Kinston baseball Hall of Fame banquet set for Feb. 27 at King’s Restaurant

Bill Ellis is inviting the public to the Kinston Professional Baseball Sports Hall of Fame banquet set for 6 p.m. Friday, Feb. 27, at King’s Restaurant.

“This will be our 26th or 27th banquet,” Ellis said.

Ellis said this year’s class will include Ross Atkins, who played at Wake Forest and spent two seasons in Kinston after being drafted by the Cleveland Indians. Ellis said Atkins later worked in player development and in the front office in Cleveland before moving to Toronto, where he is general manager of the Blue Jays.

The banquet will also recognize Kinston’s 12-and-under Dixie Youth girls softball team that finished as a World Series runner-up, Ellis said, and honor longtime Eastern North Carolina baseball figure Rabbit Fordham for his impact on the sport.

Ellis said the annual event is unusual for a community Kinston’s size. “I promise you there’s not many towns of 20,000 or less that will be hosting a hot stove banquet with professional athletes,” he said.