Eight to be inducted in inaugural class for American Legion Baseball Hall of Fame on November 2
Former MLB players Bolin, Brissie, Buddin, Martin, O'Dell, Richardson to be inducted with longtime SCALB supporters Brewer and Schwing
Sumter -- Eight men will be honored as the inaugural class of the South Carolina American Legion Baseball Hall of Fame on Thursday, November 2, in a banquet at Seawell's Catering in Columbia located at 1125 Rosewood Drive.
The inductees are Bobby Bolin, Bill Brewer, Lou Brissie, Don Buddin, Jerry Martin, Billy O'Dell, Bobby Richardson and Buck Schwing. Bolin, Brissie, Buddin, Martin, O'Dell and Richardson all played Major League Baseball, while Brewer and Schwing have a longtime affiliation with American Legion baseball in the state.
Brewer, Martin, Richardson and Schwing will be in attendance, while Bolin, Brissie, Buddin and O'Dell will be honored posthumously.
LeGree Oswald, the department chairman of South Carolina American Legion Baseball, is excited to for the event.
"It's been a long road, but it got accomplished," Oswald said. "Our state committee is the induction committee. We felt like getting six professional type baseball players in was important, but we wanted to follow the same template (used by the Baseball Hall of Fame), where we induct people who have helped American Legion baseball in the state.
"It wouldn't be American Legion baseball without people like that," Oswald said of Brewer and Schwing.
Bolin was born in Hickory Grove in York County. He pitched for the San Francisco Giants, Milwaukee Brewers and Boston Red Sox from 1961-1973. He had a career record of 88-75 with a 3.40 earned run average in 1,576 innings pitched.
Brewer has been affiliated with Manning-Santee Post 68 for nearly four decades as a head coach, assistant coach, athletic director and supporter of the program. Brewer, along with good friends Toy McCord and GG Cutter, took turns as Post 68 head coach for several years. Brewer was an assistant coach and third base coach for Cutter on the 2002 team that won the state title. He is a longtime member of the SCALB baseball committee.
Brissie, who is from Anderson, pitched with the Philadelphia Athletics and Cleveland Indians from 1947-53. He did this after undergoing 23 surgeries on his left leg over two years after almost losing his left leg during an artillery barrage in World War II. He had a 44-48 record and a 4.07 ERA in 897 innings. After retiring, Brissie served as the National Director of American Legion baseball for a period of time.
Buddin was born in Turbeville, but grew up in Olanta. Buddin led Olanta Post 85 to the state championship game in 1951 and helped Olanta High School win a state title in 1952. He played for Boston, the Houston Colt .45s and the Detroit Tigers from 1956-62, posting a .241 batting average with 41 home runs and 225 runs batted in.
Martin, who is from Columbia, played for the Philadelphia Phillies, the Chicago Cubs, San Francisco, the Kansas City Royals and the New York Mets from 1974-84. He had a .251 average with 85 homers and 345 RBI.
O'Dell, who was born in Whitmire, pitched from 1954-67 with the Baltimore Orioles, San Francisco, the Milwaukee/Atlanta Braves and the Pittsburgh Pirates. The left-hander had a career record of 105-100 with an ERA of 3.29 in 1,817 innings.
Richardson is from Sumter and he led Post 15 to state titles in 1950 and 1952. He went on to become an 8-time All-Star second baseman for the New York Yankees from 1955-66. Richardson was selected as the Most Valuable Player in the 1960 World Series. He finished his career with a .266 batting average, 34 homers and 390 RBI.
Schwing has been affiliated with Rock Hill Post 34, which won the 2022 state title, for 50 years. He is a longtime member of the SCALB baseball committee.
The event will begin with a meet and greet at 5:30 p.m. The ceremony will begin at 6:30 with the inductions beginning at 7.
Individual tickets for the event are $55 per person. A table of eight can be purchased for $400 while a table of 10 can be purchased for $500. A sponsorship for the event's program is $150.
Contact Brewer at (803) 460-4747 for tickets or checks can be sent to Craig O'Dell at 1840 Charleston Highway, Cayce, SC 29033 or LeGree Oswald at 3028 Blalock Drive, West Columbia, SC 29169. Checks can be made payable to West Columbia Post 79 with a memo line of Hall of Fame.
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