Museum preserves historic Hickok Belt
But he did shed tears. Plenty of them, in fact, as the shortstop who was once told he was too short to play Major League Baseball stood taller than anyone in the world of sports.
When the stunned Rizzuto appeared at the dais that wintry night to accept the 1950 Hickok Belt Award as America’s top professional athlete, he couldn’t help but reflect on that time as an 18-year-old when he tried out for the Brooklyn Dodgers and was told he’d be better off shining shoes.
Best-selling author Scott Pitoniak has published 22 books, including “Jewel of the Sports World: The Story of the Hickok Belt Award.” The nationally recognized sports columnist lives in Penfield, N.Y.
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