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Miracle’s Goldklang named to Florida State League Hall of Fame

By Staff | Jun 15, 2010

Florida State League President Chuck Murphy announced Monday that Fort Myers Miracle principal owner Marv Goldklang is among the 2010 inductees into the Florida State League Hall of Fame.

Goldklang will be honored at the induction ceremony on Nov. 8 in Clearwater Beach.

Goldklang has been involved with the Miracle in the Florida State League for the past 20 years, including the last 19 in Fort Myers. His experience and energy has helped propel the Miracle to one of the premier clubs in the league.

He serves as chairman of the Goldklang Group and is responsible for overseeing the activities of the four Minor League clubs that the group owns across the country. The clubs are well known for their personnel and in addition, his clubs have won every conceivable award given to professional sports operators. He is also part owner of the New York Yankees and his experience around the business of sports is extensive.

Florida State League Hall of Fame Class of 2010

Players

– Sid Fernandez – In March 1982, Fernanadez went 8-1 with a 1.91 ERA. Among his wins: two no-hitters, one one-hitter, one two-hitter and one three-hitter. Fernandez had retired 48 men without a hit for Vero Beach, including a concluding no-hitter against Fort Lauderdale. Fernandez led the league in 1982 with a 137 strikeouts. Fernandez also holds the record for the most strikeouts in a game (21).

– Stanley Karpinski – In 1949, he worked 315 innings for St. Augustine and finished with the all-time record in W-L with a 29-5 record, led the league with a 1.56 ERA and racked up 276 strikeouts. Has the all-time record in shut-outs with 9.

– Carlos Delgado – 133 games, 485 at bats, 83 runs, 157 hits, 30 doubles, two triples, 30 home runs, 100 RBI, two stolen bases, 59 baes on balls, 91 strike outs, .324 batting average, .402 on base percentage, .579 slugging average. His 30 home runs were the most in FSL in 1992 and the fourth most ever in a single season in the league. He also led the league that year in RBI with 100. He won the Florida State League MVP award in 1992.

– Dan Keith – 136 games, 497 at bats, 199 hits, 38 doubles, six triples, 10 home runs, .400 batting average, .561 slugging average. His .400 average led the league and he’s the only player in FSL history to ever bat at or above .400 for a season. He also the led the league in RBIs in 1955 with 122.

Managers

– Jim Leyland – Managed for 11 seasons at the minor league level in the Tigers organization (1971-1981). He advanced to the postseason six times in the minors and won three league championships. He was named manager of the year in the FSL in both 1977 and 1978 and the American Association in 1979. Overall he was in three consecutive league championships in the Florida State League – won in ’76 and ’77, lost in game 7 in 1978.

– Felipe Alou – Managed the West Palm Beach Expos in the Florida State League for seven years, 1977, 1986-1991. He compiled a 541-399 record over that time. He led the Expos to the playoffs in five of those seven seasons. He was named the FSL manager of the year in 1990 after his team went 92-40. The West Palm Beach Expos won the FSL Title under Alou’s guidance in 1991, his final year in the Florida State League. As a player, Alou led the FSL in hitting in 1956 with a .380 batting average for Cocoa.

Chief executives

– Terry Reynolds – He was promoted to director of player development with the Cincinnati Reds in December 2006 and to his current position as a senior director in October 2008. He joined the Reds organization in January 2004, when he was hired as director of amateur scouting. Prior to joining the Reds’ front office, he spent 25 years in the Dodgers organization, most recently as that organization’s coordinator of minor league scouting/special-assignment scout. As GM of the Class A Vero Beach Dodgers, Reynolds was named the Florida State League Executive of the Year (’83) and the Florida Diamond Executive of the year (’86). He served as director of Dodgertown in 1988, assistant director of scouting for the Dodgers from 1991-98, as well as coordinator of winter baseball from 1993-’96.

– Charlie Blaney – He spent eight years as general manager of Dodgers affiliates at the Class A, Double-A and Triple-A levels, and was twice named executive of the year. He spent the next 13 years a managing director of Dodgertown, the 450-acre facility that included a minor league team, 90-room baseball and football training facility and 70 acres of citrus grove. He spent the last 11 years of his career with the Dodgers, from 1987 to 1998, as their farm director.

Owners

– Frank Decker, 84, a retired construction company owner, owned the Lakeland Tigers from 1972 until 1992. He built Joker Marchant Stadium and Tiger Town which in some quarters is called “the House that Frank built.” He won three Florida State League Championships in 1976, 1978 and on the last game that he owned the club won the Florida State League Title in 1992. He was named the Florida State League Executive of the Year in 1977. He served on many Florida State League committees’ during his ownership.

Umpire

– Ed Hickox, umpired in the Gulf Coast League (1983), Florida State League (1983-85, 2004), Southern League (1986-87), Dominican Winter League (1988), Puerto Rican Winter league (1989), International League (1988-1997), Pacific Coast League (1988), New York Penn League (2002) and South Atlantic League (2003) has worked over 1,300 Major League games.