CONTACT:
Molly Belmont, Marketing Director
Discover Albany
Phone: 518-434-1217 x 203
Email: mbelmont@albany.org


FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
July 23, 2018

 

2018 Hall of Famers Travel through Albany  for Induction Ceremony
Baseball Hall of Fame brings thousands of die-hards to region each year

Albany, NY – This July, the Baseball Hall of Fame will induct Vladimir Guerrero, Trevor Hoffman, Chipper Jones, Jack Morris, Jim Thome and Alan Trammell – and hundreds will travel through Albany to see it. 

Discover Albany is preparing to welcome visitors to Albany for Induction Weekend on July 27-30 at the National Baseball Hall of Fame, bringing more than $1 million in spending to the area. Albany is a natural arrival point for baseball fans and players alike due to the city’s convenient access to airport and rail, as well as its close proximity to Cooperstown.

“With sports fans from around the world wanting to attend the Baseball Hall of Fame Induction each year, Albany is the closest gateway city to Cooperstown, with an international airport and plenty of quality hotels for Sports Travel and Tours' travelers to access easily,” says Jay Smith, President of Sports Travel and Tours, the official licensed travel company of the National Baseball Hall of Fame. “We are bringing in over a 1,000 people into the area from July 25 through July 31 and already taking bookings for 2019 and 2020.  Discover Albany’s partners have been wonderful to work with and we continually work with more partners every year."

According to the Destinations International Event Impact Calculator, a tool that measures the economic value of an event and calculates its return to local taxes, the 2017 event accounted for:

  • 659 room nights at area hotels in Albany County
  • $794,973 in direct spending at hotels, transportation, business services, etc.
  • $57,392 in local tax revenue for Albany County

A record of 60 Hall of Famers, including the Class of 2018, are expected to return to Cooperstown for the celebration! Returning Hall of Farmers include Henry Aaron, Roberto Alomar, Jeff Bagwell, Johnny Bench, Craig Biggio, Bert Blyleven, Wade Boggs, George Brett, Rod Carew, Bobby Cox, Andre Dawson, Dennis Eckersley, Rollie Fingers, Carlton Fisk, Bob Gibson, Pat Gillick, Tom Glavine, Goose Gossage, Ken Griffey Jr., Rickey Henderson, Fergie Jenkins, Randy Johnson, Al Kaline, Sandy Koufax, Tony La Russa, Barry Larkin, Greg Maddux, Juan Marichal, Pedro Martínez, Paul Molitor, Joe Morgan, Eddie Murray, Phil Niekro, Jim Palmer, Tony Pérez, Gaylord Perry, Tim Raines, Jim Rice, Cal Ripken, Brooks Robinson, Iván Rodríguez, Ryne Sandberg, Mike Schmidt, John Schuerholz, Bud Selig, Ozzie Smith, John Smoltz, Bruce Sutter, Don Sutton, Frank Thomas, Joe Torre, Billy Williams, Dave Winfield, and Robin Yount.

Fans will have a chance to greet many of these legendary players at the Albany International Airport. Each year, fans show up in droves to catch a glimpse of their favorite athletes, and they’re rewarded with autographs on their baseball cards, balls, and bats.

 

ABOUT Discover Albany

The Albany County Convention & Visitors Bureau, Inc. was established in 1976 to promote the civic and commercial progress of the community through increased development of conventions and tourism. Today, the organization is known as Discover Albany. Discover Albany currently represents more than 300-member businesses and assists each year in hundreds of regional meetings. Discover Albany also operates the Albany Heritage Area Visitors Center, Henry Hudson Planetarium, and the Albany International Airport Information Center.  The Albany County Convention and Visitors Bureau Foundation was established in 1993 to provide educational opportunities and work with other organizations to secure grants and funding to advance regional travel and tourism projects.  For more information, call 518-434-1217 or 800-258-3582 or visit www.albany.org.