by darbarian2
First of all the hall of fame induction ceremony was one of the most inspiring things I have ever been a part of. With the help of the Delco Times I had full press credentials and was allowed to sit with the families of the players. I spoke with quite a few people who are aware of what t we are doing here in Darby and want to be part of Octrolleyfest.
Our two hometown heroes Biz Mackey and Louis Santop went into the hall as Hilldales. Santop's plaque called the team "The Hilldale Daisies" but Mackey's says Hilldale of Philadelphia with no mention of his Japanese baseball connection.
This is another slight to all of us from the area and all who played under the Hilldale banner. Hilldale was a Darby club who played in Yeadon.
I am going to petition this to have the plaque changed, and am going to need all of your help.
Please send an email to info@baseballhalloffame.com
and remember to cc me at darbyhilldale@yahoo.com. I want to show the Hall that the Darby/Yeadon is serious about getting this corrected.
Per an article by Joe Santoliquito of The Daily Times
"What the thumbnail bio erroneously states on Mackey’s Hall of Fame plaque was that he played in Philadelphia, for the Hilldales during their 1925 World Series championship. Santop is the victim of some confusion as well, stating in the event program as gaining fame clubbing prodigious home runs for the Brooklyn Royal Giants before signing with the great Hilldale Club of Philadelphia."One person whocouldn’t miss the errors was John Bossong, who spearheaded a movement that got an historical marker acknowledging the Hilldales achievements, which will be dedicated Oct. 14 in Yeadon, near the Darby-Yeadon border where the team once played, at Hilldale Park."It’s typical that Darby is being slighted, only this time is that it’s being slighted on a national scale and that historians should have paid more attention to the facts," said Bossong, who took the trip to Cooperstown for the ceremony. "I am glad that they weren’t referred to as the Hilldale Giants. It was a perfect day, to be able to see these guys get in and be recognized for their accomplishments. "It’s just a shame that none of them are alive, and baseball had to wait until all of the 17 inductees were dead. It did bother me that the facts were distorted. I’m not the be-all and end-all of the Darby Hilldales. But the name Hilldales is actually a neighborhood in Darby that the team was named after."It just perpetuates an argument that Bossong has long sought to rectify. He just didn’t think he would have to take a four-hour drive on a sweltering, muggy day to continue the same battle."Exactly, trying to get them recognized as something that’s not a Philadelphia team, but a team that played in Darby, Delaware County," Bossong said.When anyone from Delaware County visits the Hall of Fame in the future, it’s important what they notice on Mackey and Santop’s bronze plaques: The ‘H’ for Hilldale is prominently displayed on their caps. So though some skewed versions of who exactly Mackey and Santop played for may persist, they enter the Hall of Fame as Darby Hilldales.It’s something Bossong can take some solace in."I got a little choked up when I heard their names announced," Bossong said. "They were finally remembered and that’s all I really wanted."
by darbarian2
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