Roy Hobbs Hall of Fame Class of 2015
Brian Mullen and Chuck Nave Receive First Ambassador of Baseball Award
By TOM GIFFEN and GLENN MILLER
Roy Hobbs Baseball
RHWS 27
The Roy Hobbs Hall of Fame will honor 10 members of the Class of 2015 at the annual induction banquet and ceremony during the 2015 Roy Hobbs World Series.
The Induction Ceremonies will be held Sunday, November 15 at Pincher’s Marina at Edison Ford in Downtown Fort Myers.
The Class of 2015 honors players, coaches, managers, administrators, and organizers whom the Trustees cited for outstanding contributions to the Game of Baseball, their teammates and baseball colleagues.
The 10 honorees bring the membership of the Roy Hobbs Hall of Fame to 41.
Additionally, the Trustees established the Brian Mullen Ambassador of Baseball award.
“We believe this Class embodies the principles upon which the Roy Hobbs Hall of Fame was created, and they exemplify the Hall of Fame Mission Statement,” the Trustees said in their August announcement. “The Class of 2015 continues to demonstrate the high standards set with the Classes of 2013 and 2014.”
“I am looking forward to the Induction Ceremonies where I can personally congratulate each of these individuals and thank them for their Baseball passion and their contributions to the game we know and love,” Roy Hobbs President Tom Giffen said.
The Class of 2015
Don Booth of Kent, Ohio
Denny Brown of Palo Alto, Calif.
Warren Clark of Ridgewood, N.J.
Dave Cooper of Belle River, Ontario
Gary Dover of Franklin, Tenn.
Clyde Jones of Fairfield, Calif.
Kevin Marden of Newton, Mass.
Randy Moselle of Rogers, Minn.
Mike Murphey of Spokane, Wash.
Marty Stanczyk of Westmont, Ill
Don Booth
Denny Brown
Warren Clark
Dave Cooper
Gary Dover
Clyde Jones
Kevin Marden
Randy Moselle
Mike Murphey
Marty Stanczyk
“We want to thank those who took the time to nominate the individuals considered,” he said. “The breadth of experiences, accomplishments and contributions to Baseball of the nominees is impressive. This Class embodies a love of the game, nurturing teams and teammates as well as excellence on the field.”
The Class of 2015 selection process started with a committee that took the nominations and interviewed the nominators and the listed references. Their reports were coupled with the nomination forms and forwarded to all members of the Hall of Fame and to the Board of Trustees, who reviewed more than 100 pages of data.
Then both the Hall of Famers and the members of the Board of Trustees evaluated the nominees and cast their ballots. For automatic induction, candidates must receive votes from at least 70% of existing Hall of Fame members or 70% of active members of the Trustees.
“We are very happy to have been able to include the current members of the Hall of Fame in the voting process, and their insight was very helpful,” Carl Rakich, Chair of the Trustees, said. “And we are very appreciative of the work done by the review committee. New information on the nominees gathered there was very helpful.”
The Roy Hobbs Hall of Fame, an offshoot of the Roy Hobbs Foundation (a 501c3 organization), was established by Roy Hobbs owner and President Tom Giffen in 2012. He solicited a core of volunteers to comprise the Trustees, whom he entrusted to create the Hall of Fame, its mission, its guidelines and oversee the selection of the first class of honorees. Each of the Trustees agreed to the project and agreed that no Trustees should be candidates for the Hall of Fame while serving.
The Trustees have crafted the following Mission Statement:
“The Roy Hobbs Baseball Hall of Fame is established to recognize and honor individuals who have made outstanding contributions to the game of baseball through their involvement with Roy Hobbs Baseball for at least 10 years, the Roy Hobbs World Series and their local leagues and teams. Individuals shall have made contributions as players, coaches, managers, umpires and administrators. Contributions should have been made on and off the field of play, all impacting the dugout; a prime consideration for induction is the individual’s contributions to the game, their teammates and baseball colleagues.”
