The Sask. Baseball Hall of Fame will honour both its 2020 and 2021 induction classes next year, in separate celebrations, as a result of the ongoing pandemic this year. (Martin Martinson/battlefordsNOW Staff)

By Martin Martinson

Annual Induction Ceremony

Sask. Baseball HOF Induction Ceremony postponed to 2021

Aug 24, 2020 | 1:11 PM

There will be a double-header of baseball greatness celebrated next year, as the Sask. Baseball Hall of Fame has announced its annual induction ceremony for the class of 2020 has been postponed to May 22, 2021.

The postponement will not conflict with the 2021 enshrinement festivities, which will take place Aug. 21 of next year.

The ceremony honouring the class of 2020, which will celebrate 12 individuals, one team and one community, was originally scheduled to take place earlier this month.

However, it was bumped back to October 3 previously, before it was announced this week it would not be an option to host the event this year, in the midst of the COVID-19 pandemic.

CEO and President, Jane Shury told battlefordsNOW, the decision to postpone was difficult, but ultimately necessary due to circumstances beyond their control.

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“It is a decision that was made for us because of COVID,” she said. “Last year we had 500 people and that’s just not the best thing or possible at this time. Even if we got 400 it doesn’t matter, it’s still a big group, so that’s why the decision was made. It was just not the right thing to do at this time.”

As reported when the initial postponement took place, Shury said the idea of hosting a ‘virtual celebration,’ was never a very serious consideration.

She said it would be a disservice to those inducted to not allow them an in-person celebration alongside family, friends and fellow inductees. Not only that, but the COVID-19 shutdown has also resulted in a complete dearth of fundraising opportunities which the Hall of Fame rely on for funding, as they do not receive financial aid from the government.

“I feel badly about [the postponement], but our hands are tied,” Shury said. “[Nevertheless,] Next year is going to be an extremely busy and exciting year because we’ll have the 2020 induction in late May and then in late August we will have the 2021 induction. It will certainly be an exciting year for all the individuals who are going to be inducted.”

The Sask. Baseball Hall of Fame is currently taking nominations for the class of 2021. The deadline for nominations is March 15, 2021.

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Martin.Martinson@jpbg.ca

On Twitter: MartyMartyPxP1