John Beckwith HOF Legend
All-time he played in 2419 games, batted .318 with 362 home runs, 3014 base hits, 1825 RBIs and 1572 runs scored -- stats great enough to be acclaimed a baseball immortal.
John Beckwith was officially inducted into the Major League Baseball Hall of Fame today. This was his 1st time on the ballot, where he was elected with 96.9% of the vote.
At his Hall of Fame induction, the superstar first baseman told the audience the secret of his success: "I was born to be a ballplayer... I also practiced a lot. Sunup to sundown in the summertime my brothers and I would be on the ballfield. We did it every minute we could. Boy, I loved to play baseball. Still do, and still would, if I could. I always got a special kick on opening day, no matter how many you went through. I looked forward to it like a birthday party when you're a kid. You think something wonderful is going to happen."
One of his managers summed up his career very well: "You saw him standing out there on the diamond and you knew you had a darn good chance to win the baseball game."
Beckwith retired from baseball in 1939, when he was 39. He wore a Chicago Cubs hat at his induction ceremony.
