The AAABA Hall of Fame will return in conjunction with the 80th anniversary of the AAABA Tournament.
The Class of 2025 will be inducted on Aug. 2 at Sunnehanna Country Club.
The hall of fame will return for the first time since 2019. The COVID-19 pandemic forced the cancellation of the 2020 tournament and hall of fame banquet. While the AAABA Tournament bounced back in 2021, the hall of fame remained idle until this year.
Thc Class of 2025 will include: Chris Pfeil, manager and general manager of Johnstown teams Martella’s Pharmacy and Johnstown Grays; Former New Orleans catcher and major league baseball player Lenny Webster; and former Youngstown and Ohio State University standout Ken Tirpack.
Former Pittsburgh Pirates closer Jason Grilli will be the featured speaker during the banquet.
Check out The Tribune-Democrat story on the AAABA Hall of Fame Class of 2025: Tribune-Democrat
Chris Pfeil, Johnstown manager and general manager
Pfeil was the GM on the Martella’s Pharmacy team that won the 2018 AAABA Tournament championship – the first title in the history of the Johnstown franchise dating to 1945.
Pfeil has a 448-239 record as a AAABA League/Johnstown Collegiate Baseball League manager and is 22-18 in AAABA Tournament play.
As a general manager, Pfeil’s teams are 279-125 and 30-13 in the AAABA Tournament.
His all-time record as both a manager and a GM was 727-364 during the regular season and 52-31 in the AAABA Tournament from 1998 through the first two weeks of the 2025 JCBL season. Those numbers continue to evolve as the Johnstown Collegiate Baseball League season unfolds.
A former Johnstown Junior League and Clarion University player, Pfeil managed the Johnstown Grays franchise that won the local league title and advanced to the AAABA Tournament in 2002, 2004 and 2005. Pfeil managed Martella’s to tournament appearances in 2011 and 2014. As GM, he helped Martella’s reach the AAABA Tournament in 2015, 2016, 1017, 2018, 2019 and 2024.
Overall, he’s been a part of 11 AAABA League/Johnstown Collegiate Baseball League championships.
As coach at Bishop McCort Catholic High School, Pfeil has 238 victories, the most in program history. His Crimson Crushers won the 2012 PIAA Class 1A championship and finished as state runner-up in 2016 and 2017.
Ken Tirpack, infielder, Youngstown, 1988 to 1990 AAABA Tournaments
Tirpack had a .347 batting average (17-for-49) in three AAABA Tournaments, as Youngstown produced a 7-6 record overall in that span and finished as the 1990 runner-up to Baltimore.
The Ohio State University four-year standout played first, second and third base in the AAABA Tournament and primarily was a first baseman with the Buckeyes.
Tirpack batted .405 during his last two AAABA Tournaments in 1989 and 1990. During the runner-up tournament in ‘90, Tirpack went 8-for-24 with two doubles, one triple, a homer and seven RBIs for the 4-2 Astro Falcons.
In 1989, had batted .538 in the tournament, including a 4-for-5 day in a 13-3 victory over Brooklyn. Tirpack had two doubles, a homer, three runs scored and four RBIs in Youngstown’s lone victory in ‘89.
He had an All-American career at Ohio State (1989-92), three times earning All-Big Ten honors, including first-team in 1991 and 1992. Tirpack was All-Midwest Region twice, with a first-team regional nod as a senior with the Buckeyes.
The Minnesota Twins selected him in the 21st round of the 1992 draft and was an Appalachian League all-star that season.
His minor league career consisted of four seasons playing at the Class A, High-A and AA levels, and he later played three pro seasons of independent league baseball.
In 300 games in the minors, Tirpack batted a combined .288 with 25 homers and 157 RBIs. In independent ball, he hit .355 with 49 homers and 222 RBIs.
His baseball career didn’t end on the field. Tirpack was a scout for the Cleveland Indians for 17 seasons and currently coaches the baseball program at his alma mater, Campbell Memorial High School.
Lenny Webster, catcher, New Orleans, 1985 AAABA Tournament
Webster caught a pitching staff that helped the Boosters go 4-2 and finish as runner-up to Baltimore in the ‘85 tournament.
New Orleans’ clean-up hitter, Webster had a modest .227 batting average (5-for-22) with nine RBIs, one double and two homers in the tournament. But he produced an incredible performance in victory over Maryland State, smacking two home runs and driving in five during the second day.
Leading up to his week in Johnstown, Webster had batted .444 (4-for-9) in the Livonia Regional, with four RBIs.
The Minnesota Twins selected Webster in the 1982 draft while he was at Louisiana’s Lutcher High School and then picked him again in 1985 out of Grambling State University.
Webster debuted in the major leagues on Sept. 1, 1989 and played until Sept. 23, 2000. His longest tenure was with the Twins – 587 games (1989-93). The catcher also had stints with the Montreal Expos (1994, 1996-2000); Philadelphia Phillies (1995), Baltimore Orioles (1997-99) and Boston Red Sox (1999).
In 12 major league seasons, Webster batted .254 with 73 doubles, two triples, 33 home runs and 176 RBIs. He had a .995 fielding percentage in 528 career games in the majors.