MINNIE, MINNIE, MINNIE

Elected to Hall of Fame today along with Jim Katt, Tony Oliva and Gil Hodges. Minnie Minoso garnered 14 of 16 votes, most on any inductee and 2 more than the minimum of 12 to get his posthumous HOF ticket punched. Minnie can't get the '51 Rookie Award he was denied almost certainly became of his skin color, but he's up there with all the other greats as he most certainly deserves. My wish from last week's post has come to pass.

To Chicago White Sox fans Minnie Minoso is legendary, being one of baseball’s best during the 13 year period from ’51 thru ’63, mostly with the Pale Hose. A pioneer Black Latino player, whom Jose Conseco dubbed ‘Our Jackie Robinson’, he was overlooked during his initial eligibility to enter the Hall of Fame. But Minnie gets another bite at the Hall apple when the Golden Days Era Committee considers Minoso and 9 other greats from the 1950 thru 1969 era. Minnie must garner at least 12 of the 16 votes for a posthumous ticket to Cooperstown.

If he gets it, then just the following injustice, from his fabulous ’51 rookie year, will remain uncorrected.

When Minoso lost '51 Rookie Award to one shade of black

When 28-year-old rookie White Sox outfielder Minnie Minoso stepped to the plate in old Comisky Park for his first at bat on May 1, 1951, fans were seeing more than the man breaking the color bar on the formerly all-white White Sox. Minnie smacked a Vic Raschi fastball into the center field bullpen, ushering in the Go Go era on the South Side after 32 years in the American League wilderness, following ironically, the Black Sox scandal of 1919. Watching Minoso's debut ball disappear in the bullpen was 22-year-old rookie Gil McDougald, playing second for the still all white Yanks.

Six months later McDougald edged out the Cuban Comet as AL Rookie of the Year with 13 first place votes to Minnie's 11. McDougald had a pretty good year, batting .306 with 41 extra base hits, 63 RBI, 14 stolen bases and a .396 on base percentage. And Minoso? He had a monster rookie year with a .326 average, 58 extra base hits, 76 RBI, 31 stolen bases and a .422 on base percentage. There's more: Minnie combined those power numbers with 16 more walks and 12 fewer strike outs. More again: McDougald was just a cog on a Yankee team with more stars than MGM, while Minnie was the catalyst for the Sox improbable revival.

There's no do-over for sports awards and if Minnie were still alive today, he'd demur if questioned on one of the great thefts in all of sports. And McDougald? If alive today, and you asked him about the current debate over white privilege, he'd likely point to that 70-year-old Rookie of the Year Award gathering dust on his mantle and reply simply, "That's white privilege".