Andre Dawson prefers to enter Hall of Fame as a Chicago Cub

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Baseball great Andre Dawson said during a radio interview today that he will be inducted into the Hall of Fame as a Montreal Expo even though he prefers to go in as a Chicago Cub.

Dawson said he was ‘disappointed’ that he doesn’t have more of a say on the matter and that he planned on discussing the issue with Hall of Fame officials soon.

The eight-time all-star selection played his first 11 seasons with the now-defunct Montreal Expos before signing with the Cubs in 1986. He played in Chicago for six seasons before closing out his career with the Boston Red Sox and Florida Marlins.

Dawson’s plaque at the Hall of Fame will feature an Expos logo even though the Cubs, Red Sox and Marlins will all be listed on the plaque.

In a statement released by the Hall of Fame today, Dawson said he understood the reasoning behind entering as an Expo:

‘I respect the Hall of Fame’s decision to put an Expos logo on my cap, and I understand their responsibility to make sure the logo represents the greatest impact in my career,’ he said. ‘Cubs fans will always be incredibly important in my heart, and I owe them so much for making my time in Chicago memorable, as did the fans in Montreal, Boston and South Florida, my home. But knowing that I’m on the Hall of Fame team is what’s most important, as it is the highest honor I could imagine.’

[Updated, 9:26 a.m.: The Hall of Fame decides which team logo appears on a player’s plaque, even though the player’s preference is always taken into consideration.

‘The logo selection is only important from a historical standpoint, as the Museum has a responsibility to properly interpret the game’s history,’ said Jeff Idelson, president of the National Baseball Hall of Fame and Museum. ‘Every Hall of Fame plaque lists all of the teams where an electee played or managed. Fans of ‘The Hawk’ in every city in which he played should claim Andre as one of their own.’]

What do you think? Should baseball players have the right to determine which team they enter the Hall of Fame on?

-- Austin Knoblauch