Although A.G. Spalding had ulterior motives, as we all now know, he did recognize the Knickerbockers, including Doc Adams.

“Are not some of these gentlemen still living? Or perhaps some of their heirs might throw some light on the early history especially the origin of baseball.” .

Salt Lake Tribune (April 2, 1905)

Sadly, Daniel Lucius Adams, M.D. had died a little over 5 years earlier.

Some people, however, did hear the call, and we know how that turned out.

For Doc, this was the first of several miss-timed opportunities.

• 2014: Doc Adams selected SABR’s 19th Century Overlooked Baseball Legend, a year after he did not make the 2013 Pre-Integration Era ballot.
• 2016: Laws of Base Ball” re-discovered a mere couple of months after he appeared on the Pre-integration ballot, missing election by 2 votes.
• 2016: Hall of Fame re-constitutes Era Committees, delaying Doc’s next opportunity to appear on a ballot from 2019 to 2021.
• 2020: Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the Early Baseball Era ballot delayed for a year.
• 2021: Early Baseball Era Historical Overview Committee “re-focused” and Doc Adams omitted from ballot. John Thorn ends up on Early Baseball Era Committee.