The Baseball Writers' Association of America (BBWAA) is a

professional association A professional association (also called a professional body, professional organization, or professional society) is a group that usually seeks to advocacy, further a particular profession, the interests of individuals and organisations engaged in ...

for journalists writing about

Major League Baseball Major League Baseball (MLB) is a professional baseball league composed of 30 teams, divided equally between the National League (baseball), National League (NL) and the American League (AL), with 29 in the United States and 1 in Canada. MLB i ...

for daily newspapers, magazines, and qualifying websites. The organization was founded in 1908 and is known for its annual awards and voting on membership in the

Baseball Hall of Fame The National Baseball Hall of Fame and Museum is a history museum and hall of fame in Cooperstown, New York, operated by a private foundation. It serves as the central collection and gathering space for the history of baseball in the United S ...

Early years

The BBWAA was founded on October 14, 1908, to improve working conditions for sportswriters in the early part of the 20th century; It also sought to promote uniformity of scoring methods, and to professionalize the press box, such that access was limited only to working reporters, telegraphers, and others who had a reason to be there. The organization began with 43 founding members. They included Joe S. Jackson, who became the association's first president. At that time, Jackson was the sporting editor (today called ''sports editor'') of the ''

Detroit Free Press The ''Detroit Free Press'' (commonly referred to as the ''Freep'') is a major daily newspaper in Detroit, Michigan, United States. It is the largest local newspaper owned by Gannett (the publisher of ''USA Today''), and is operated by the Detro ...

''. Also selected as officers were Irving E. Sanborn of the ''

Chicago Tribune The ''Chicago Tribune'' is an American daily newspaper based in Chicago, Illinois, United States. Founded in 1847, it was formerly self-styled as the "World's Greatest Newspaper", a slogan from which its once integrated WGN (AM), WGN radio and ...

'', syndicated columnist Hugh Fullerton, and ''

The Boston Globe ''The Boston Globe,'' also known locally as ''the Globe'', is an American daily newspaper founded and based in Boston, Massachusetts. The newspaper has won a total of 27 Pulitzer Prizes. ''The Boston Globe'' is the oldest and largest daily new ...

'' baseball writer Tim Murnane. A second meeting was held in New York City in December; Sanborn decided he could not serve as an officer at that time, and he was replaced by William Weart of the '' Philadelphia Times''. The slate of officers was ratified, and anyone who wrote about baseball in major league cities was eligible for membership. This policy changed, however, in December 1913, at which time it was decided that minor-league baseball writers could also become members. Then, Jackson became a dominant force in the early years of the baseball writers, being elected as president of the association during nine consecutive terms. Jackson finally retired in 1919, while Sanborn returned to assume the position of president. After that, Jackson became a member of the BBWAA Board of Directors.

Web membership

In 2007, the BBWAA opened its membership to web-based writers employed on a full-time basis by "websites that are credentialed by MLB for post-season coverage."

Mission

The organization's primary function is to work with

and individual teams to assure clubhouse and press-box access for BBWAA members. In addition, BBWAA members also elect players to the

National Baseball Hall of Fame The National Baseball Hall of Fame and Museum is a history museum and hall of fame in Cooperstown, New York, operated by a private foundation. It serves as the central collection and gathering space for the history of baseball in the United St ...

, which is the organization's most public function. All writers with 10 continuous years of membership in the BBWAA, plus active BBWAA membership at any time in the preceding 10 years, are eligible to vote for the Hall of Fame. The BBWAA also votes annually for the Kenesaw Mountain Landis Most Valuable Player Award,

Cy Young Award The Cy Young Award is given annually to the best pitchers in Major League Baseball (MLB), one each for the American League (AL) and National League (baseball), National League (NL). The award was introduced in 1956 by Commissioner of Baseball ( ...

, Jackie Robinson Rookie of the Year Award, and

Manager of the Year Award In Major League Baseball, the Manager of the Year Award is an honor given annually since 1983 to two outstanding manager (baseball), managers, one each in the American League (AL) and the National League (baseball), National League (NL). The winne ...

in each of the two major leagues. The Hall of Fame also empowers the BBWAA's Historical Overview Committee, made up of 11 or 12 veteran BBWAA members, to formulate the annual ballot for the Veterans Committee. Considering the ready availability of television broadcasts for the majority of baseball games, plus instant access to information through the Internet, some have called into question why the BBWAA has not broadened its membership rules to include broadcasters and researchers. (Similar arguments were made for the inclusion of Web-based journalists, before the BBWAA added Web writers to its ranks in December 2007.) Others have openly questioned why the BBWAA is involved in the award and Hall of Fame

voting Voting is the process of choosing officials or policies by casting a ballot, a document used by people to formally express their preferences. Republics and representative democracies are governments where the population chooses representative ...

br>processes
at all, citing in some cases journalistic integrity and the need to remain unbiased in their coverage of newsworthy events.

Awards

Voting

The BBWAA's most public function is to annually vote on candidates for the National Baseball Hall of Fame. In addition, the BBWAA is responsible for voting on several annual awards in each major league which are presented annually at the New York chapter's dinner: * Most Valuable Player Award (one for each league) *

(one for each league) * Rookie of the Year Award (one for each league) *

(one for each league) In or about 2000, the BBWAA took over the voting responsibility for the Edgar Martínez Award, given each year to the outstanding designated hitter in the

American League The American League of Professional Baseball Clubs, known simply as the American League (AL), is the younger of two sports leagues, leagues constituting Major League Baseball (MLB) in the United States and Canada. It developed from the Western L ...

