The Baseball Reliquary Presents Shrine of the Eternals 2018 Induction Day

Tommy John notched 20 victories in a season three times, appeared in three World Series, was named to four All-Star teams, finished in the top eight for the Cy Young Award four times. – Courtesy photo / The Baseball Reliquary

The Baseball Reliquary will present the 2018 Induction Day ceremony for its 20th class of electees to the Shrine of the Eternals on Sunday, July 22 beginning at 2 p.m., at the Donald R. Wright Auditorium in the Pasadena Central Library, located at 285 E. Walnut St., Pasadena, California. Doors to the auditorium will open at 1:30p.m. Admission is open to the public and free of charge, with seating on a first come, first served basis.

The inductees will be Nancy Faust, Rusty Staub, and Tommy John. The Keynote Address will be delivered by Dan Epstein. In addition, the Baseball Reliquary will honor the recipient of the 2018 Hilda Award, Bart Wilhelm, and the 2018 Tony Salin Memorial Award, Ross Altman. Former Shrine of the Eternals inductee Ted Giannoulas (aka the San Diego Chicken) will make a special appearance.

Following is a brief preview of the afternoon’s festivities:

• The program will commence with an Induction Day tradition: the ceremonial bell ringing in memory of the late Brooklyn Dodgers fan Hilda Chester; everyone who attends is encouraged to bring a bell to ring for this much-anticipated sonic cacophony.
• The National Anthem will be performed by Nancy Faust on the Hammond B3 organ.

Nancy Faust is the most famous ballpark organist of the past half-century. – Courtesy photo / The Baseball Reliquary

• The first presentation will be the Hilda Award, established in memory of legendary Brooklyn Dodgers fan Hilda Chester to recognize distinguished service to the game by a baseball fan. The 2018 recipient, Bart Wilhelm has attended over 1,100 games in 270 different professional ballparks since his first visit to Tiger Stadium in 1984.
• The second presentation will be the Tony Salin Memorial Award, named in memory of the late baseball author and historian, and established to recognize individuals for their commitment to the preservation of baseball history. The 2018 recipient, Ross Altman has composed and performed musical tributes to many heroes of the national pastime, ranging from Lou Gebrig, Ted Williams, and Sandy Koufax to Shrine of the Eternals inductees Jackie Robinson, Jimmy Piersall, and Steve Bilko.
• Following the award presentations, the 2018 Keynote Address will be delivered by Dan Epstein, a Chicago-based journalist, historian, and raconteur. Epstein is the author of the acclaimed baseball books “Big Hair and Plastic Grass: A Funky Ride Through Baseball and America in the Swinging ’70s” and “Stars and Strikes: Baseball and America in the Bicentennial Summer of ’76,” both of which examine baseball’s most colorful and tumultuous decade and its overlap with American popular culture.
• Following the Keynote Address, 2011 Shrine inductee Ted Giannoulas will offer his comments in celebration of the 20th anniversary festivities of the Shrine of the Eternals.
• The 2018 inductions will lead off with Nancy Faust, the most famous ballpark organist of the past half-century, who entertained Chicago White Sox fans at Comiskey Park between 1970 and 2010. Following her acceptance remarks, Faust will play a musical selection on her Hammond B3 organ. Her induction will be introduced by Mike Downey, an award-winning newspaper columnist who has written for the Los Angeles Times, Detroit Free Press, Chicago Daily News, Chicago Sun-Times, and Chicago Tribune.
• The second inductee, the much-beloved Rusty Staub was one of the outstanding hitters in baseball. When he retired after the 1985 season, he had played for 23 years and is the only player in baseball history to have 500 hits with four different teams. After retiring as a player, Staub worked as a broadcaster for the Mets, opened a successful New York restaurant, and established two foundations to raise funds for charitable and humanitarian purposes. Staub’s induction will be accepted by his sister, Sally Johnston, on behalf of the Staub family.

Rusty Staub’s induction will be accepted by his sister, Sally Johnston. – Courtesy photo / The Baseball Reliquary

• The third inductee is Tommy John, who won 288 games over a 26-year career, notched 20 victories in a season three times, appeared in three World Series, was named to four All-Star teams, finished in the top eight for the Cy Young Award four times, and – through his courageous example – is responsible for a surgical procedure that has now prolonged the careers of countless pitchers and position players.

Free parking is available in the University of Phoenix underground parking structure, which is located just north of the Pasadena Central Library on the corner of Garfield Avenue and Corson Street. The entrance to the parking structure is on Garfield.

Before and after the ceremony, they invite you to visit the Baseball Reliquary exhibition, “Shrine @ 20,” which is being presented through July 30 in the display cases in the North Entrance, Humanities Wing, and Business Wing of the Pasadena Central Library. Included in the exhibition are all 57 Shrine of the Eternals inductee plaques from 1999-2017.

For further information, contact the Baseball Reliquary by phone at (626) 791­7647 or by e-mail at terymarearthlink.net. The 2018 Induction Day is co­sponsored by the Pasadena Public Library and is made possible, in part, by a grant to the Baseball Reliquary from the Los Angeles County Board of Supervisors through the Los Angeles County Arts Commission.

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