With an Instagram broadcast channel vote of 1,900-140 (93%), voters have agreed to bestow the Hall of Pretty Good’s fourth honorary induction upon Pablo Sanchez on behalf of the Backyard Sports franchise.
Sanchez, who becomes the first fictional character ever inducted into the Hall of Pretty Good, symbolizes what it meant to be a kid growing up in the ‘90s and 2000s. Making his Backyard Sports debut in the fall of 1997, Sanchez has seen his legend grow over the past few decades. Once known as the franchise’s “secret weapon,” it’s now common knowledge that he’s essentially the GOAT of the series. Sanchez strolls up to the plate with a bat that’s practically the same size as he is, yet he swings it like Thor wielding his hammer. One thing that always helped me identify with Sanchez was that he didn’t look like your typical superstar athlete. He looked like an underdog. He was short, he had a belly (one of those things I can very much relate to), but at the end of the day, he was a pretty good ballplayer and often the best one on the field.
He feels synonymous with the childhood of just about every baseball fan 35 and under, and while his individual skill set undoubtedly sits a little above what we typically honor at the Hall of Pretty Good, having Pablo Sanchez in the HoPG as a tribute to everything the character and the Backyard Sports franchise meant to all of us voters feels fitting. Sounds pretty good to me.