Welcome to the Hall of Fame Coach Wallace!

It barely ever crossed his mind, he said.

But this evening, on the night before the beginning of the Junior College World Series, Wallace will be inducted in the NJCAA Baseball Coaches Hall of Fame.

"The only time I ever thought about it, to be honest," he said, "was when I was sitting there at the banquet (six times since 2000) or when the release came out about who was being inducted and you read about their accomplishments. It's totally out of your control, so you don't put a lot of thought in it.

"... But you know it would be pretty neat."

It's already been quite a year for Wallace. He became the third-fastest in NJCAA Division I history to get 1,000 victories and reached the World Series for the third straight year, unprecedented in school history. He will have his team there as he goes into the Hall of Fame.

"It will be special," Wallace said. "It's a great honor."

Joining him in the Class of 2014 will be Eric Brown of Suffolk County (N.Y.), Steve Ruzich of South Suburban (Ill.) and Thomas Rogers, a former Division II World Series assistant tournament director. Wallace would be considered the headliner, along with guest speaker Tony LaRussa, longtime major league manager and MLB Hall of Famer.

"I'm sure everybody will be more interested in Tony LaRussa," Wallace said.

SMC is 46-16 this season, having reached 40 victories for the 21st time in Wallace's 23 seasons. He is 1,030-323 overall for a winning percentage of .761.

Wallace has won 11 region tournament championships, including the last three straight. He was named NJCAA regional coach of the year eight times, more than he has won that honor in Region 10. The Pioneers have been to the World Series under Wallace in 2001, 2003, 2007, 2009, 2012, 2013 and 2014. SMC also made it twice under former coach Lon Joyce, 1983 and 1985. Joyce, now a top scout for the Los Angeles Dodgers, was inducted into the Hall of Fame in 2012.

"I think he'd be in already if they hadn't wanted to get me in first," Joyce said. "I'm happy for him. He does a great job. He's competitive and works hard. And getting a thousand wins in 23 years is pretty darn good."

Wallace is already a member of the halls of fame at SMC and Wofford, where he was a standout player as a catcher who batted .456 in his two seasons there and had a consecutive-game hitting streak of 37, still school records. Wallace was a second-round draft pick of the St. Louis Cardinals and played seven professional seasons, an all-star in Triple-A, before becoming a batting champion and home run leader in Italy. He returned to Wofford to complete his bachelor's degree and then earned a master's from Gardner-Webb University. He coached the Spartanburg American Legion team in 2004 and 2005, winning two state championships.