Sunday’s Hall of Fame Induction Ceremony Will Cap Baseball’s Best Weekend

(COOPERSTOWN, N.Y.) – Jim Leyland’s Saturday in Cooperstown got off to the best start possible.

“I hit the first one down the middle,” Leyland said of his opening tee shot at the annual Hall of Fame Golf Tournament. “I hope that’s a good sign.”

For Leyland and the rest of the Class of 2024, it was the best of times on the eve of the best day of their professional lives.

Adrian Beltré, Todd Helton and Joe Mauer joined Leyland on the links at Cooperstown’s Leatherstocking Golf Course along with nearly two dozen other Hall of Famers. More than 50 Hall of Famers, including the Class of 2024, are expected to be on stage for Sunday’s Induction Ceremony, which will take place at 1:30 p.m. ET on the grounds of the Clark Sports Center.

The Ceremony, which is expected to last about two-and-a-half hours, will be broadcast exclusively on MLB Network and livestreamed at MLB.com.

“It’s absolutely fantastic,” Leyland said. “Seeing all the Hall of Famers, to have all your family with you – it’s hard to explain how special this is.”

Following the golf tournament, Hall of Famers attended the Awards Presentation at Cooperstown’s Alice Busch Opera Theater. Red Sox voice Joe Castiglione was presented with the Ford C. Frick Awards for broadcasters and the late Gerry Fraley was honored with the Baseball Writers’ Association of America Career Excellence Award.

“The difficult thing is I’m used to reporting on other people, not talking about myself,” said Castiglione in reference to his Awards Presentation speech. “I’ve got to switch gears a little bit. You look out (at the Opera Theater) and see one thousand seats. I’m not used to seeing my audience – I don’t get feedback right away on radio. Now, it’s finally here.”

Highlights of the speeches from the Awards Presentation will be included in MLB Network’s pre-Induction Ceremony coverage starting at 11 a.m. ET on Sunday.

Some of Saturday’s additional highlights included:

**The annual Hall of Fame Weekend Golf Tournament at the Leatherstocking Golf Course was won by the team led by Hall of Famers George Brett and John Schuerholz, a foursome that also included Jackson Brett and Jonathan Schuerholz. John Smoltz had the low gross score with a 74.

**Fans jammed Main Street to get a glimpse of their Hall of Fame heroes at the 14th Parade of Legends, some lining up for spots along the parade route as early as Wednesday morning.

**More than 5,000 fans visited the National Baseball Hall of Fame and Museum on Saturday, the largest attendance day of the year to date.

The Museum is open Sunday from 9 a.m. to 9 p.m., with participants in the Hall of Fame’s Membership Program able to enter the Museum at 8 a.m. For more information on Membership, please visit baseballhall.org/join.

Follow all the action during Hall of Fame Weekend with the #HOFWKND hashtag on Facebook, Instagram, X and TikTok.