COOPERSTOWN, N.Y. -- The road from Pittsburgh to Cooperstown has its share of orange barrels and construction delays, but the detours seem insignificant now that Barney Dreyfuss, a baseball pioneer from the old school, has completed his trip to fame.

Three score and 16 years after his death, the man who turned the Pirates into a powerhouse for the first three decades of the 20th century and blazed a trail for baseball to claim its spot in the national psyche was formally inducted yesterday into the Hall of Fame.

Other than family members and a handful of historians, few in the crowd of 10,000 or so who witnessed the latest round of enshrinements know the real contributions of Mr. Dreyfuss, who died in 1932 before there was a baseball Hall of Fame.

Yet time-honored traditions like the World Series, the structure of American and National leagues, the modern ballpark, the one-man rule by a commissioner and the growth of baseball from its rustic roots to what it is today all bear the fingerprints of a German immigrant who found a home in Pittsburgh.

"He was a baseball man," said his great-grandson, Andrew, who delivered the acceptance speech. "He cared about the game, the players, the city. He understood that everyone had a share of it -- the fans, the players, the owners. He worked hard at growing the game. He cared about winning. He lived the American dream, and he always said America is and always has been the land of opportunity."

The Dreyfuss legacy might have remained in the obscure pages of history and the musty microfilm of old newspapers. But an internal review by an overview committee of the National Baseball Hall of Fame and Museum started a process that remedied an oversight.

The committee is charged with looking back to determine if pioneers, pillars and promoters of the game have been overlooked during the selection process. In its review of a number of candidates, the panel checked the Dreyfuss legacy and nominated him to the Veterans Committee, a 15-member panel that looks into the contributions of executives and other baseball people.

Once his credentials were detailed, the Veterans Committee took care of the rest. It was the same committee that selected Pirates great Bill Mazeroski in 2001, and by pure coincidence, Mr. Dreyfuss began his baseball odyssey as a second baseman while Maz was the best defensive second baseman who ever played the game. Given the state of the Pirates over the past 16 seasons, the notion has been floated that they may be the last two Pirates to be so honored.

Mr. Mazeroski and Pirates slugger Ralph Kiner were among 56 Hall of Famers in attendance yesterday, the largest gathering in one place at one time ever. Of the 286 people enshrined at Cooperstown, 64 are still living.

Frank Coonelly, the current president of the Pirates, represented the franchise at ceremonies held in the shadow of the Adirondacks, which are home to lakes, streams and fertile valleys and the village that stakes its claim as the spiritual home of baseball.

"It was important to show our respect to Mr. Dreyfuss and his family for their contributions to baseball and to Pittsburgh," Mr. Coonelly said. "He always said that Pittsburgh was a first division town, that it had first division fans and that it deserved first division teams."

A tribute to the Dreyfuss legacy is being planned for sometime this summer at PNC Park once the details are worked out with the family.

After Mr. Dreyfuss merged his Louisville Colonels team with the Pirates prior to the 1900 season, the Pirates won six NL pennants, finished second seven times and finished third or higher 21 times. The Pirates also won two world championships under Mr. Dreyfuss and appeared in two other World Series. His 1902 team finished 27 1/2 games ahead of Brooklyn in the regular season, a mark that still stands as a record.

In 1903, Mr. Dreyfuss played a key role in recognizing the American League as an equal to the National League, and extended an invitation for a post-season series between his Pirates and the franchise that became the Boston Red Sox. That evolved into the World Series, the annual showdown for baseball's championship.

With his enshrinement, Mr. Dreyfuss is reunited with Honus Wagner, who was a member of the inaugural class of the Hall of Fame. Mr. Dreyfuss had Mr. Wagner for three years in Louisville and brought the Carnegie native back home to wear the Pirates uniform. A total of 12 Hall of Fame players started their careers under Mr. Dreyfuss.

A family following calling themselves "Barney's Bandwagon" was among those in attendance, which was far smaller than the 75,000 who turned out a year ago. The Dreyfuss family paid tribute to the Benswanger family of Pittsburgh. When Mr. Dreyfuss died in 1932, son-in-law William Benswanger ran the team for 14 more seasons before it was sold to a group that included John Galbreath and Bing Crosby.

Two pieces of memorabilia are as much a part of the Hall of Fame as the plaque honoring Mr. Dreyfuss. One is a trophy awarded to the 1901 NL champions by the Railroad Men of Pittsburgh, and the second is a silver cup presented by the fans of the Pirates in 1924 in recognition of his first 25 years as team owner.

Meanwhile, in his induction speech, relief pitcher Rich Gossage specifically thanked Chuck Tanner and Dick Allen, both natives of Western Pennsylvania, for their contributions to his success. Mr. Tanner was the manager who put Mr. Gossage in the bullpen, and Mr. Allen was an established hitter who took the rookie pitcher under his wing in 1972.