Joan Hodges, the widow of Class of 2022 Hall of Famer Gil Hodges, passed away Saturday night following a long illness. She was 10 days short of her 96th birthday.
The Mets, whom Gil Hodges managed to a World Series title in 1969, held a tribute and a moment of silence for Joan prior to Sunday’s game versus the Pirates.
“We are thankful that Joan was able to see Gil inducted into the Hall of Fame in July,” Mets president Sandy Alderson said in a statement. “That meant so much to her and the entire Mets and Hodges family. She was a true baseball fan and still followed her two favorite teams, the Mets and Dodgers. We send our condolences to her daughters, Irene and Cindy, her son Gil Jr. and the rest of the Hodges family.”
Irene said on induction day that she was “especially happy” for her mother, who was unable to attend the ceremony but watched it on TV in Brooklyn. When Jane Forbes Clark, the Hall of Fame’s chairman of the board, informed Irene in December that her father was going to be enshrined in Cooperstown, Irene made sure that her mother heard the news at the same time.
“I spoke to Jane, crying,” Irene said, retelling her conversation with Forbes Clark. "[I said], ‘I just want to ask you, my Mom is 95 and she is right here with me. Can you please tell her yourself, so she can hear it from you?’ Jane said, ‘Of course.’ I gave my mother the phone. When I handed her the phone, she said, ‘Who is it?’ I said, ‘Mommy, they want to tell you Daddy is voted into the Hall of Fame.’ She put her hands on her chest and said, ‘Really? He really did it. Oh, Gil, I’m so happy.’ She spoke to [Forbes Clark] on the phone and handed me the phone. She was thrilled.”