Year Inducted – 1984

This All-Star first baseman’s career got off to a great start. He came to Akron from Parkersburg, West Virginia in 1931, and quickly became a fixture in the A League with the North Akron Merchants before moving to the St. Martha team that captured the League crown. Sam played for the Cuyahoga Falls Majestics, Semler Tavern, and with the League champion Killian Celtics before spending a year in the Detroit Tiger minor league system. He returned to the Celtics for five years, during which he had his most productive year–batting .411 in 1938. His career was interrupted by WW II. After a stint in the U.S. Army, Hickman closed out his baseball career by helping the Smith Sheriffs win the 1946 League title.