Only One Honor Consumed Trammell More Than The Hall Of Fame
By: Will Burchfield
@burchie_kid
Hall of Famer, Alan Trammell.
"I'm trying to get the feel of that. It's got a great ring to it, but when I put my name to it I'm just shaking my head because it hasn't set in yet," Trammell told the Jamie and Stoney Show on 97.1 The Ticket. "I don't know how it can."
Trammell was elected to the baseball Hall of Fame on Sunday, along with former teammate Jack Morris. The two longtime Tigers had recently lost eligibility on the Baseball Writers' Association of America ballot, but were voted in on the Modern Baseball ballot, comprised of 10 candidates whose biggest contributions to the game came from 1970-87.
Trammell, now a special assistant for the Tigers, received the good news shortly after he landed in Orlando on Sunday night for the Winter Meetings.
"We were deplaning when I received (the phone call), so I really couldn't show the emotion that I probably would have liked to because everyone was trying to get off the plane," Trammell said with a laugh. "But nevertheless, what a moment, and just so happy to go in with Jack."
Both Trammell and Morris broke into the majors in Detroit in 1977 and went on to play 13 seasons together for the Tigers, winning the World Series in 1984. Trammell hit .450 with two homers and six RBI in the deciding series and was named World Series MVP. Morris won both his starts, going the distance in each one.
They'll be enshrined in Cooperstown on July 29.
'I have not seen Jack yet, but you can be that it's going to be a big huge when we see each other here shortly," Trammell said.
There are now three members of the 1984 Tigers in the Hall of Fame, including manager Sparky Anderson.
"It was long overdue," said Trammell. "I always felt that Jack was the guy that should be elected first, to be honest with you. Lo and behold they get two of us, so we're going to have a Tiger flavor come Hall of Fame induction day."
"I sense that Tigers fans, they wanted it," Trammell added. "I'm so happy for them because fans are attached to players during their era, and I was obviously one of those guys along with Jack and others. It feels good to be able to give something back. ... That'll be part of my induction speech, I guarantee you that."
Trammell was a six-time All-Star, four-time Gold Glover and three-time Silver Slugger over a 20-year career, all of which was spent with the Tigers. He compiled a lifetime WAR of 70, a statistic that helped distinguish him on the Modern Baseball ballot.
"I'm smiling, kind of chuckling because I think it did. When we played, those statistics didn't exist. We were just playing the game. ... Now those statistics that I wasn't even really aware of, came back to help," Trammell said.
The Tigers announced on Sunday that they'll retire the numbers of Trammell and Morris next season during a ceremony in August. As much as Trammell found himself thinking about the Hall of Fame in recent years, he said he pondered his No. 3 being retired even more.
"I have to be honest, probably even more so than the Hall of Fame, I thought about that more than anything. Just the fact that it would be very special and very cool. When I got talking with Chris (Ilitch) last night, he called and he mentioned that and it just took me back -- like, wow, that'll really be another special day," Trammell said.
His only regret, for the time being, is that Lou Whitaker won't be entering the Hall of Fame with him. Whitaker played alongside Trammell for 19 of his 20 seasons with the Tigers and the second baseman actually leads Trammell in the WAR department.
"I feel for him," Trammell said. "There's no question, that was my dream and I'm entitled to my own opinion. ... Unfortunately that dream is put on hold. I'm going in with one of my teammates, which is pretty cool in itself, and maybe Lou can come in in a few years. But my dream is still valid. I'm hoping that still happens at some point in our lives."
For years, Trammell said, fans have been asking him to sign baseballs with the 'Hall of Fame' designation after his name. They knew he'd be elected eventually, but Trammell wouldn't oblige. He didn't want to disrespect the game.
Since Sunday's news, he's fulfilled one such request.
"You know who it was to? Mr. Tiger himself, Al Kaline. That's the only one," Trammell said. "Now that its happened, I was honored."
