BRIDGETON — Even with everything Todd Frazier has accomplished in his young life, he was admittedly a little surprised to hear from the All Sports Museum of Southern New Jersey.

But the Cincinnati Reds third baseman and Toms River native was happy for the invitation, and on Tuesday morning was inducted as a member in front of a small crowd that included his father Charlie.

“I had a high school hall of fame (at Toms River South), but nothing like this,” Frazier said after the short ceremony. “This is truly an honor, especially anything that has roots in New Jersey I take very seriously. It’s South Jersey, we have a lot of great athletes here. It’s pretty cool to walk around see all the familiar faces (on display).

“I thought it was interesting (they wanted to induct me). We couldn’t click last year ... but we finally set up a time. I know they put countless hours into this ... for me to come down is a small token of gratitude for what they do.”

Last year's ceremony to induct Phillies manager Charlie Manuel was standing room only with a crowd of about 50 standing outside the museum. With wind chills well below zero expected Tuesday morning and one estimate that some 200 Frazier fans showed up for every game of a Reds-Phillies series at Citizens Bank Park in August 2012, the museum committee didn't want a similar situation developing and didn't announce the induction publicly.

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Frazier is one of the youngest inductees in the history of the museum, in large part because his fame started long before he played for the Reds, or even his all-America days at Rutgers. When he was 12, he was an integral part of the Toms River team that won the 1998 Little League World Series, going 4-for-4 with a homer in the title game and striking out the final batter in a 12-9 win over Japan.

“That was kind of the starting point, I guess you could say,” Frazier said. “I felt like, if I can play this good at 12, why not keep playing? Why not see what can happen? It’s always been my No. 1 goal to be a major leaguer ... and right now I’m pretty happy.”

In between, Frazier starred at Toms River South in baseball and basketball, finishing as a 1,000-point scorer.

The youngest of three brothers who all played professional baseball, Todd is the only one to reach the majors. Frazier made his debut in Philadelphia in May of 2011, and he’ll start his second season as the Reds’ everyday third baseman this spring. He batted .234 with 19 homers and 73 RBIs in his first full season as an everyday player in 2013, and feels he’s poised to take a step forward this season.

“It’s pretty ironic (to make my debut in Philly), I struck out my first at-bat (as a pinch-hitter) and got sent down (the next day),” he recalled. “It’s a blessing and a curse at the same time.

“I like playing in cold weather, in September and April I did pretty good and then once it got warm I smoothed out a little bit. I’ll be fine, my pitch selection was a little bad last year, had a couple of struggles. There’s a lot of things I thought I did well that I can build on. I know my defense will be there.”

"We did it with (Haddon Heights native and Paul VI graduate) Andrew Bailey, he was probably one of the youngest ones we inducted and went on and won a World Series (with the Boston Red Sox)," said committee chairperson Dom Valella. "Hopefully Todd can go on next year, make the playoffs again and win something. Here we're getting them before (the end of their careers if we can).

"Mike Trout would be a great one, we would love to induct Mike and his dad (Jeff). His dad was a professional ballplayer too, Charlie Manuel actually coached his dad. He's a young 22-year-old kid enjoying himself, so there's plenty of time. Hopefully he'll accept an invitation someday to be inducted here."

The group went on to have lunch at The Green Olive Restaurant nearby before Frazier returned home with a new plaque and a little better understanding of just how far his reputation and talent has taken him in his home state.

“I might have been down here when I was younger, but I don’t really remember,” Frazier said of Bridgeton. “The drive was a little pain in the butt, but at the same time it was well worth it.”

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