Joe Caldwell and Andre Ethier to Join Arizona Sports Hall of Fame Nov. 1
Two Arizona State University alumni Joe Caldwell and Andre Ethier are joining a prestigious list of former Sun Devil athletes to be elected to the Arizona Sports Hall of Fame on Nov. 1.
The Arizona Sports Hall of Fame was founded in 1957 and has honored several athletes, coaches, and administrators who have made outstanding contributions to the Arizona sports committee.
Caldwell and Ethier are joining a list of legendary Sun Devils Frank Kush, Fat Lever, Darren Woodson and many other Arizona State athletes and coaches that are in the Arizona Sports Hall of Fame. The last Sun Devil to be inducted into the Arizona Sports Hall of Fame was late Pat Tillman in 2018.
Caldwell was inducted in the Arizona State Hall of fame in 1975 as his number hangs from the rafters in Desert Financial Arena. Caldwell was a huge part of the Sun Devils success during his four-year tenure at Arizona State, he led the team to four straight NCAA tournament births, and a 65-18 record during his time on the team in 1961-1964. Caldwell later went on to be the second overall draft pick by the Detroit Pistons in the 1964 NBA draft and became an Olympic gold medalist earlier that year.
Ethier a Phoenix native, graduated from St. Mary's High School transferred to Arizona State after two years at Chandler-Gilbert Community College. In two seasons with the Sun Devils, Ethier earned first-team All–Pac–10 honors, helped lead the team to the NCAA Tournament and finished his collegiate career with a 23-game hitting streak. Ethier was selected in the second round of the 2003 MLB Draft by the Oakland Athletics and had a successful 12-year career with the Los Angeles Dodgers which included 162 home runs, 687 RBI's and a career .285 batting average.
Charles Barkley and Joann Fitzsimmons are honorary chairs for the induction ceremony as both were inducted into the Arizona Sports Hall of Fame in 2015. Pedro Gomez was a part of the Arizona board of trustees, as Barkley and Fitzsimmons presence for the ceremony in 2021 are to honor Gomez, who passed away tragically in 2021.
The ceremony was originally scheduled for April 23, 2021 but was moved due to previous COVID-19 concerns earlier in the year. The event is now scheduled to be presented on Nov. 1 at 5:30 p.m. at The Phoenician.