Bench, Yastrzemski Make Hall Easily : Reds Catcher Gets Third-Highest Percentage Ever; Perry Falls 32 Votes Short

Johnny Bench and Carl Yastrzemski, who established standards by which players at their positions may always be measured, were voted into the Baseball Hall of Fame by overwhelming margins Monday night.

Bench was named on 431 of a record 447 ballots cast by members of the Baseball Writers Assn. of America, and Yastrzemski received 423 votes.

They become the 18th and 19th players elected in their first year of eligibility. To be selected, players must be retired 5 years and named on 75% of the ballots cast, which meant that 336 votes were required this year.

By being named on 96.4% of the ballots, Bench finished with the third-highest percentage ever. Only Ty Cobb’s 98.2% (222 of 226), and Hank Aaron’s 97.8% (406 of 415) were higher. Yastrzemski’s 94.6% is the seventh-highest ever.

Only one other eligible player received 300 votes. Pitcher Gaylord Perry received 304 votes, but fell 32 short in his first year of eligibility.

Jim Bunning, who missed by only four votes last year, received 283 votes this year, and pitcher Ferguson Jenkins, who was eligible for the first time, was fifth with 234 votes.

Induction ceremonies will be July 23 at the Hall of Fame in Cooperstown, N.Y.

Yastrzemski celebrated with his 72-year-old father, Carl Sr., in his Boston apartment Monday night, then flew to New York, where he will hold news conferences today.

“It’s a great honor and the dream of every kid, but I’ve tried not to think about it,” said Yastrzemski, 49, who spent his entire 23-year career with the Boston Red Sox. “In my quarter century in baseball . . . I don’t think I could have done any better. I’m very proud of what I did, and I don’t see how I could have done more.”

Likewise, Bench, 41, spent his entire career (17 years) with one team--the Cincinnati Reds.

“There’s a finality to it all, to reach a level so few people reach,” Bench said after learning of his election. “I didn’t think of percentage . . . I was just concerned with getting 75%. It’s pretty elite company to be mentioned with Cobb and Aaron, it’s hallowed ground in Cooperstown.”

Bench, who twice won the National League’s most valuable player award, may be remembered as the greatest catcher in history. Certainly, he was the greatest of his generation, winning 10 Gold Gloves and hitting 389 homers. His 327 homers as a catcher are a record.

“Johnny Bench was the prototype catcher of his time,” former Cincinnati manager Sparky Anderson told the Associated Press. “He was a great talent and a leader.”

Bench perfected what became a standard one-handed catching style, and possessed the game’s best throwing arm. Further, he once went an entire season without a passed ball.

“I think I dreamed of being Babe Ruth, Yogi Berra and Mickey Mantle all rolled into one,” he said. “I just expected things to fall into place. They went very smoothly and they went very easily--maybe far too easily in a lot of respects to how difficult it was.”

He broke into the Cincinnati lineup in 1968 and helped the Big Red Machine to 6 division championships and 6 pennants in a 10-year dynasty that extended to 1979. His best season was 1970 when he hit 45 home runs and drove in 148 runs to lead the Reds to 102 victories in their first season at Riverfront Stadium.

He seemed born for fame.

During spring training in 1969, Hall of Famer Ted Williams autographed a baseball for Bench with the inscription: “To a Hall of Famer, for sure.”

“I didn’t even know that Ted Williams had ever seen me play,” Bench, who was National League rookie of the year in 1968, told Associated Press.

Yastrzemski is the only American Leaguer with 400 homers and 3,000 hits, and he remains proudest of that.

“That’s something that no one else has done, for whatever reason,” he said. “Ruth never did it, Gehrig never did it, DiMaggio never did it.”

He ranks second in games played, compiled a .352 World Series batting average and is the most recent triple crown winner. He won 7 Gold Gloves for his outfield play, made the all-star team 16 times and had a .285 career batting average.

In 1967, he helped turn a generation of New Englanders accustomed to second-division finishes onto baseball by leading Boston’s Impossible Dream charge. The Red Sox won their first pennant in 21 years that season, and in the final 2 weeks, Yaz hit .523 (23 for 44) with 5 home runs and 16 RBIs.

He finished the season as the 14th player to win the triple crown, leading the league with a .326 batting average, 44 home runs and 121 RBIs. No player has done it since.

Hall of Famer Frank Robinson remembers thinking that after he won the triple crown in the American League in 1966, he had accomplished something that would not be seen again in his era.

“Do people wonder how difficult it is to win the triple crown? You’re competing against 200 players on three different levels,” Robinson told the Hartford Courant. “Multiply the pressure by three, then go against 200 other guys. I didn’t think anyone would follow me for years. Then came Yaz.”

If the triple crown is one trivia question Yastrzemski’s name will answer, Monday’s election created one more: He’ll be the first person who played organized Little League to make the Hall of Fame.

A year ago, Willie Stargell became the 17th player to make the Hall of Fame during his first year of eligibility, and while Perry and Jenkins failed in their first tries, both appear certain to make it in future years.

Perry is one of only 19 winners of 300 games and achieved a 3.10 earned-run average. His 3,534 strikeouts stand fourth on the all-time list, but a lot of voters apparently hold his reputation for using the illegal spitball against him.

“I think I have the credentials to be in the Hall of Fame, but it probably won’t be on the first try,” Perry said before the announcement.

Jenkins had a record of 284-226 and was a 7-time 20-game winner. However, his career hit a low point Aug. 25, 1980, when he was arrested in Toronto for possession of cocaine. He ultimately was suspended for 17 days.

