San Francisco Chronicle - (Sunday)
Melvin, coaches, players remember Hall inductees
DENVER — Sunday is Hall of Fame induction day, and there’s an impressive class heading in — and one with some A’s ties.
A’s quality-control coach Mark Kotsay will be in Cooperstown, N.Y., as part of Trevor Hoffman’s group; Kotsay was the closer’s teammate in San Diego, and the two have remained close.
“One of the best teammates I ever played with,” Kotsay said. “Selfless, always put the team first even though he was in somewhat of an individual role. I’m honored to be there in his section.”
Kotsay also played with Jim Thome (“a first-class individual, a sweetheart”) and Chipper Jones (“born to be a Hall of Famer”), and he played against Vladimir Guerrero his entire career. “I tried to outdo him every year in throwing people out, because that’s the only category I could keep up with him in,” Kotsay said. “A special player, a five-tool player.”
Kotsay also was coached by Alan Trammell, and A’s manager Bob Melvin played with Trammell and fellow inductee Jack Morris during Melvin’s first year in the majors, in 1985.
“It makes you reflect,” Melvin said. “I came up in the Tigers’ system, so those are two guys I watched very closely. Alan Trammell was a pro’s pro. … And Jack Morris was one of the fiercest competitors you’ve ever seen.”
Oakland third-base coach Matt Williams played with Thome in Cleveland in 1997, and, Williams said, “Arguably the best teammate I’ve ever had. His baseball ability is great, but the person is even better. He’s a Hall of Fame person, too.”
The A’s have a number of players from Georgia and South Carolina; first baseman Matt Olson and relievers J.B. Wendelken both played third base in youth ball, so they were big fans of Jones, but the biggest Chipper fan in Oakland’s clubhouse is reliever Emilio Pagan.
“I wore 10 all the way through Little League because of him,” Pagan said. “I wore my pants up. I always wanted to be a switch-hitting third baseman. Obviously, that wasn’t in the cards. I read his book last summer, a lot of cool stories. I’m happy for him, what a great career.”
Induction day is particularly meaningful for the team’s Cooperstown Kid — bullpen catcher Phil Pohl grew up in the small town in upstate New York.
“We used to work it all the time in high school, it was a big fundraiser for us for our senior trip,” Pohl said. “I remember the (Tony) Gwynn/(Cal) Ripken induction, it was one of the bigger ones and I had a big tray with 20 Cokes and it was so hot, I did really well. It always brings back a lot of memories.”