Tech alum and baseball great Rickey Henderson is set to be inducted into baseball’s Hall of Fame in July.

Henderson, who played football, basketball and baseball for Tech, was elected to the Hall of Fame on Jan. 12.

Henderson told a news conference that he was "relieved" and "happy" to be chosen. He also called Oakland fans "the best," adding that "they pulled for me, even when I left ....They always cheered."

Henderson played for the Oakland Athletics from 1979 to 1984 and the New York Yankees from 1985 to 1989. Most of his national league baseball records are intact.

After graduating from Tech in 1976, Henderson was offered athletic scholarships to play college baseball and football. He turned the offers down to play professional baseball. The A's then drafted Henderson.

Wayne Brooks, a history teacher at Oakland Tech since 1972, coached Henderson in football at Tech.

"He was a tremendous athlete," Brooks said. "Ricky could come out, play baseball, steal five bases on one day and then come out and run track the next day."

After one year on the junior varsity football team, Henderson had the chance to play varsity. Instead, he decided to play one more year on the junior varsity team. Brooks believes that showed Henderson’s personality — he was able to recognize that he needed one more year of competition before moving up to a higher level.

"(Rickey) doesn’t compete with human beings," said Brooks. "He competes with himself."