KALAMAZOO, Mich. - Western Michigan Athletics Hall of Famer Bill Lajoie has been selected posthumously to the Michigan Sports Hall of Fame's Class of 2026. 

An outfielder on the WMU baseball team from 1953-55, Lajoie earned All-MAC First Team selections in both 1954 and 1955. In 1955, he earned First Team All-American honors after helping Western Michigan to a 25-7 overall record and a MAC Championship with a perfect 9-0 conference record. Lajoie and the Broncos advanced all the way to the College World Series and finished as NCAA Runners-Up. 

Following his time in Kalamazoo, Lajoie was signed by the Baltimore Orioles and spent nine years in the minors, making it as high as Triple-A. After concluding his playing career, he spent time as a scout, minor league manager and as a member of multiple MLB organizations' front offices. 

The former Bronco spent a large portion of his professional career with the Detroit Tigers, first joining the organization as a scout in 1968, and serving as general manager from 1984-90. During his time in Detroit, Lajoie helped to assemble the core of the 1984 World Series Championship team, including landing future stars Kirk Gibson, Jack Morris, Lance Parrish, Dan Petry, Alan Trammell and Lou Whitaker. He went on to win two additional World Series as a consultant for the Atlanta Braves and Boston Red Sox. 

Lajoie was inducted into the Western Michigan Athletics Hall of Fame in 1982 and honored with WMU's distinguished alumnus award in 1988. Throughout the years, he continued to give to the Bronco baseball program, including serving an instrumental role in raising funds for renovations to Robert J. Bobb Stadium at Hyames Field. He passed away on December 28, 2010, at the age of 76.