Derek Jeter's Hall of Fame induction ceremony on Sept. 8 to have standard, unticketed seating
Derek Jeter speaks to the media during the 2020 Hall of Fame Press Conference at St. Regis Hotel on Jan. 22, 2020 in New York. Credit: MLB Photos via Getty Images/Mary DeCicco
Derek Jeter fans will get to see the former Yankees captain inducted in person into the Baseball Hall of Fame after all, and there are no ticket restrictions anymore.
The Hall of Fame on June 9 announced a new date for the Cooperstown induction ceremony — Wednesday, Sept. 8 — with limited tickets available for lawn seating. Then, on Monday, June 21, the Hall announced it will return to its standard unticketed seating format for the ceremony on the grounds of the Clark Sports Center.
The Hall of Fame said the change in its seating plans came about after Gov. Andrew Cuomo lifted significant COVID-19 restrictions across the state last week.
Jeter was part of the Hall’s Class of 2020 along with Larry Walker, Ted Simmons and the late union chief Marvin Miller. The 2020 induction ceremony was canceled because of the pandemic and was initially rescheduled as a no-fan, indoor ceremony for July 25. No one was elected in balloting for the class of 2021.
With events opening up in New York and around the country as COVID-19 recedes, the Hall decided to move the ceremony again.
"We are thrilled to be able to welcome our Hall of Famers — the living legends — and fans back to Cooperstown to celebrate the induction of the Class of 2020," Hall chairman Jane Forbes Clark said in a statement. "Returning the induction ceremony to an outdoor event will provide the baseball community with the opportunity to visit Cooperstown and celebrate the Induction of four of the game’s greats."
Five of the last six induction ceremonies in Cooperstown have each draw more than 50,000 fans, with the second-largest crowd on record of 55,000-plus coming in 2019 for Mariano Rivera. Those events, however, took place on a Sunday in July as opposed to a Wednesday in September.
The Hall also announced that its annual awards presentation will remain on July 24 as an indoor, television-only event. The awards presentation will honor Al Michaels, the 2021 Ford C. Frick Award winner for broadcasting excellence; 2020 Frick winner Ken Harrelson; 2021 Baseball Writers’ Association of America career excellence award winner Dick Kaegel; 2020 BBWAA career excellence award winner Nick Cafardo; and 2020 Buck O’Neil lifetime achievement award winner David Montgomery.
Anthony Rieber covers baseball, as well as the NFL, NBA and NHL. He has worked at Newsday since Aug. 31, 1998, and has been in his current position since July 5, 2004.
