Zebulon, NC — On August 15, Five Counties Stadium, home of the Carolina Mudcats baseball team, will be the showcase for one of the highest honors available to four of the best players to ever put on major league uniforms.
That is the day the Mudcats and the U.S. Postal Service come together to introduce the Postal Service’s newest 45-cent commemorative Major League Baseball All-Stars stamps. This unique dedication event will be held on Wednesday, August 15, 2012, 6:45 pm at Five Counties Stadium, Highway 39, Zebulon, NC, prior to the Mudcats 7:15 pm game versus the Frederick Keys.
With the issuance of these stamps, the U.S. Postal Service recognizes the accomplishments of four baseball greats: Joe DiMaggio, Larry Doby, Willie Stargell, and Ted Williams. Each of these Hall of Famers was a perennial All-Star selection and each left an indelible impression on the game.
Joe DiMaggio (1914–1999), nicknamed “the Yankee Clipper,” is best known for his incredible, unmatched 56-game hitting streak in 1941. Larry Doby (1923–2003), the first African American to play on an American League baseball team, joined the Cleveland Indians on July 5, 1947, and was a seven-time All-Star selection. Willie Stargell (1940–2001) twice led the National League in home runs and helped power the 1979 Pittsburgh Pirates, a multicultural team known as “The Family,” to a World Championship. Regarded as one of the all-time greatest hitters in baseball, Ted Williams (1918–2002) of the Boston Red Sox, was the last Major Leaguer to bat over .400 for a single season in 1941. Illustrator Kadir Nelson worked with art director Phil Jordan to create the stamp art, which was based on historic photographs.
For more information on the Mudcats, go to www.CarolinaMudcats.com. For more information on the stamp dedication, contact Carl Walton, 336-668-1257.
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