COBA Hall of Fame
 

As a very long-time fan of the team and league I have created a platform from which I can speak of issues I don’t quite understand and in need of clarification. I’d love to know why is it that Brampton has had only 2 people inducted into the COBA Hall of Fame for their work and leadership skills since they rejoined the league in 2004. Both were very deserving inductees; Blake Frost, PRES; and Ron Lutz, GM. If it wasn’t for these two gentlemen, there would be no Brampton Royals.
 

​Since COBA HOF’s inception in 2010, 42 people have been inducted, 33 of them were players-only, and of those 33, no Brampton player has been recognized for their dedication, tenure and baseball excellence to be inducted.
 

​Since 2014 only 14 COBA players-only have been inducted into the HOF, none of which came from Brampton.

​Team HOF’ers since 2010

St. Catharines – 12

Etobicoke – 5

Erindale – 4

Oakville – 4

Burlington – 1

Glanbrook - 2

Milton – 3

Mississauga – 1

Brampton – 0

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It’s not my place to speculate which Brampton players should be in the hall, but I can think of players that should be given the leagues highest honour. I don’t know why there are no Brampton players included but I'm hoping someone with the authority will solicit the HOF committee (if they have one) to be more inclusive. I don't mean to say they should induct a player because he's from Brampton, but rather a player who enters on his merit, not where he plays. Entry to the COBA HOF should be accompanied by an automatic jersey retirement.
 

​When I scan through the list of inducted players, I see nothing but great players, but it’s still not reflective of the talent in this league. I believe there’s still players from all the teams that are waiting to be inducted, not just Brampton. How is it that Etobicoke have only inducted 5 players with all the powerhouse teams they fielded over the years?
 

No one can convince me that there hasn’t been a Brampton player(s) that have not met the criteria set forth by COBA. I have been around this team for 18 years and it’s a shame that I’ve watched many a player with long, distinguished careers come and go and not be recognized by a league they helped build and create friendly rivalries.
 

I believe it’s disrespectful for players to be left out just because someone from the league couldn’t be bothered doing a little research or set a criterion by which a batter/pitcher would gain entry by achieving a set standard. Setting a pitching standard would be difficult because there have been many very good pitchers that played on some very, let’s say lesser than mediocre teams, for their careers.