The Albuquerque Professional Base-ball Hall of Fame, which was created in conjunction with last year’s Triple-A All-Star Fiesta, will welcome seven new members as chosen by a special Albuquerque Professional Baseball Hall of Fame selection committee. 

The new class includes former Dukes manager Del Crandall, former general manager Pat McKernan, the 1981 Dukes team, Dukes Triple-Crown outfielder Mike Marshall, former manager and outfielder Hershel Martin, former Albuquerque Journal sports editor J.D. Kailer, and executives Tom Bolack and John McMullen.

A committee of 14 Albuquerque baseball experts spanning seven decades chose the inaugural Hall of Fame class based on their contributions to baseball in Albuquerque both on and off the field.  The induction ceremony will take place as part of Dukes “Retro Night” on July 23 and each inductee will have a plaque commemorating their achievements posted in the Albuquerque Baseball Hall of Fame display in McKernan Hall, located in Isotopes Park.   Crandall managed the Dukes for five years, posting an impressive 471-314 (.600) record while winning four Pacific Coast League Championships.  The 1981 team Crandall helmed is considered one of the best in Minor League history, going 94-38 en route to a PCL title.  A key component of that squad was Marshall, who that season won the Triple Crown after batting .373 with 34 homers and 137 RBIs. 

McKernan was a three-time PCL executive of the year, serving as General Manager of the Dukes for 21 years from 1979 to 2000, a period that is considered one of the team’s best. 

Representing the era before the Dukes were a Triple-A team is Hershel Martin, who was an outfielder/manager for the Dukes from 1948-51, leading the team to two West Texas-New Mexico League crowns while also making the league’s all-star team three seasons and leading the circuit in hitting in 1948 with a mark of .425.  

Kailer, a native of Pennsylvania, worked in Roswell before coming to Albuquerque, where he served as the Journal’s sports editor and also worked for a while at KOAT-TV. He still tries to see as many ballgames as possible these days, and because of his knowledge of baseball history in the Duke City, also is on the hall of fame’s selection committee.

Bolack and McMullan, who will be inducted together, were instrumental in establishing the relationship between the Dukes and L.A. Dodgers which flourished for 35 years. Martin, Bolack and McMullan will be inducted posthumously.  

  Last year, Tommy Lasorda became the inaugural inductee to the Albuquerque Professional Baseball Hall of Fame, which was created to honor professional baseball players, coaches, executives, and media that set the tremendous legacy of baseball in the Duke City.

Gary Herron, sports editor of The Observer, is also on the selection committee.