Famed relief pitcher Rich "Goose" Gossage and long-time manager Dick Williams were enshrined into the Baseball Hall of Fame here Sunday along with four posthumous inductees.
Gossage was voted into the honor shrine by a media ballot, finally receiving the necessary 75 percent of the vote in his ninth year on the ballot. Williams, who last managed in 1988, was chosen by the veterans committee.
Also enshrined were former Major League Baseball commissioner Bowie Kuhn, past Los Angeles Dodgers owner Walter O'Malley, former Pittsburgh Pirates owner Barney Dreyfuss and former St. Louis and Atlanta manager Billy Southworth.
In 22 major league seasons, Gossage went 124-107 with 310 saves and a 3.01 career earned-run average. He had 25 or more saves in four different seasons, hurling more than 100 innings in each.
"I think I had a lot to do with setting the bar for relievers and doing the job the way it should be done," Gossage said.
"Nobody did it the way I did it. Nothing beats pure power."
Gossage, 57, won a World Series with the New York Yankees in 1978 and had great success under Williams while both were with San Diego, going 10-6 in 1984 with 25 saves and 84 strikeouts in 62 games.
Gossage, a right-hander, became only the fifth relief pitcher to reach the Hall of Fame. He routinely entered in the seventh or eighth inning rather than being held back for the ninth and last inning as most closers are now slotted.
Of Gossage's 310 saves, 52 of them came when he retired seven or more batters.
Williams guided the first team he ever managed, the 1967 Boston Red Sox, into the World Series, where they lost to St. Louis in seven games.
Williams guided the Oakland A's to World Series titles in 1972 and 1973. In 21 seasons with six teams, Williams took four teams to the World Series but will be enshrined in the Hall wearing an Oakland cap.
"This is the pinnacle," Williams said. "This is the ultimate goal. The Hall of Fame has the right to choose the hat. They asked me my opinion and I said the Oakland A's and they said that's what they were thinking."
Copyright 2008  AFP American Edition