“I know personally I’ve got the stats and the numbers,” Jenkins said after learning he didn’t make it. “I feel sorry for Gaylord, he only missed by 30 something votes.”

Bunning is eligible for 2 more years, although he figures as a longshot in 1990 when Joe Morgan and Jim Palmer, seemingly certain inductees, become eligible. If he doesn’t make it in either ’90 or ‘91, he’ll have to wait 3 years before being considered by the Veterans Committee.

Bunning was a 100-game winner and pitched a no-hitter in each league. Bunning had a 224-184 career record, 40 shutouts and 151 complete games in 519 starts.

HALL OF FAME VOTING

Johnny Bench and Carl Yastrzemski were the only players elected Monday to the Baseball Hall of Fame by the Baseball Writers Assn. of America. To be chosen, a player had to be named on 336 of the 447 ballots cast:

Player Votes Johnny Bench 431 Carl Yastrzemski 423 Gaylord Perry 304 Jim Bunning 283 Ferguson Jenkins 234 Orlando Cepeda 176 Tony Oliva 135 Bill Mazeroski 134 Harvey Kuenn 115 Maury Wills 95 Jim Kaat 87 Ron Santo 75 Ken Boyer 62 Minnie Minoso 59 Elroy Face 47 Mickey Lolich 47 Luis Tiant 47 Joe Torre 40 Dick Allen 35 Vada Pinson 33 Thurman Munson 31 Bobby Bonds 29 Curt Flood 27 Sparky Lyle 25 Bert Campaneris 14 Wilbur Wood 14 Manny Mota 9 Bobby Murcer 3 Don Money 1 Gene Tenace 1

Players receiving no votes: Jim Barr, Terry Crowley, Joe Ferguson, Woodie Fryman, Cesar Geronimo, Dave Goltz, Jon Matlack, Rudy May, Bake McBride, Bill Robinson, Richie Zisk.

CARL YASTRZEMSKI’S CAREER STATISTICS

A look at the statistics of Carl Yastrzemski of the Boston Red Sox:

REGULAR SEASON

Year Team AB R H HR RBI Avg. 1961 Boston 583 71 155 11 80 .266 1962 Boston 646 99 191 19 94 .296 1963 Boston 570 91 183 14 68 .321 1964 Boston 567 77 164 15 67 .289 1965 Boston 494 78 154 20 72 .312 1966 Boston 594 81 165 16 80 .278 1967 Boston 579 112 189 44 121 .326 1968 Boston 539 90 162 23 74 .301 1969 Boston 603 96 154 40 111 .255 1970 Boston 566 125 186 40 102 .329 1971 Boston 508 75 129 15 70 .254 1972 Boston 455 70 120 12 68 .264 1973 Boston 540 82 160 19 95 .296 1974 Boston 515 93 155 15 79 .301 1975 Boston 543 91 146 14 60 .269 1976 Boston 546 71 146 21 102 .267 1977 Boston 558 99 165 28 102 .296 1978 Boston 523 70 145 17 81 .277 1979 Boston 518 69 140 21 87 .270 1980 Boston 364 49 100 15 50 .275 1981 Boston 338 36 83 7 53 .246 1982 Boston 459 53 126 16 72 .275 1983 Boston 380 38 101 10 56 .266 Totals 23 Years 11,988 1816 3419 452 1844 .285 PLAYOFFS 1975 Boston 11 4 5 1 2 .455 Totals 11 4 5 1 2 .455 WORLD SERIES 1967 Boston 25 4 10 3 5 .400 1975 Boston 29 7 9 0 4 .310 Totals 54 11 19 3 9 .352

JOHNNY BENCH’S CAREER STATISTICS

A look at the statistics of Johnny Bench of the Cincinnati Reds:

REGULAR SEASON

Year Team AB R H HR RBI Avg. 1967 Cinc. 86 7 14 1 6 .163 1968 Cinc. 564 67 155 15 82 .275 1969 Cinc. 532 83 156 26 90 .293 1970 Cinc. 605 97 177 45 148 .293 1971 Cinc. 562 80 134 27 61 .238 1972 Cinc. 538 87 145 40 125 .270 1973 Cinc. 557 83 141 25 104 .253 1974 Cinc. 621 108 174 33 129 .280 1975 Cinc. 530 83 150 28 110 .283 1976 Cinc. 465 62 109 16 74 .234 1977 Cinc. 494 67 136 31 109 .275 1978 Cinc. 393 52 102 23 73 .260 1979 Cinc. 464 73 128 22 80 .276 1980 Cinc. 360 52 90 24 68 .250 1981 Cinc. 178 14 55 8 25 .309 1982 Cinc. 399 44 103 13 38 .258 1983 Cinc. 310 32 79 12 54 .255 Totals 17 Years 7658 1091 2048 389 1376 .267 PLAYOFFS 1970 Cinc. 9 2 2 1 1 .222 1972 Cinc. 18 3 6 1 2 .333 1973 Cinc. 19 1 5 1 1 .263 1975 Cinc. 13 1 1 0 0 .077 1976 Cinc. 12 3 4 1 1 .333 1979 Cinc. 12 1 3 1 1 .250 Totals 83 11 21 5 6 .253 WORLD SERIES 1970 Cinc. 19 3 4 1 3 .211 1972 Cinc. 23 4 6 1 1 .261 1975 Cinc. 29 5 6 1 4 .207 1976 Cinc. 15 4 8 2 6 .533 Totals 86 16 24 5 14 .279