on the town square after the game? Stay with host families? I can tell you that all of the Blue Jays players were there, and stars such as Vernon Wells and Alex Rios and Roy Halladay went out of their way to talk to fans, sign autographs and enjoy themselves. Home run derby was a treat for everybody, with balls smashing off houses and over trees. I can only go by what I saw, and I saw 10,000 people, many of them kids, many of them getting their only exposure to big leaguers, simply having a great time. That was 12 months ago, hardly time for any fog of nostalgia to blow in.

How about saving the Hall of Fame game and the double-header in one shot? Instead of trying to find a common off day for an exhibition game, hold two regular season games there. Find two divisional teams that play each other frequently (ex. Cards-Cubs, Yanks-Red Sox, etc.), and schedule a two-game series in Cooperstown, with each team playing a home game.
-- Tom Scheppelle, Overland Park, KS

A: I like the spirit of your idea. If MLB can play games at a spring training site (Disney), why not Cooperstown? The answer is Doubleday Field is not close to being a major league venue, and Disney is. The outfield fences are way too close and the infrastructure (no clubhouses, training rooms, batting cages) just doesn't support MLB caliber baseball. To bring it up to MLB quality would mean tearing away the very charm that makes Doubleday Field special.

Why can't commissioner Bud Selig get one of the after-spring training/before Opening Day games to Cooperstown; and/or an 'all-star' game on a play-off off-day (between non-play-off players)?
-- Maxey, Dublin, N.H.

A: Maxey, I'm sure as a Northeasterner you're aware of the splendid weather in upstate New York in late March and October. Let's agree that it's not ideal baseball weather. One day with snowflakes, or a sore arm from 30-degree weather, and they'd never come back again.

I've been watching baseball for 30-odd years now, and have never seen the Hall of Fame game. To be honest, I wouldn't even know it was happening if you didn't cover it. Why is this game not televised, and why doesn't it count in the standings? Would not giving it some meaning beyond an exhibition give it some gravity? Possibly a new life?
-- Seth, Boston

A: You bring up a good point, Seth. It's amazing to think that with all the stuff that gets shown on television that nobody ever thought to put the Hall of Fame Game on TV. Listen, it would never be a ratings bonanza, not with a game that doesn't count on a weekday afternoon. But I mean, we get celebrity softball and we get Matt Lauer playing golf, but we can't get a game at Doubleday Field with major leaguers? In some ways, I guess, it's been a blessing that the cameras never came, because they tend to intrude on the organic nature of the game and would probably insist on making it more "marketable" with celebrity managers and microphones on players and such.

There have been players, Andy Van Slyke is one who comes to mind, who were enthusiastic students of baseball's rich history. What's your take on today's major leaguers; are they interested in the game's heritage? Is Cooperstown relevant to them?
-- Jeff, Buffalo

A: That's a great question, Jeff, because the danger is to say, "Ah, these guys don't care about the history." But I bet you every generation has been saying stuff like that, and I just don't think it's fair to indict all players that way. There are plenty of guys such as Trevor Hoffman, Juan Pierre and Alex Rodriguez who know a lot about the people who paved the way for them. I saw Pierre this year act like a little kid when he asked Darryl Strawberry for an autographed ball. So yes, I think today's players are interested, not in the way you or I might be -- not as fans (I'm still amazed how little baseball these guys watch; many of them don't watch the postseason and I can't tell you how many guys watch Happy Gilmore for the 96th time rather than a live out-of-town game on the clubhouse TV) but as members of a small fraternity blessed enough to have the skills to play the game at such a high level.

Not only are there no more double headers or infield practices, but there's no more "pepper" and no more hanging outside the dressing rooms to get autographs. No more two-handed catches, either.
-- Jack Tracy, Port Hueneme, CA

A: Hey, great calls there, Jack. You know, I did see the Rangers playing pepper as part of their spring training drills this year and had to do a double take. And the players had devised some of their own makeshift rules to make it something of a contest. They were having a blast. But of course, it's frowned upon, even barred, during the regular season for fear that someone in the stands will get hurt and file a lawsuit. Maybe we should start a list of the simple pleasures of the game that have been squeezed out. Remember 25-cent scorecards and a pencil to keep score?

Any chance they could invite players who retired after the previous HOF game to play? Give them a chance for one last hurrah? (or maybe the last season retirees versus the previous season?). Create throwback jerseys for fictitious or now defunct/renamed teams and let them play one last game.
-- Jeremiah, Silver Spring, MD

A: Not a terrible idea. How about inviting all of the players on the Hall of Fame ballot to a game, as well as the most recent inductees? And they could choose up sides, as if on a sandlot. "I've got Rice." "Okay, I'll take Blyleven."

Some day -- perhaps decades down the road, maybe later -- baseball's popularity will diminish to a point where the game begins doing things (like the Hall of Fame game) they used to do, in order to connect more with fans. By then, it could be too late. If that ever happens, and baseball ends up eventually being an also-ran sport, the game will deserve it because of how much its greed has ruined its true connection with fans.
-- Tom Adams, Westmont, IL

A: I hope you are wrong, Tom, but of course, everything runs in cycles and baseball cannot continue this unchecked growth forever. I remember thousands upon thousands of empty seats at Wrigley, Fenway and Yankee Stadium 15-20 years ago. And yet I have to believe whatever correction is coming will be a mild one, not one to turn baseball into an also-ran sport. The game is more popular than ever, despite the trouble in the stock, automotive, and real estate markets and $4 a gallon gasoline. It's amazing to me that people continue to give their money over to baseball (tickets, pay television, memorabilia, ballpark-as-theme-park vacations, etc.) in record amounts even in this economy. This country has gone absolutely bonkers for entertainment; what used to be considered luxury spending has become staples, even necessity, for many. And baseball, with its vast inventory of daily content, is perfectly suited for this on-demand, Internet-time world.

I'm not smart enough to understand what could reverse Americans' need to be entertained, in a baseball sense, though I would guess that labor unrest would be suspect No. 1 based on history.