Gair Allie

Year Inducted: 2018

Gair Allie was a three-sport standout at Statesville High School from 1947-1950. He was named Mr. Statesville his senior year which represented the top all-around athlete within the city. Gair chose an athletic scholarship to play baseball at Wake Forest over a football scholarship at UNC. While at Wake, he was being scouted by Major League Baseball teams.

During the summer of 1951, Allie played in the Canadian League batting .400 and led the league in home runs with 19. In September of 1951, Allie signed a contract with the Pittsburgh Pirates that included a $20,000 bonus. He was assigned to the New Orleans Pelicans and was named Honorary Mayor of New Orleans due to his excellent baseball ability and popularity within New Orleans community.

Gair was called up to the Majors in 1954 and debuted on April 13, 1954. In the Majors, he started 92 games at shortstop and 18 at third base with 83 hits, including 8 doubles, 6 triples and 3 home runs with 30 RBI. He played 9 seasons of professional baseball, retiring in 1961.