Homer Simpson has had every type of job under the sun. Name one, there's a serious chance Homer has done it, from astronaut to food critic, but one of his most memorable non-nuclear plant gigs was his time as a baseball player. Early in the run of The Simpsons, Homer and his hard head led to a baseball championship in one of the long-running (and still popular) show's most memorable episodes, "Homer at the Bat." Major League Baseball finally recognized his achievements, officially inducting him into the Baseball Hall of Fame over the weekend. Watch his induction "ceremony" below.
Homer Simpson's contributions to baseball were cemented by the Baseball Hall of Fame in Cooperstown, New York on Saturday, in commemoration for the 25th anniversary of The Simpsons' "Homer at the Bat." The episode, which originally aired in February 1992, saw Homer play on the Springfield Nuclear Power Plant's softball team. In order to win a lucrative bet, Mr. Burns replaces everyone on the team with professional MLB players such as Ozzie Smith, Ken Griffey Jr., Wade Boggs, Don Mattingly and Jose Canseco -- all of whom guest-starred in the episode. However, Homer got to play in the championship game, getting knocked unconscious by a pitch in the final at bat, thus forcing in the winning run.
Now, 25 years later, Homer is getting some real validation for his sacrifice. Ozzie Smith, Wade Boggs and Steve Sax were on hand to welcome Homer into the great Hall. The Simpsons' showrunner Al Jean shared photos on Twitter of a Homer mascot enjoying the spotlight, about to demonstrate his "HOB HBP skills." That had to be a unique honor for Jean to take part in.
Homer will be getting his very own plaque that will hang in the museum in a special Simpson exhibit. The plague, which was read in the video, highlights some of the greatest achievements of his career in baseball. Not only does it mention how he "sacrificed his body" for the city championship, but it also references his time as the Isotopes mascot Dancing Homer. You can read the plaque in full for yourself in the official tweet below.
Just another achievement to be added to The Simpsons long list of achievements. How many other cartoon series could possibly hope to be inducted into a Hall of Fame? Now if only the NBA would just recognize the sportsmanship of Space Jam.
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