Outgoing Baseball Hall of Fame president set for cross-country tour promoting amateur game

Jeff Idelson, who has been engrossed with the greatest players in baseball history as president of Baseball’s Hall of Fame, has decided to go back his roots.

His grassroots.

Idelson, who will retire in August after 25 years with the Hall of Fame, plans to announce Thursday that he is launching Grassroots Baseball, a program designed to promote and celebrate the amateur game.

The five-month tour will begin May 1, traveling 2,448 miles on historic Route 66 through eight states.

The tour will begin on Lakeshore Drive in Chicago at the start of the famed Route 66, one of the country’s original highways that opened in 1926, and end in October in Santa Monica, Calif.

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Idelson will travel in an RV with baseball photographer Jean Fruth, meeting with young amateur players in 12 communities. They will meet with youth groups, hand out gloves and baseballs, and hope to spread the love of the game.

“The concept started with Jean who has documented amateur baseball for years,’’ Idelson said, “and we just felt this is the direction we can really give back to the amateur level at the grassroots level.’’

Said Fruth: “There’s nothing more Americana than traveling Route 66 and accomplishing it in an RV. This just seems like the right place to start.’’

Fruth, whose book, “Grassroots Baseball: Where Legends Begin’’ () was the first in a series, now will shoot pictures in a second book titled, “Grassroots Baseball: Route 66.’’

“The game is more than just a sport,’’ Fruth said, “it is the dreams and aspirations for so many youngsters. The culture of baseball is so much bigger than just what happens on the field.’’

The tour will include baseball stars who grew up near the historic highway, including Hall of Famer Jim Thome in Peoria, Ill., former Philadelphia Phillies slugger Ryan Howard in St. Louis, Hall of Fame catcher Johnny Bench in Oklahoma, former Gold Glove first baseman Adam LaRoche in Kansas, Hall of Fame pitcher Goose Gossage in Colorado, former outfielder and longtime coach Billy Hatcher in Arizona, and Hall of Fame third baseman George Brett in California.

“I’ve spent my career promoting the major-league game and its deep connection to American culture,’’ Idelson says, “but this is also about celebrating kids around the glove who play and enjoy the game. We hope to grow the game along this route.’’

Gossage will be the national spokesman for the tour, and plans to be on hand at several of at least 100 projected stops along the way through the west.

“Nobody understands the amateur game better than Goose,’’ Idelson says, “and no one promotes it better than him.’’

Idelson plans to cover the tour in a blog with Baseball-Reference.com, creating a database that will include every major-league player who grew up in towns where Route 66 traveled in the eight states.

“I just felt this is the right time to do this, and give back to the game I love, and help grow the game of baseball,’’ Idelson said. “I hope we can make some impact with the young kids and make a difference in their lives. You want to show the kids there were players who grew up in environments just like they did, and they achieved the ultimate.’’

The only break during the tour will be a two-week period in July, Idelson says. He has one more Hall of Fame induction ceremony remaining, and it will be a doozy with Mariano Rivera, Edgar Martinez, Mike Mussina, the late Roy Halladay, Harold Baines and Lee Smith.

“I can balance my time, I’ll make sure of that,’’ Idelson said. “Who knows, maybe some of these kids we meet along the way will be there one day, too? Really, I can’t be more excited.’’