Originally, the game and induction ceremony for new Hall of Fame members were held on the same day, a Monday.

As MLB's last remaining in-season exhibition game, its results did not count in the official standings, and substitute players were generally used to avoid injury to starters.

As it was placed in the major league schedule and delaying the game was logistically impossible, several times the game was cancelled and not played in a year due to weather or other circumstances, including rain, the 1981 player's strike, and one, year, a plane malfunction.

On January 29, 2008, Major League Baseball announced that the final Hall of Fame Game would be played on June 16, 2008, between the Chicago Cubs and San Diego Padres, citing "the inherent challenges" of scheduling teams in the modern day as the reason for ending the annual contest.

[7] The game has been played annually since 2011, except in 2020 and 2021 when it was canceled "in accordance with recommendations by the Centers for Disease Control and government officials to limit opportunities for large gatherings and the further spread of the COVID-19 virus."

The crowd for the game was very respectable and Major League Hall of Fame member Carlton Fisk threw out the first pitch.

The game was postponed after the second inning after a rain delay in which Syracuse led 1-0 and went on to win the following day in its completion at Alliance Bank Stadium.