COOPERSTOWN _ The National Baseball Hall of Fame went to the bench and found a replacement far better than its long-time veteran.
When Major League Baseball announced the retirement of the Hall of Fame Game in January, the Hall was left with ... well, nothing.
Until Monday, when the Cooperstown shrine unquestionably made the right call.
Now, maybe, people can forget about what was and embrace what is.
The Hall announced the inaugural Hall of Fame Classic, a legends game June 21 at Doubleday Field in Cooperstown. The game, run jointly with the Major League Baseball Players Alumni Association, will highlight several events over Father's Day Weekend.
Baseball, dads and children ... add a slice of apple pie and it's Americana at its finest.
The naysayers will say this is an unacceptable replacement for the Fame Game.
I say it's better.
At least four Hall of Famers and a slew of former major leaguers will play in the game. Will these players be past their prime? Sure. But at least they'll play for longer than the customary one or two innings major leaguers did in the Fame Game.
Fan interaction will also be much higher as the legends will mingle and sign autographs throughout.
"The guys that come to our stuff get it," MLBPAA chief operating officer Geoff Hixson said. "They understand why they are here. ... They understand they are here to entertain, to bring fathers and sons together to smile, and get autographs and talk about baseball. They are here for the right reasons."
Major League Baseball canned the Hall of Fame Game, a 68-year tradition in Cooperstown, in late January because of scheduling conflicts. MLB decided it was too hard to get teams to and from Cooperstown for the only in-season exhibition. It also took away a day off from players.
Fair enough.
The Hall made its pitch to save the game. Fans and politicians made a plea to baseball commissioner Bud Selig to save the game. Cooperstown graduate Kristian Connolly created a website _ www.savethefamegame.com _ to try and drum up support.
In the end, MLB didn't budge.
I've never understood _ besides the economic factors _ the love-fest with the Fame Game.
It was nothing more than a glorified minor league game as major leaguers played an inning or two _ if that _ and left.
Who cares?
Our area has the Oneonta Tigers. How about fans giving our local minor-league team some support instead of blasting MLB for something it should have done long ago?
And having players past their prime shouldn't matter. The historical connection is why this game makes sense for Cooperstown.
Baseball links to its past more than any other sport. That's why Cooperstown is the mecca for baseball fans.
Canton for football or Springfield for basketball don't compare. And don't even mention Oneonta for soccer or Toronto for hockey.
It's not the same.
The younger generation who watch today's big-money players don't always know the history of the game. For that matter, many of today's players don't understand the impact of the past until they step inside the Hall, as made evident by the players who actually embraced the Fame Game experience.
The Hall is one of the most amazing places to visit. A fan can get lost in there for hours.
For youngsters to spend time with their fathers during Father's Day weekend and then see Hall of Famers lace up their cleats and play a seven-inning exhibition will be a far greater experience than getting one inning of some superstar jogging around the bases.
The game won't be a total spoof, either. These guys still have competitive fire. Though there's a possibility some of the older Hall of Famers might show up merely to interact and sign autographs, those playing will still have ability.
"I think if we invite 30 players, probably half of them haven't been here to the Hall of Fame before," said 71-year-old Hall of Famer Brooks Robinson, who serves as the president of the MLBPAA. "Of course, you have to bring some guys in who can still play. We don't want to put 18 guys out there like me who are jumping out of the way of the ball or who can't run. ... It's a combination of things. Guys who can play and names that will be recognized."
In addition to the game, the Hall will conduct a skills clinic for kids as well as giving fathers and grandfathers the chance to play catch with their kids and grandkids at Doubleday Field. Hall of Fame President Jeff Idelson said more events are in the works.
"At the end of the day, we wanted to come up with an event that this community and the county could be proud of," Idelson said. "We feel that the building blocks are in place to have a very successful weekend to ensure that Father's Day in Cooperstown is the ultimate baseball destination for families that want to celebrate Father's Day. We firmly believe this series of events will allow that to happen."
Idelson said the Hall also never considered putting the event with Induction Weekend because it wanted a signature stand-alone weekend at the beginning of the summer.
"The intent all along was to keep them separate," Idelson said. "We felt it was important to replace the Hall of Fame Game with another early-summer event. We wanted to put together a weekend that we felt could stand on its own and could be a significant draw and boost the local economy. We feel this is the perfect type of the event.
"For us, this was a no-brainer."
For the Hall _ and for the fans.
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P.J. Harmer covers baseball for The Daily Star. E-mail him at pharmer@thedailystar.com.
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