. From 1953 to 1962, the BBWAA presented a "Sophomore of the Year Award" in each league. In 1997, a 36-member BBWAA panel selected the

Major League Baseball All-Time Team The Major League Baseball All-Time Team was chosen in 1997 to comprise the top manager and top player in each of 13 positional categories across Major League Baseball history. The team, announced by Classic Sports Network in conjunction with th ...

BBWAA Career Excellence Award

The annual BBWAA Career Excellence Award is the highest award given by the BBWAA. First awarded in 1962 to J. G. Taylor Spink, longtime publisher of ''

The Sporting News ''The Sporting News'' is a website and former magazine publication owned by Sporting News Holdings, which is a U.S.-based sports media company formed in December 2020 by a private investor consortium. It was originally established in 1886 as a ...

'', it was named the J. G. Taylor Spink Award until adopting its current name in February 2021. It has been awarded annually for "meritorious contributions to baseball writing", except for one year during the 1994–95 Major League Baseball strike. Recipients are not considered members of the National Baseball Hall of Fame but are permanently recognized in an exhibit at the Hall's library.

Chapter awards

For information about the chapter and its presiding officer, see footnote and

Red Foley Clyde Julian "Red" Foley (June 17, 1910 – September 19, 1968) was an American musician who made a major contribution to the growth of country music after World War II. For more than two decades, Foley was one of the biggest stars of the gen ...

(past chairman).

New York chapter

* Babe Ruth Award – postseason MVP since 2007; previously awarded to the best postseason performer of the World Series from 1949 to 2006. * Willie, Mickey and the Duke Award – to a group of players forever linked in baseball history. *

Joe DiMaggio Joseph Paul DiMaggio (; born Giuseppe Paolo DiMaggio, ; November 25, 1914 – March 8, 1999), nicknamed "Joltin' Joe", "the Yankee Clipper" and "Joe D.", was an American professional baseball center fielder who played his entire 13-year career ...

"Toast of the Town" Award – for a player who has become a New York favorite. *Arthur and Milton Richman "You Gotta Have Heart" Award – presented to a member of the baseball community who has overcome difficult circumstances. * Sid Mercer– Dick Young Player of the Year Award – presented to the best player on either the Yankees or Mets. *

Casey Stengel Charles Dillon "Casey" Stengel (; July 30, 1890 – September 29, 1975) was an American Major League Baseball right fielder and Manager (baseball), manager, best known as the manager of the championship New York Yankees of the 1950s and later, t ...

"You Can Look It Up" Award – presented to someone never previously honored by the chapter, usually to recognize a career achievement. * Joan Payson/ Shannon Dalton Forde Award (formerly the Joan Payson Award, until 2016) – for excellence in community service. *Ben Epstein–Dan Castellano "Good Guy" Award – presented to a baseball person, often a New York player, for their candor and accessibility to writers. * William J. Slocum– Jack Lang Award – for long and meritorious service; usually presented to a recently retired player, media personality, or executive.

Other chapters

*Cincinnati: Cincinnati Reds Hall of Fame (voting by Cincinnati chapter since 1998) *Cincinnati: Ernie Lombardi Award (team MVP) *Cincinnati: Team Pitcher of the Year *Cleveland: Bob Feller Man of the Year Award (player or other team personnel) (since 1946) *Cleveland: Frank Gibbons-Steve Olin Good Guy Award (since 1968) *Detroit: Tiger of the Year (since 1965) *Houston: Darryl Kile Good Guy Award (since 2003) *

Minnesota Minnesota ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Upper Midwestern region of the United States. It is bordered by the Canadian provinces of Manitoba and Ontario to the north and east and by the U.S. states of Wisconsin to the east, Iowa to the so ...

: *Montreal: Montreal Expos Player of the Year ''(discontinued in 2004)'' *Philadelphia: Most Valuable Player, Most Valuable Pitcher, Special Achievement, Good Guy Award, and Charlie Manuel Award for Service and Passion to Baseball (since 2004) *St. Louis: Darryl Kile Good Guy Award (since 2003) *Toronto: Neil MacCarl Award (since 1977) *Note: The MLB Rookie of the Year Award was established by the Chicago chapter in 1940 and was known as the J. Louis Comiskey Memorial Award (after the Chicago White Sox owner of the 1930s). In 1947, the award became an official MLB award (voted on by the national BBWAA), with Jackie Robinson as its first recipient. In July 1987, the award was renamed the Jackie Robinson Award (see , above).

Presidents

For a list of presidents and secretaries from 1908 to the present, see footnote During the 2012 World Series, the Association elected its first female president, Susan Slusser, of the ''

San Francisco Chronicle The ''San Francisco Chronicle'' is a newspaper serving primarily the San Francisco Bay Area of Northern California. It was founded in 1865 as ''The Daily Dramatic Chronicle'' by teenage brothers Charles de Young and M. H. de Young, Michael H. ...

''.

Footnotes

"Baseball Writers Unite." Washington Post, October 15, 1908, p. 9.

External links

*
Annual Awards
(2003–present). BBWAA official website
Hall of Fame
BBWAA official website
Voting FAQ
(national awards and HoF). BBWAA official website
Constitution
BBWAA official website
MLB Awards and Baseball Hall of Fame Results
Baseball-Reference.com (including HOF inductees, Hall of Famer Batting and Pitching Stats, HOF Ballot and Voting Summaries, Projected or Official Ballots for 2012 to 2015, Voting Results for 1936 to present, and "Most times in the All-Star Game") {{DEFAULTSORT:Baseball Writers Association Of America Baseball mass media National Baseball Hall of Fame and Museum Baseball organizations in the United States American sports journalism organizations Major League Baseball mass media Journalism-related professional associations Sports organizations established in 1908 1908 establishments in the United States