Hall of Fame
From 2003 through 2006, Brian Dinkelman rewrote the McKendree baseball record book and made plenty of history in the process. During Brian's four-year career, the Bearcat baseball program averaged 43 wins per season and captured four consecutive American Midwest Conference tournament championships along with a pair of AMC regular-season titles.
On the baseball diamond, few players compared with Brian and the statistics he produced in a fouryear span. Statistically, he could be considered the best player to ever wear a McKendree uniform. Brian broke five NAIA career records, including the prestigious hits record with 373. He also collected the NAIA career marks for doubles (96), runs scored (303), total bases (670) and fielding assists (679). Brian broke or tied 25 career records while at McKendree, 24 of which still stood at the time of his induction.
The list of individual honors for Brian is endless. He was named as the NAIA Player of the Year following his senior season in 2006. Brian was twice named as a first-team NAIA All-American in 2004 and 2006 - and grabbed second-team accolades in 2005. He received the AMC Player of the Year award in each of his last three years at McKendree after garnering AMC Freshman of the Year honors in 2003. A four-time All-Conference and NAIA All-Region V performer, Brian earned regional Player of the Year recognition in 2004 and 2006.
Following his McKendree playing days, Brian was an eighth-round selection in the 2006 Major League Baseball First-Year Player Draft by the Minnesota Twins. After progressing through the Twins'minor-Ieague system and earning All-Star honors four different times during his minor league career, Brian received the call that all baseball players dream of in early June 2011. He was promoted to the major league level with Minnesota, and made his major league debut on June 4, 2011. Brian's first major league hit came that night in a victory at Kansas City. In two different stints with the Twins, Brian hit .301 in 23 games and did not commit an error in the field.
