Now, Lost Scorecard Won’t Matter : Billy Williams Knows They Don’t Misplace Hall of Fame Plaques

COOPERSTOWN, N.Y. —  Billy Williams remembers his last visit to the baseball Hall of Fame. He went looking for the scorecard that marked his 1,000th consecutive game and couldn’t find it.

“There was nothing else in there about me. That was it,” Williams said. “It was something that made me a part of the Hall of Fame. I finally asked about it and after an hour or so was told they had lost it.”

Williams, the “Sweet Swinger” from Whistler, Ala., and the iron man of the Chicago Cubs, won’t have to worry about his place in baseball’s house of honor after this weekend.

Neither will pitcher Jim (Catfish) Hunter or third baseman Ray Dandridge, who join Williams in being eternally enshrined as the newest members of the Hall of Fame today.

Williams was named on 354 of the 413 ballots cast by 10-year members of the Baseball Writers Assn. of America. Hunter received 315 votes, five more than was necessary for induction. Dandridge was selected by the veterans committee.

This usually serene village of 2,400 will swell by thousands over the weekend as fans of the national pastime gather to witness the induction, catch glimpses of some of the game’s legends and see the Yankees and Braves tangle on Doubleday Field in the annual Hall of Fame game Monday.

“When they say, ‘You are now officially inducted into baseball’s Hall of Fame,’ it’s final,” said Williams, who jokingly added: “I know they keep track of the plaques.”

Williams, the National League’s Rookie of the Year in 1961, was voted into the hall in his sixth year on the ballot. The left-handed hitting outfielder played 16 seasons with Chicago and two years with the Oakland Athletics, finishing his career with 426 home runs and a .290 lifetime batting average. He had five seasons with 30 or more homers and five times batted over .300, including a league-leading .333 in 1972.

Williams held the National League record for consecutive games with 1,117 until Steve Garvey broke the mark in 1983 en route to 1,207 consecutive games. The 49-year-old Williams, now a batting coach with Chicago, played at least 161 games for eight consecutive years.

“If I could write my own plaque, I would want it to say ‘Billy Williams, for his consistency and durability in the major leagues,’ ” he said.

Hunter, who compiled a 224-166 record in 15 years in the big leagues, also wanted to be remembered for dedication to his profession.

“I want them to remember Jim Hunter as the guy who went out and pitched whenever the manager wanted. The guy who wanted to stay out there and pitch, throw strikes and not offer excuses when he gave up home runs,” said Hunter, who never played a game in the minor leagues.

Hunter, whom Oakland owner Charlie Finley nicknamed “Catfish,” said the accomplishment in which he takes most pride is his five consecutive seasons of winning 20 or more games.

Hunter, who will also be well-remembered for the bidding war he started when he left Oakland in 1974 and eventually signed with the New York Yankees for an estimated $2.85 million, won the Cy Young Award that year with the A’s on a 25-12 record and an earned-run average of 2.49. The 41-year-old right-hander pitched a perfect game against the Minnesota Twins in 1968, the first one in the American League in 46 years.

“I’m excited about the ceremony. Also about seeing the Hall of Fame,” said Hunter, who now farms 600 acres in his native Hertford, N.C. “I’ve never been up there and I’d like to look at it, but with everything that’s going on, I may not get a chance this year.”