Due to the Coronavirus Pandemic, the 2020 National Baseball Hall of Fame induction was postponed. Therefore, the Class of 2020 had to wait until today to be formally inducted. That created the possibility for an interesting footnote for the Class of 2020/2021.

A member of the Class of 2020 is the latest and one of the highest profile shortstops (at least in recent memory) to join this elite club. Of course, that is former New York Yankee shortstop and current part owner of the Miami Marlins, Derek Jeter. What made it interesting was that Dr. Daniel Lucius ‘Doc’ Adams, M.D. was eligible for the 2021 Early Baseball Era ballot. Were he to be named a finalist on the ballot and receive the required number of votes for election, Derek Jeter would be being inducted alongside the man credited for creating the shortstop position!

That thought brought back memory of a 2015 New York Times article, “Late Rally for Doc Adams, a Jeter Before There Were Mitts” by Corey Kilgannon.

What makes this so special is the following Marjorie Adams quote:

While admitting that the timing is impossible, she imagines receiving Adams’s Hall of Fame plaque alongside Jeter, during his induction (his first year of eligibility is 2020).

“That way, I can stand next to him,” she said, “and you’ll have the greatest Yankees’ shortstop next to the great-granddaughter of the man who created the position.”

“Late Rally For Doc Adams, A Jeter Before There Were Mitts”, New York Times (Sept. 22, 2015)

But alas, the National Baseball Hall of Fame postponed the 2021 Early Baseball Era ballot until the 2022 with the vote occurring at this December’s MLB Winter Meetings. So, the stars nearly aligned…

Sadly, with Marjorie’s passing earlier this year, the meeting of the “greatest Yankee shortstop” and great-grandaughter of the man who created the position will never take place.

In any event, congratulations to Derek Jeter on being officially inducted into the Hall of Fame today and we look forward to celebrating when Doc hopefully joins him next year.

See our recent press release regarding Derek Jeter and Doc Adams.

In memory of Marjorie Adams, if you haven’t already, pease sign our petition today (and tell your friends and family).

Note: This post was originally written prior to the 2021 Early Baseball Era Committee was delayed until 2022. Due to the delay, the post was rescheduled and some revisions required.