Close Selected for Induction Into College Baseball Hall of Fame
12/21/2022 11:00:00 AM | Baseball
LUBBOCK, Texas -- The National College Baseball Hall of Fame announced Wednesday (Dec. 21) that former University of Michigan baseball player and Hall of Honor member Casey Close will be inducted as a member of its 2022 class.
The induction ceremony will take place during the College Baseball Night of Champions in Omaha, Neb., on Friday. Feb. 3.
A four-year letterwinner from 1983-86, Close was an integral part of Wolverines teams that won three Big Ten tournament titles and four straight Big Ten East Division championships. The Maize and Blue also made four NCAA appearances in Close's tenure, including two College World Series appearances. Close hit a grand slam his freshman year to lead Michigan over Stanford to earn Michigan a top-four finish in the College World Series.
His senior year (1986) was one of the best individual seasons in Michigan baseball history. Close still holds two U-M single-season records from that season with 72 RBI and an .869 slugging percentage. He batted .440, which is third all-time at Michigan. He also collected 84 hits, which at the time placed him third all-time, but still places hin in the top-15 (12th). Close added 19 home runs and 166 total bases, both of which rank second in program history.
Close earned many honors for his impressive 1986 season. He was named the Baseball America National Player of the Year, Big Ten Player of the Year, and earned ABCA and Baseball America first team All-America nods.
Close also stands among Michigan's best players. His career home run (46) and runs (190) totals are still program highs. He also is second in games played (229) and sits third in both batting average (.373) and RBI (185). Close ended his U-M career earning the prestigious Big Ten Medal of Honor and was the last player from the Michigan baseball program to earn the award -- and 11th overall.
Close will join former teammates Barry Larkin and Jim Abbott in the National College Baseball Hall of Fame. Abbott, a teammate of Close in 1986, is a member of the 2007 class. Larkin, also a teammate from 1983-85, was inducted as part of the 2009 class. Michigan has two additional representatives in the College Baseball Hall of Fame -- pitcher/outfielder George Sisler (1913-15, Class of 2010) and manager Branch Rickey, inducted in 2009.
