The limelight will be on this year’s National Baseball Hall of Fame inductees this weekend, but the death of New York Yankees’ owner George Steinbrenner has people questioning whether or not ``The Boss’’ belongs there as well. Steinbrenner himself once said he did not want to be enshrined at the HOF.
``If they have an Owners Hall of Fame, I’ll consider it,’’ he once said. ``But believe me, I don’t want to be in the Hall of Fame.’’
Others, although not exactly unbiased, would disagree.
Yankee shortstop Derek Jeter was quoted saying it’s, ``a no-brainer’’ for him. He says Steinbrenner has been a winner and when thinking of the Yankees, the first name that comes to mind is his. Jeter said ``The Boss’’ belongs in the Hall of Fame because of what he meant to the game.
Steinbrenner’s son and Yankees managing general partner, Hal, told MLB.com before his father’s death that there’s no doubt in his mind Steinbrenner belongs in the Hall.
Sam Nadar, who for years operated the Yankees’ farm team in Oneonta, said he believes ``The Boss’’ should be inducted into the HOF. The former Oneonta mayor said Steinbrenner was the ``best owner baseball ever had.’’
Steinbrenner was an owner, a philanthropist and some say a tyrant, but there is no doubt he was the backbone behind the success of the Bronx Bombers and had a big influence on how the game is played today.
Under his watch, the Yankees have been extremely successful, winning seven of their 27 World Series titles and 11 of their 40 American League pennants. Steinbrenner has invested huge capital in the team, and has come under some criticism from his own contemporaries for doing so. However, ``The Boss,’’ who once said he was ``really 95 percent Mr. Rogers, and only 5 percent Oscar the Grouch,’’ was also known to be very generous when it came to dipping into his wallet and giving to charities asking not to be acknowledged.
Steinbrenner, who purchased the team from CBS in 1973, is eligible for induction into the HOF as an executive 65 years or older. ``The Boss’’ could be considered and voted upon by the 12-member Veterans Committee evaluating executives and pioneers, which meets every two years and will next convene at baseball’s Winter Meetings in 2011. But first the committee must put Steinbrenner, who served on the museum’s board of directors, on the 10-person ballot. The committee is made up of two Hall of Fame players, three members of the Baseball Writers’ Association of America and seven baseball executives. Like players, executives need 75 percent of the vote, or in this case, seven of the 12 votes, to get in. Last year, this particular committee didn’t elect anyone.
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Opinion
Our Opinion: Does 'The Boss' belong?
- Our Opinion
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Our Opinion: Enjoy the carnival
It does not look like there will be much snow, if any at all for this year’s Cooperstown Winter Carnival. Although many events are weather-dependent, that will not spoil all the festivities. As far as getting out your hats and mittens, you might want to dig them out. At least it does not look like the weather will be as abnormally warm as it has been so far this winter.
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Our Opinion: Roses
Roses to Cooperstown sixth-grader Tom Knight, who once again might have the chance to compete in the state level geography bee. He won his school district’s competition for the second year in a row this year and will be taking a written test to see if he qualifies. One could wish him luck, but Tom said he feels more confident taking the test this time around the now knows what to expect. He also said he feels more comfortable answering questions on paper that out loud in front of an audience.
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Our Opinion: Buying locally is right
We are happy to report this week that buying locally made products appears to be on the upswing in the Cooperstown area. We have long been a proponent of shopping locally. It stimulates the local economy, returns more sales tax to the county and is more environmentally sound. Buying locally made or grown products takes it one step further.
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Our Opinion: Confused much?
As if figuring out one’s tax bill isn’t mind boggling enough. Now, with a two percent limit on property tax increases, there will be more brains flustered. It is not a simple calculation at all. In fact, the tax cap will affect each school district’s levy in various ways. So don’t think you will be able to take your bill from last year and just increase it by two percent. The process uses a much more complex formula eight steps, as a matter of fact.
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Our Opinion: We’ll miss Nicols
Cooperstown Police Chief Diana Nicols will be leaving her job shortly and will be missed by the community. She is being retired by the New York State and Local Retirement System that notified her last week that she is “permanently incapacitated for the performance of duties.” The incapacitation is the result of a knee injury she received in 2008 during a training class.
Continued ... - Thursday, January 5, 2012
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Our Opinion: Roses and Raspberries
Roses to Cooperstown Central School graduate Molly Pearlman for putting off her college plans for a year to serve a 10-month term of service in the National Civilian Community Corps, an AmeriCorps program. She said her inspiration to participate in the program came from her father and brother.
Continued ... - Thursday, December 29, 2011
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Our Opinion: Looking forward
While many will spend the next few days reminiscing about 2011, we at the Crier are looking forward to next year. We are ready to ring in a new year and look forward to the events to come. Of course there are those events that happen annually such as the Cooperstown Winter Carnival,The Goodyear Polar Bear Jump, the Farmers’ Museum’s Junior Livestock Show, The National Baseball Hall of Fame’s Father’s Day Classic and Induction weekend, the Pumpkin Festival and Regatta and many more.
Continued ... - Thursday, December 22, 2011
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Our Opinion: Yes, Virginia, there is a Santa Claus
At this holiday season, we take great pleasure in reprinting one of the classic newspaper editorials of all time − perhaps the best Christmas editorial ever written. It has survived the test of time and seems particularly fitting and poignant this year.
Continued ... - Monday, December 19, 2011
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DEC should not dismiss findings
Last week, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency released the findings in a draft of a new federal report that links hydraulic fracturing for natural gas in Wyoming with groundwater pollution. Hydraulic fracturing is a process that pumps millions of gallons of chemically treated water into gas wells to fracture the rock and release the gas.
Continued ... - Thursday, December 8, 2011
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Our Opinion: Who would have guessed?
Much has been revealed during the baseball winter meeting in Dallas this past week. The Miami Marlins seem to be in hot pursuit of all the big name players to fill their new stadium, Manny Ramirez announced he would like to return to Major League Basbeall, Pedro Martínez announced he plans to officially retire, elections have been held and it appears former Red Sox manager Terry Francona is swapping places with the franchise’s new manager Bobby Valentine.
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Our Opinion: Enjoy the carnival
- Your Opinion
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- Your Opinion: February 9, 2012
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- Your Opinion: October 5, 2011
