Nick Cafardo honored at Hall of Fame

The late Nick Cafardo, who consistently delivered insightful words to baseball fans throughout parts of four decades, got the ultimate honor in his profession this weekend when he was honored posthumously with the Baseball Writers' Association of America 2020 Career Excellence Award.

The ceremony, which took place near the Hall of Fame in Cooperstown, N.Y., was delayed a year by the COVID-19 global pandemic.

Cafardo's son Ben, who is a senior director of communications at ESPN, delivered a wonderful speech on behalf of his father, who died suddenly at the age of 62 just outside of the Red Sox's clubhouse at Spring Training on Feb. 21, 2019.

"That guy, he was an amazing person," said Red Sox manager Alex Cora. "There's always reminders about him, about his family. It was a tough day, but now that we look back, he lived a great life, he was great to us and he's dearly missed. But it's a great honor and I'm really proud of him."

The event, televised by MLB Network on Sunday at noon ET, was attended by Nick's wife Leeanne, daughter Emilee, daughter-in-law Tracy as well as his beloved grandchildren Noah and Annabella.

"To all the baseball fans around the country, particularly in New England, he was one of you," Ben Cafardo said in part of his speech. "He felt a deep sense of obligation to be there for you every day. Breaking news, documenting events and telling the story of the Boston Red Sox as well as the sport at large across nearly four full decades in journalism, he became a go to voice in the Boston area for generations of baseball fans.

"People completely trusted what he wrote and said, and this was a responsibility of utmost importance to him. When you read, watched or listened to him, you could rest assured that, one, he'd be researched and ready, and, two, he'd served the fan."

• Cafardo leaves legacy of dedication, kindness

Aside from his amazing consistency and passion for his craft, the other thing Nick Cafardo had was a work ethic equaled only in baseball by men like Lou Gehrig, Cal Ripken, Jr., and former MLB.com writer Dick Kaegel (recipient of the 2021 Career Excellence Award), who once covered all 162 games in a baseball season.

When Cafardo achieved the honor of getting assigned by The Boston Globe to write the weekly Sunday notes column in 2005, he responded by doing that extensive story every Sunday for a decade-and-a-half, never missing one before his death.

"His parents didn't take off days and neither did he," said Ben Cafardo. "My dad was an Iron Man. As the saying goes, he was Sunday, literally. He delivered his popular Sunday notes column in the Globe every week for 15 consecutive years, never missing a week."

It is fitting for Nick Cafardo to receive a legacy award that will keep his photo in the Hall of Fame forever. Everyone who knew him was aware that covering Hall of Fame weekend was his favorite perk of the job.

Cafardo would rent a home in Cooperstown every summer with some other national scribes and a long-time scout. Cafardo would wake up at 7:30 a.m. on those weekends to deliver donuts to his housemates. It was probably Cafardo's way of jump-starting the day so that the baseball debates could begin.

The only downer, of course, to Cafardo receiving this award is the fact he wasn't around to accept it.

"This is the most significant award that any baseball writer can receive, and it would be a tremendous source of pride for him," said Ben Cafardo. "While of course today is bittersweet, since this is his honor to accept, I can feel his presence here with us."