Hall of Fame Notes, Black Sox and Prospects Lists

If you’re one of the handful of fans lamenting the Hall of Fame Game’s demise, here’s some salt (or salve) for the wound: Today the Hall announced that the Cubs and Padres will face off in Cooperstown on Monday, June 16. Get your tickets now to watch some of the best double-A players in each team’s system.

Speaking of Cooperstown, Happy Birthday to three Hall of Famers: Ernie Banks (77), the late Jackie Robinson and Nolan Ryan (61). How can Nolan Ryan be in his 60s?! And why would he want to be the president of the Rangers?

I’m knee-deep in Ken Burns‘ “Baseball” series these days and earlier this week I watched the disc covering the Black Sox Scandal. This story never ceases to fascinate me (though I haven’t yet read the book Eight Men Out). Where was I? Oh, here’s the tie-in:

On January 31, 1956, former major leaguer Buck Weaver dies at the age of 65. One of the eight members of the Black Sox to be banned for life, Weaver batted .324 in the 1919 World Series. Although Weaver maintained that he did not participate in the fix, Commissioner Kenesaw Mountain Landis banished him for failing to report those players who had met with gamblers.

John Cusack certainly made Weaver a sympathetic figure in the movie, though, didn’t he?
As a Tigers fan, I’m a little sheepish about the wave of top-prospects lists floating around this week. Most of Detroit’s top prospects in 2007 now are the property of the Braves and Marlins, so I’m afraid to see what’s left in the cupboard. Rob Neyer wades into the lists [$], which he loves to do.