NewsPlenty to see at Royals' new Hall of Fame
Ribbon-cutting ceremony to take place before Friday's game
By Rustin Dodd / MLB.com
07/16/09 9:12 PM ET
KANSAS CITY -- Frank White started to smile -- just a little bit at first.The former Royals second baseman stood in the Royals' new Hall of Fame on Thursday evening and peered through a glass exhibit that contained his eight Gold Glove trophies.
White moved to his right and paused. He stopped and gazed at a photo of himself from 1980. He stared intently for a second and then moved on to the next exhibit.
The Royals' new Hall of Fame will open to the public on Friday and fans will be able to walk the same path that White did on Thursday. The grand opening begins with a ribbon-cutting dedication ceremony at 4 p.m. CT before the game against the Rays. Royals president Dan Glass will speak, as will Hall of Fame third baseman George Brett, White and Royals Hall of Fame announcer Denny Matthews.
Brett will also make an appearance in the Royals' Hall of Fame Classic, a pregame exhibition starting at 5 p.m. that will feature former Royals greats against a team of former MLB stars.
At the center of all the festivities will be the 7,000 square feet of exhibit space that sits just beyond the left-field wall -- the final component of the Royals' Kauffman Stadium renovation project.
There's plenty to see, of course.
There's a video that covers the history of baseball in Kansas City shown on a 36-foot long screen in the "Dugout Theater".
There are rare pieces of memorabilia -- check out White's original scouting report from his first tryout with the Royals -- and there are interactive exhibits throughout the Hall of Fame.
"To be able to finally be able to share it with people, it's fantastic," said Curt Nelson, the director of the Hall of Fame.
There are plenty of stories in this place, too.
It starts in the lobby with a wall dedicated to the history of baseball in Kansas City.
You can find monuments for all the usual suspects. A statue of Buck O'Neil sits in the Dugout Theater, and there's ample room given to Brett and White in, what Nelson calls, the "Crowning Moments" room. You can see items from Brett's 3,000th hit and highlights from all of the Royals' postseason runs.
The 1985 World Series trophy sits in a glass case in the middle and there are portraits of the 23 Royals Hall of Fame inductees at the end of the room.
There are other stories here too. Former pitcher Steve Busby's glove sits in an exhibit dedicated to the franchise's no-hitters. And Brett's bat from the infamous pine tar incident highlight an exhibit that includes a letter from former President Richard Nixon to Brett.
Apparently, Nixon thought Brett got a "lousy" deal.
"Different fans will gravitate to different things," Nelson said. "The older fans will enjoy a lot of things about George Brett and Frank White and the championship teams, but there are also some things that are sort of eternal -- like the pine tar bar is here. Almost everybody knows that story."
Rustin Dodd is an associate reporter for MLB.com. This story was not subject to the approval of Major League Baseball or its clubs.
