The Veterans Committee was the popular name of the National Baseball Hall of Fame Committee to Consider Managers, Umpires, Executives and Long-Retired Players; a former voting committee of the U.S. Baseball Hall of Fame that provided an opportunity for Hall of Fame enshrinement to all individuals who are eligible for induction but ineligible for consideration by the Baseball Writers' Association of America (BBWAA). The term "Veterans Committee" (was composed of four committees of baseball veterans) is taken from the body's former official name: National Baseball Hall of Fame Committee on Baseball Veterans (1953). In July 2010, the Veterans Committee name was changed by the Hall of Fame Board of Directors and its name was no longer officially used by the Hall of Fame, which called three new 16-member voting committees by era: the Expansion Era Committee (1973-present), the Golden Era Committee (1947-1972), and the Pre-Integration Era Committee (1876-1946) - each, "The Committee" (the term "Veterans Committee" is still being used by some sports media). The three committees met on a rotating cycle once every three years to elect candidates from each era to the Hall of Fame that have been "identified" by a BBWAA-appointed "Screening Committee" named the "Historical Overview Committee" (10-12 representatives; BBWAA members).

On May 9, 1949, it was announced that two pitchers had been selected:  Mordecai "Three Finger" Brown, whose career extended from 1903 to 1916, ending with 239 victories and a 2.06 ERA; he had been the main pitching star on the Chicago Cubs teams which dominated the National League between 1906 and 1910, with Brown winning 20 or more games each season as the club won four pennants. His shutout in Game 5 of the 1907 World Series clinched the championship for the Cubs. In twenty-five career matchups against Christy Mathewson, Brown won thirteen times, with Mathewson winning eleven. His partial loss of two fingers in a childhood farm accident had led to his pitches having an atypical motion.  Charles "Kid" Nichols, who won 360 games between 1890 and 1906, primarily with the five-time champion Boston Beaneaters; at age 30, he became the youngest man ever to win 300 games, and he retired with the third-most wins of any pitcher. He won over 20 games every year in the 1890s, and won 30 or more a record seven times. An incredibly strong-armed pitcher despite his small size (5'9", 170 pounds (77 kg)), he regularly pitched over 400 innings per year, and completed all but 30 of his 561 career starts - never being replaced by a relief pitcher.  Nichols was still living, but Brown had died February 14, 1948. They were formally inducted on June 13 along with Charlie Gehringer and the 1948 selections, Pie Traynor and the late Herb Pennock; Nichols and Traynor were in attendance.  The selection of these two pitchers from the period between 1890 and 1916 was roundly applauded, but it was noted that stars of the earlier era had been ignored once again, as well as position players from the same period.

Ask a question about this article.
What are the criteria that makes one eligible for the veterans commitee