Photo by Sam Thiel The family of Pat Bushard poses for a photo after receiving his plaque inducting him into the Marshall Baseball Association Hall of Fame on Friday at Legion Field.

MARSHALL — After a two-year hiatus due to COVID-19, there is a new member to the Marshall Baseball Hall of Fame.

Pat Bushard became the latest inductee in a small ceremony on Friday at Legion Field prior to Marshall’s game against Luverne. Bushard passed away at the age of 60 on March 27, 2018. He was represented by a group of family members, including his daughter Katie (Bushard) Morrell.

Morrell said they were honored when they found out Bushard was going to be inducted this summer and it’s a great way to celebrate his career.

“We were super honored that he was considered for this award,” Morrell said. “It means a lot to our family, especially because he’s not with us anymore, and it’s an awesome way to remember him and celebrate the awesome baseball career he had. We’ve heard some of these stories and read the articles but just to have him recognized by the Marshall baseball community is really special.”

Bushard spent more than 15 years in Marshall and the surrounding area as a player at the youth, high school, collegiate and amateur level. During his time at Marshall High School, Bushard helped guide MHS to a runner-up finish at the Class AA state tournament in 1976. Throughout that tournament run, Bushard threw 21 scoreless innings before being pulled in the seventh inning of the championship game due to pitching rules. In his senior season, he finished with a record of 15-0, including 10 complete games and four shutouts and had an earned run average (ERA) of 0.90. His 15 victories in a season and 21 innings pitched in the state tournament were among some of his Minnesota state high school records.

After graduating from MHS, Bushard stayed home and played for Southwest Minnesota State University where he recorded 147 strikeouts in 183 innings in four seasons. He also earned All-NIC first-team honors in 1980 and he is currently tied for fifth in school history with 17 complete games and eighth with 147 strikeouts.

Bushard then went on to play for the Marshall A’s and Marshall Giants as well as a season for Cottonwood.

Morrell said it’s special to see the support from the Marshall community for their family.

“It’s awesome,” Morrell said. “The Marshall community is great, I think it’s such a special place; we’ve seen some of the familiar faces [tonight] that were close family friends that showed up for the game, we’ve had some great hospitality from Dan Fosvick down at Fuzzy’s beforehand for our family and a special sign that he made for him. It just feels like this is home even though he moved out of the Marshall community in the 1980s this feels like home for him certainly and for most of us.”