Hey Batter Batter – Cooperstown, NY

The other sports are just sports. Baseball is love. – Bryant Gumbel.

One of my bucket list items for many years is to visit the Baseball Hall of Fame in the small town of Cooperstown, NY. As we traveled north, I wanted to be sure that we headed toward this baseball shrine that celebrates and honors the American game.

Baseball is obsessed with tradition and numbers. It also celebrates and reveres players, and no place seeks to do that better than the Hall of Fame. Cooperstown being the birthplace of baseball, is a myth, but that has not stopped this New York town being ensconced as the mecca for baseball fans. The Hall of Fame would be more accessible if it were located in a large city with a major airport and intersecting highways. It doesn’t matter, because of tradition thousands make the pilgrimage to Cooperstown each year.

The town itself is a beautiful, quaint town, suited-up for baseball. Stores, shops, restaurants, and residents are focused on baseball.

For the Braves fan, the Hall of Fame is a treasure. The long history of the franchise, starting in Boston, then Milwaukee, and now Atlanta, is well represented in the Hall.

Currently there is a special section of the museum dedicated to Henry Aaron and his phenomenal career.

In the early days of baseball, clubs of men in such cities of Philadelphia and New York played the game.

The telegraph was important to send the game information to remote city via its dots and dashes.

Ad for a first baseman that would work mornings for the treasury department and afternoons playing ball. No Irish apply!

Team photograph.

Early catcher’s mask.

Early baseball glove.

1909 Souvenir button.

Jersey

The Hall of Fame houses a section dedicated to the Negro Leagues.

The San Diego Chicken

David with Eddie Collins, Babe Ruth, Connie Mack, and Cy Young.

Fernando advertising the flakes.

The advent of night games was a big deal.

“Lockers” with memorabilia and statistics for each current team.

Norman Rockwell paints baseball.

Joel Libby portraying Christy Mathewson

The Hall of Fame plaques.

Only about one percent of major league players are inducted unto the Hall of Fame.

For the baseball fan, the Hall of Fame is a home run. There is plenty to see and learn about the “national pastime.” Yes, there could be more interactive activities and there could be docent-led tours of the museum, but the experience is one to remember (there is a VIP type tour for $250). The Hall of Fame movie at the entrance, features many of the greats and includes the famous Lou Gehrig farewell speech, “Yet, today I consider myself the luckiest man on the face of the earth.” If that does not move you probably little else will.

Lucky for us that we were able to visit Cooperstown.