Businesses in the village of Cooperstown are getting ready for their biggest weekend of the year, now that the National Baseball Hall of Fame Class has been named.
Joe Mauer and Adrian Beltré were first-ballot selections, while Todd Helton was in his sixth year of eligibility. Inductions are July 21st.
Shaye Bartnick is manager of Mickey’s Place, a memorabilia and apparel store on Main Street, steps from the Hall of Fame. He says this class is a good one.
“Beltré, I mean, he got in pretty close to unanimously, a pretty high percentage. Helton, you can tell from the last few years it was like Helton was trending towards getting into the Hall of Fame and Mauer was. Even with a short kind of stint on top, he was still definitely a Hall of Fame quality player,” Bartnick said.
He says the store will be stocking more Helton, Mauer, and Beltré gear. Beltré played for the Dodgers, Mariners, Red Sox, and Rangers over 21 years, while Helton spent all 17 years of his career with the Rockies. Mauer was a Twin for all of his 15 years.
As for the coolest thing in stock right now?
“We do have a Babe Ruth autograph that is very, very faded. Had it confirmed that it was him but you can't really see it. We have to have it looked at in a certain light or under a certain light.
Bartnick says fanbases do travel for the ceremony, but it depends on the caliber of player.
“If they engrained themselves in the fan bases, they definitely do. Scott Rolen, you could definitely see there were some Cardinals and Phillies fans that were in town. McGriff played for a lot of teams over his career so there wasn't necessarily one bigger fan base in town for him,” Bartnick said.
Brian Piterno of Seventh Inning Stretch, another memorabilia shop in town, says in his experience, local fans travel well.
“If a Philly, a Met, a Red Sock, a Yankee, a Blue Jay- anybody that's local, basically within five hours. It just brings a lot more people than if someone from San Diego gets in,” Piterno said.
He notes Cubs and Cardinals fans will travel anywhere.
Cassandra Harrington, President and CEO of Destination Marketing, which serves as tourism director for Otsego County, agrees.
“We tend not to see as many people coming in when they have to travel so far to get here as opposed to if we were to have inductees from East Coast teams,” Harrington said.
She says it’s a complicated endeavor to prepare for Induction Weekend.
“We have to set up satellite parking lots and Homeland Security comes in because a town of 1,800 isn't quite prepared for 75,000 on a whim, we have to make sure that we have places to put all their cars and to feed them and lodging facilities,” Harrington said.
Piterno says last year, when attendance was capped, business was slow.
“The more guys you get coming up here, obviously, the more fan bases you have coming up here. So it should be it should be decent. I'm not expecting it to be crazy, but decent,” Piterno said.
Even an average year leads to a significant economic impact, according to Harrington.
“In July last year, induction weekend, the average daily visitor spend was $100. So if we add 50,000 people come in, that's a significant impact on a small town like ours,” Harrington said.
A popular stop in the village is Stagecoach Coffee. Owner Chris Grady is thrilled with this year’s class.
“I think Joe Mauer is a great guy and a heck of a ballplayer. Played for Minnesota his whole career. Going to bring the Minnesota fans out for sure. And Adrian Beltré is a top-notch player with multiple teams. Definitely a big-time slugger. And I think it's going to be great for Cooperstown. Absolutely,” Grady said.
But like many outdoor events in Cooperstown, business depends on the weather.
“If it's cold and rainy, you're going to sell a lot of hot coffee. If it's 95 and sunny, it's going to be a cold brew type of crowd,” Grady said.
He says it makes for a vibrant melting pot.
“It's nice to see the crowds coming in recently. “You know, this year, Adrian Beltré is Dominican. Those fans walk up and down the street, beating drums dancing, singing, it's such an enthusiastic crowd. And I enjoy it for chatting with the fans of other teams and getting to know their cultures,” Grady said.
Visitors also need a place to stay. Cooperstown is filled with homes that have been converted into small hotels and bed and breakfasts. William Paulsgrove is owner of the Cooperstown Bed and Breakfast. He says the village’s residents don’t seem enthused.
“But then again, it's winter, you know? and everybody's staying inside, so there might be a buzz and I don't know about it,” Paulsgrove said.
Keith Gulla is co-owner of the Landmark Inn. He says the inn is always full.
“We're a very small, independent business, we only have 11 rooms. We're located very centrally to where the induction takes place, as well as Main Street in Cooperstown. So we only have 11 rooms, a lot of those rooms are already allocated to guests that have been going yearly to the induction no matter what teams being inducted, or players being inducted,” Gulla said.
And after 2021 had no new Hall of Famers:
“We’re happy for anyone getting inducted,” Gulla said.
The Hall of Fame says an estimated 10,000 people attended last year’s ceremony, when attendance was capped, compared to 35,000 in 2022 and 20,000 the year before. There was no ceremony in 2020 due to the pandemic, but in 2019 an estimated 55,000 people attended, and approximately 53,000 were there in 2018.
