Going Global: The Historical Contingency of Baseball Hall of Famer Developmental Networks

Abstract

This study investigates how the changing of institutional logics in an established field shapes the developmental networks of high-achievers. This research combines qualitative analysis of induction speeches of 99 hall of fame pitchers and hitters with time series analysis of more than 80 years of historical data (1922-2004) to show how a change in field logics from a more staid “insular” logic to a market or more business-oriented logic is associated with commensurate changes in key players’ developmental networks such that their self-identified developmental relationships become both more numerous and more diverse. Results of the time series analysis identify the shift in this logic to the late 1950’s, a key time in Major League Baseball’s history when, for the first time, each team had at least one African American player on their roster and each team had an average of at least one full time scout based in a country outside the United States. Both of these indicators reveal a broader search for talent which manifested itself in hall of famer developmental networks which instead of being more based on the players around them were instead more tied to indicators of MLB’s global search for talent as well as more business-oriented factors including average ticket prices and player salaries. A more detailed investigation of these networks reveals that many new developer roles utilized in the 1958-2004 market logic era were created by the teams themselves thus giving these players greater opportunity to utilize potential developers that were more readily available than in the previous more insular logic period.