Baseball Hall of Fame ceremony axed due to virus fears

NEW YORK, USA – The National Baseball Hall of Fame and Museum said Wednesday, April 29, it is canceling this year’s induction ceremony due to health and safety concerns from the coronavirus pandemic.

A statement from the Hall of Fame in Cooperstown, New York, said the organization’s board of directors had voted unanimously to scrap this year’s event scheduled for July 24-27.

Instead, the class of 2020 – which includes former New York Yankees star Derek Jeter, Marvin Miller, Ted Simmons, and Larry Walker – will be inducted alongside the class of 2021 next year.

“The Board of Directors’ overriding concern is the health and well-being of our new inductees, our Hall of Fame members, our wonderful fans and the hundreds of staff,” said Jane Forbes Clark, chairman of the National Baseball Hall of Fame and Museum. “We care deeply about every single person who visits Cooperstown.”

“In heeding the advice of government officials as well as federal, state and local medical and scientific experts, we chose to act with extraordinary caution in making this decision,” Clark added.

The decision received support from class of 2020 members including Jeter.

“Being inducted into the Hall of Fame will be an incredible honor, but the health and safety of everyone involved are paramount,” Jeter said in a statement.

The ceremony is the latest sporting-related event to be scrapped due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

Sports in North America has been at a standstill since mid-March, when the crisis erupted. – Rappler.com