The 2015 Trustees of the Roy Hobbs Hall of Fame are: Chairman Carl Rakich (Florida) and members Willie Boyd (Michigan), Joe Caligaris (Ohio), Tommy Faherty, HoF 2014 (New Jersey), Jerry Harris (Alabama), Joe Maiden, HoF 2014 (California), Tim McGoldrick, HoF 2013 (Ohio), Glenn Miller (Florida), Tom Scull, HoF 2014 (Florida) and Rob Giffen & Tom Giffen of Roy Hobbs.
(Complete biographies will be included in the Roy Hobbs Hall of Fame Induction program and on the Roy Hobbs website after the World Series.)
Here is a brief look at the Class of 2015, as compiled by Glenn Miller:
Don Booth, 74, of Kent, Ohio – Don is a founding member of the Kent MudHens 38s, which now has 4 teams in 4 age groups. He also organizes Challenger Baseball games and for 15 years has been chairman of the Governing Board of Northeast Ohio Roy Hobbs Baseball.
Denny Brown, 69, of Palo Alto, Calif. – Denny, who has played in more than 20 Roy Hobbs World Series, administers the Antiques baseball organization, which has more than 100 players, in the NorCal Oldtimers League. He organizes trips, outings and tournament travel in several age brackets and helps run local leagues.
Warren Clark, 63, of Ridgewood, N.J. – Warren ran track at Villanova but as an adult picked up playing, managing, coaching and sponsoring in Roy Hobbs Baseball. He has been a speedy and outstanding player but also a generous man who helps finance trips to the Roy Hobbs World Series for players who need help.
Dave Cooper, 58, of Belle River, Ontario – Dave has played, coached and managed Canadian teams at just about all age levels. He’s currently the baseball coach at Saint Clair College, has been a pivotal figure in the growth of Roy Hobbs in Ontario and has, according to one player, been a “mover and shaker” in getting Canadian teams to the Roy Hobbs World Series.
Gary Dover, 58, of Franklin, Tenn. – Gary has played on 3 Roy Hobbs World Series championship teams in 3 age divisions and 4 times has been named team MVP at the World Series. Gary also has been a key figure in organizing amateur baseball in middle Tennessee, lending his financial and organizational know-how to keep leagues functioning.
Clyde Jones Sr., 68, of Fairfield, Calif. – Clyde, a standout youth and later collegiate player at Central Missouri State, started playing adult baseball at 38 and founded 2 teams in the 1990s. Clyde started playing in the Roy Hobbs World Series in 1993, has managed teams, served as a league president and helped get the NorCal Oldtimers League into Roy Hobbs.
Kevin Marden, 69, of Newton, Mass. – Kevin has played on 8 New England Red Sox teams that have won the Roy Hobbs World Series and been a 3-time World Series MVP. He’s managed former big-leaguers on that team and has also managed the highly successful women’s New England Red Sox for 9 years.
Randy Moselle, 61, of Rogers, Minn. – Randy started playing Roy Hobbs when he was 41 and twice has been listed on the Roy Hobbs Champions Honor Roll. He also recruits players, organizes leagues, manages and inspires teammates with his spirit and talent and holds a Minnesota record for playing in its state tournament for 28 consecutive years.
Mike Murphey, 64, of Spokane, Wash. – Mike returned to baseball in 1993, after spending more than 20 years organizing fastpitch teams and leagues in New Mexico and the Northwest. He organized a baseball league in Eastern Washington in 1996 and has been active in Spokane baseball leagues since. Mike convinced Roy Hobbs to add the Locker Room option to its World Series in 2008 and has run it for RH since. He also operates the Oakland A’s & Seattle Mariners Fantasy Camps.
Marty Stanczyk, 60, of Westmont, Ill. – Marty has played, coached, managed and promoted Roy Hobbs teams not only around Chicago but, indeed, all over the country in various age groups since 1991. He brought the first Chicago team to the Roy Hobbs World Series, and, if not for his efforts, many Chicago area players would not be playing baseball.
Note: Roy Hobbs President Tom Giffen was also elected to the Class of 2015; however, by his choice, his induction will be with the Class of 2016.
