University of North Carolina Athletics
Surhoff On Inaugural College Baseball Hall Of Fame Ballot
April 12, 2006 | Baseball
April 12, 2006
LUBBOCK, Texas - Former North Carolina All-America and 19-year Major League Baseball standout B.J. Surhoff is among 46 all-time collegiate baseball greats who comprise the 2006 ballot for induction into the College Baseball Hall of Fame, the College Baseball Foundation announced Wednesday. The ballot was e-mailed earlier to the 80-member Hall of Fame Voting Committee, who will participate in two rounds of elimination votes in order to pare these legendary names to the final list of first-ever Hall of Fame Inductees.
The 1985 Sporting News National Player of the Year, Surhoff is one of two Tar Heels to have his number retired. He earned first-team All-America honors in 1984 and '85 and was the No. 1 overall pick in the 1985 Major League Baseball Draft. Also a member of the 1984 U.S. Olympic team, Surhoff was a three-time first-team All-ACC choice and catcher and helped lead the Tar Heels to league titles in 1983 and '84. In 1985, Surhoff was named the ACC's Athlete of the Year for all sports and was also named to the league's 50th Anniversary Team as one of the top 50 players in league history.
Surhoff holds the Carolina career batting average record at .392 and also ranks among the top five in program history in hits, runs and steals. He went on to play 19 seasons in the majors with the Brewers, Orioles and Braves and was a .282 lifetime hitter with 2,313 hits in the big leagues.
The list of potential 2006 Inductees include coaches Jerry Kindall of Arizona, Bobby Winkles and Dr. Jim Brock of Arizona State, Bill Wilhelm of Clemson, Skip Bertman of LSU, Ron Fraser of Miami, Dick Seibert of Minnesota, Gary Ward of Oklahoma State, Cliff Gustafson and Bibb Falk of Texas, Rod Dedeaux of USC and Charles "Bobo" Brayton of Washington State.
The list of legendary former players include Dave Magadan of Alabama, Bob Horner of Arizona State, Mickey Sullivan of Baylor, Jackie Jensen of California, Tim Wallach of Cal State Fullerton, Derek Tatsuno of Hawai'i, Pete Incaviglia and Robin Ventura of Oklahoma State, Billy Swift of Maine, Neal Heaton of Miami, Barry Larkin of Michigan, Paul Molitor and Dave Winfield of Minnesota, Will Clark of Mississippi State, B. J. Surhoff of North Carolina, Steve Arlin of Ohio State, Brooks Kieschnick and Keith Moreland of Texas, Fred Lynn of USC, John Olerud of Washington State and Joe Carter and Phil Stephenson of Wichita State.
The list of veteran pre-1947 candidates include coaches Clint Evans of California, John "Jack" Barry of Holy Cross, Ray Fisher of Michigan, Billy Disch of Texas; and players Joe "Rip" Sewell of Alabama, Ted Lyons of Baylor, Christy Mathewson of Bucknell, Lou Gehrig of Columbia, Frankie Frisch of Fordham, Owen Carroll of Holy Cross, George Sisler of Michigan and Bobby Layne of Texas. Two final veteran selections will be named later this fall and will be officially inducted with the Class of 2007.
The College Baseball Hall of Fame Class of 2006 will be announced at the completion of voting in late April and officially inducted during a two-day celebration of collegiate baseball, which will feature the theme `The Past Meets Present.' The CBF plans to kick off the celebration on Monday, July 3 with the third annual Brooks Wallace College Baseball Player of the Year Award dinner to be held at the United Spirit Arena, on the campus of Texas Tech University. The Inaugural Hall of Fame Class will be in attendance and recognized at the ceremony, then make their acceptance speeches during the Official Induction Ceremonies on July 4 as part of the annual 4th on Broadway Festival in Lubbock, considered the "Largest Free Festival in the State of Texas." Both events will be will be carried nationally by Fox Sports Network, as well as the Fox College Sports Networks (Atlantic, Central and Pacific).
The 80-member CBF Hall of Fame Voting Committee is split into eight committees of ten members, which will choose these elite individuals. Persons assigned to the ABCA Veteran, ABCA Active, National, Historical, NCBWA, Former Players, National Media and Regional Media Committees will comprise the total voting group. Each committee member has been chosen to achieve a balanced representation from around the country - Far West, Northwest, Southwest, Mountain, Mid-South, South, Southeast, Deep South, Mid-North, Northeast. The entire process will be done online via the Internet.
"We take the responsibility of researching and selecting the most outstanding players and coaches in the history of collegiate baseball very seriously, said CBF Chairman/CEO John Askins. "The mission of the CBF is to preserve their legacies as an inspiration for the future generations of players and fans."
On Tuesday, July 4, the Inductees will participate in the annual 4th on Broadway Parade, and be accessible to attendees during a `Fan Fest' following the event. The coaches and players will then make their official Acceptance Speeches into the Hall of Fame later that afternoon. The official party will attend the city's evening musical concert and 4th of July fireworks spectacular to cap off the ceremonies.
"Just like Canton and Cooperstown, sports fans around the nation will begin to turn their attention to Lubbock every summer," said Askins. "This first-ever class of inductees will give our event a unique place in the history of sports. The national television exposure on the Fox networks will also showcase to the nation just how vibrant and growing an area the South Plains really is."
Over 300 candidates were originally submitted for consideration by universities and CBF members. In conjunction with the Society for the Advancement of Baseball Research (SABR), the ABCA Veteran and CBF Historical Committees comprised the CBF Research Committee, which was charged with the responsibility to evaluate nominees worthy of official consideration. After deliberations during the past month, the official ballot was submitted. A complete list and short biographies of the 2006 Hall of Fame ballot nominees are available at: www.collegebaseballfoundation.org
Players become eligible for the College Baseball Hall of Fame ballot five years after the student-athlete's final collegiate season, not to include any active player on a professional baseball team roster. Former players must have completed one year of competition at a 4-year institution, and must have made an All-America team (post-1947), or an all-league team (pre-1947, or have earned verifiable national acclaim).
Coaches become eligible after ending their collegiate career, not to include an active coach on a professional baseball team. They must have achieved 300 career wins, or have won at least 65 percent of their games.
Players and Coaches will also be evaluated for their citizenship both during and after their active careers. Each year those candidates named to the official ballot, but not selected for induction to the Hall of Fame, will become holdovers and automatically appear on the ballot the following year.
The Veteran and Historical Committees will research and nominate individuals from the pre-1947 era.
A complete list of names for the entire Hall of Fame Voting Committee will be made available after the 2006 inductees are announced.
The upcoming schedule and location of events, information regarding the sale of tickets, and exact times and dates for clearances around the country on Fox Sports Network and Fox College Sports, will be updated on the CBF website (www.collegebaseballfoundation.org) as they are made available.
