The Press-Dispatch
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Petersburg celebrates Hodges induction to Baseball Hall of Fame By Andy Heuring Press-Dispatch Sports sports@pressdispatch.net About 50 people gathered at the corner of Highway 61 and Main St., Petersburg Saturday morning to see the unveiling of the new additions to now Hall of Fame baseball player Gil Hodges. The Hodges mural has been in Petersburg since 2009 when it was established to bring at- tention to Hodges' career in an effort to get Hodges into the Hall of Fame. Former Petersburg Mayor Randy Harris and now restau- rant owner and real estate bro- ker Randy Harris, along with former Mayor Jon Craig gave a histor y of the mural and the push to get Hodges into the Baseball Hall of Fame. "In 1977 Dave Johnson with the Evansville Courier and Press did an article, Hall of Fame long overdue for Hodg- es. Here we are today 44 years later," said Harris. Hodges was voted into the Hall of Fame last Fall and in July he was officially inducted into the Hall of Fame. On Saturday morning peo- ple gathered around the mural of Hodges for the unveiling of new additions in the both lower corners of the mural, acknowledging his induction into the Hall of Fame. Hodges died in 1972 after a stellar career as both a play- er and manager in the major leagues, including winning the World Series as a player and managing the 1969 Mir- acle Mets to a World Series title. Harris said after traveling to Cooperstown, New York for the Hall of Fame ceremony last week and meeting many of those in attendance who were Hodges fans, "I think I realize how much Gil's fans loved and admired him, not just because of his baseball feats, but because of his off- the-field character." He said former Mayor Jack Kinman was interested in pro- moting Hodges and they had the vacant lot. Russell Ma- honey, who owned the build- ing next to it, was an advocate for the project, but he wanted it to be independent from his building. So Jim and Cindy Gaskins, who own Sisson Steel, donat- ed the structure to mount the mural on and Jerr y Sullivan did the construction work. Craig said the local ar ts group recommended Randy Hedden, who is a Petersburg native, to design and paint the mural. They met with Hed- den. Hedden said he met with a group of donors and the Pe- tersburg City Council who were interested in seeing how much it would cost to do the mural. "When I told them $40,000 their heads just dropped," said Hedden. But after some more discus- sion, Wayne Malotte spoke up and said, "Get what donations you can get and I will pay the rest." They also came up with the idea to insert people's faces as members of the crowd for $100 to help fund it. Saturday, Hedden was back in Petersburg to unveil the new additions to the mural. Those who attended the unveiling were also invited to view the bust of Hodges, which is in the courthouse rotunda. It was completed in 1997 by artist Don Ingle, who had Pike County ties. Harris said Ingle's family owned the Ingle mine and Gil Hodges' father worked at the mines. Petersburg native Tracy Lauderdale drove to Peters- burg to see the unveiling. He also traveled to Cooperstown to see Hodges' induction cer- emony. "It was just a bucket list thing," said Lauderdale of the trip to Cooperstown. "It was really cool," said Lauderdale who is a high school baseball coach in Illinois. Lauderdale said he had al- ways wanted to go, and decid- ed it was now or never. So he made the 1,000-mile drive and "loved it." Dr. Suzanne Blake, Su- perintendent of Pike County Schools, also made the trip. She said her mother, Betty Gladish Stone was in the same class in school as Hodges in Petersburg. Also her son-in- law, Jon Craig, was making the trip with his family so it worked out well. Craig said in 2008 when they were doing the mural, they had to get permission from the New York Mets and Los Angeles Dodgers as well as Major League Baseball. His contact for the Dodgers at the time was Josh Rawitch, who is now President of the Hall of Fame. Craig said when he and Harris went to the Mets cele- bration of Hodges being elect- ed to the Hall of Fame, he ran into Rawitch. Rawitch talked with the Petersburg delegation about Hodges and how it was a pri- ority for the Dodgers to see Hodges got into the Hall of Fame, and how the communi- ty thought the mural had sup- ported Hodges. Craig said Rawitch gave them complimentar y tickets to the Hall of Fame ceremony for the complete Petersburg delegation. Each ticket had a face value of $375. Harris said a highlight was getting to meet Steve Gar vey, who along with being an All- Star for the Dodgers in the 1970s and 80s, was a bat boy for the Dodgers when Hodg- es played. "It think Gil was an inspiration for him to become the Dodgers first baseman," said Harris. "Regardless who you were there to cheer on, or if you were just a baseball fan, the atmosphere was fantastic," said Craig of the Hall of Fame ceremony. "Ever yone was there to have a good time. . . I don't know how many conversa- tions we had with people wearing Gil Hodges jerseys or Brooklyn hats. Ever yone wanted to talk about him. Craig said it was amazing to see the impact Hodges had on baseball and the number of fans he still has from across the countr y, despite his being gone for so long. SPORTS Submit sports items: Call: 812-354-8500 Email: sports@pressdispatch.net or bring in a hard copy: 820 E. Poplar Street, Petersburg The Press-Dispatch Wednesday, August 3, 2022 B-1 A replica of Gil Hodges' plaque in the Hall of Fame was added to the lower left corner of the Hodges mural in Petersburg. Randy Harris talks about the mural and histor y of the efforts to get Gil Hodges elected to the Hall of Fame. About 50 people gathered near the Gil Hodges mural in Petersburg on Saturday morning for a short ceremony. Plaques were added in the lower corners of the mural denoting Hodges being inducted into the Baseball Hall of Fame recently. I think I realize how much Gil's fans loved and admired him, not just because of his baseball feats, but because of his off-the-field character." -Randy Harris th 1972 - 2022 Celebrate with us! Saturday, August 6 5:30 – 9:30 p.m. • Shelterhouse 1 1045 E CR 400 N, Petersburg Music with Scott Mason and the Headliner Band Food Trucks Prizes Prides Creek www.UebelhorGM.com Jasper • 1-800-937-8721 CHEVROLET