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December 5, 2021

It Happened! Thank you for your support!

Gil’s In!

 I’m sure by now you are all aware that, yes, indeed, Gil Hodges will now get his well-deserved plaque in Cooperstown! A long-overdue baseball injustice has been rectified. Congratulations also to the other well-qualified selectees: Minnie Minoso, Jim Kaat, Tony Oliva, Buck O’Neil, and Bud Fowler. That’s quite a class!

It was a long, long wait for the Hodges family, but finally, it happened. I like to think that our two-year campaign here on Baseball History Comes Alive played at least a minor role in Gil’s selection. If you’re one of the nearly 800 readers who cared enough about Gil’s situation to sign the petition and/or one of the 1300-plus readers who voted in our poll, you can have the satisfaction of knowing that your voice was heard.  The petition and the poll results, along with my essay detailing his qualifications and other relevant information, were all part of the package I submitted to the committee in support of Gil’s candidacy. 

In recent weeks I had been in contact with Gil’s daughter, Irene. In my last correspondence with her just a couple days ago, I told her I had a good feeling about it. For once in my life a prediction I made was right!

Immediately after I heard the good news tonight, I fired off a quick email to congratulate her and the Hodges family, including Gil’s 96-year-old wife, Joan, who still lives in the same Brooklyn house they lived in when Gil played for the Dodgers. In my email I told Irene I was so excited I could hardly speak. About a half-hour later, I received this nice response from her:

“Lol how great is this!! Ty so much for all your hard work to help make this possible! It worked!!”

Just in case you were thinking your signature on the petition didn’t mean much, think again. It did. I know from my correspondence with Irene that it meant a whole lot to the Hodges family, and your signature on the petition may have even played a role in his selection. I had sent Irene a copy of the package and she specifically asked me to thank all those who signed it. 

So on this happy occasion, on behalf of Irene Hodges, the entire Hodges family, and Baseball History Comes Alive:

It Happened! Thank you for your support!

Gil’s in!

Gary Livacari

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