Mussina won’t represent either Yankees, Orioles in Hall of Fame

When the plaques of the Class of 2019 are hung in the National Baseball Hall of Fame and Museum in July, there will be two new members whose bronze images do not have a team logo on their caps.

On Wednesday, the widow of Roy Halladay said her family requested his plaque not represent him as either a member of the Philadelphia Phillies or Toronto Blue Jays because he loved both cities and their fan bases.

And on Friday, the Hall of Fame announced that pitcher Mike Mussina’s likeness also won’t have a team on the cap. Mussina spent 10 seasons with the Baltimore Orioles (1991-2000) and eight with the New York Yankees (2001-08).

“Both the Yankees and the Orioles were instrumental in my reaching Cooperstown,” Mussina said in a statement. “I am proud to have played for these great organizations, in front of the tremendous fans in Baltimore and New York, and I am honored to have the opportunity to represent them both in the Hall of Fame.”

The other Hall of Fame plaques won’t contain any surprises.

Mariano Rivera’s plaque will have the logo of the Yankees. Edgar Martinez will represent the Seattle Mariners. Both Rivera and Martinez spent their careers with just one team.

Harold Baines will enter the Hall of Fame as a member of the Chicago White Sox and Lee Smith as a member of the crosstown Cubs. Both played for multiple franchises during their long careers but had their greatest longevity in Chicago.

Halladay, Martinez, Mussina and Rivera were voted into the Hall of Fame by the Baseball Writers’ Association of America this month. Baines and Smith were elected by the Today’s Game Era Committee in December.

All six will be enshrined in the Hall of Fame in Cooperstown, N.Y., on July 21.

–Field Level Media