COOPERSTOWN, N.Y. • "The Hawk" has landed in Cooperstown.

Andre Dawson, who endured 12 knee surgeries to forge an impressive 21-year major league career, was inducted Sunday into the National Baseball Hall of Fame, becoming just the 203rd player in the game's long history to receive the honor.

"Thank you for welcoming this rookie to your team" said Dawson, who played for a decade in Montreal before signing with the Chicago Cubs as a free agent. "It's an honor beyond words. I didn't play this game with this goal in mind, but I'm living proof that if you love this game, the game will love you back. I am proof that any young person who can hear my voice right now can be standing here as I am."

Dawson, an All-Star eight times who had 438 homers, 2,774 hits, 1,591 RBIs and 314 stolen bases in his career from 1976 to 1996, warned players not to be lured to the dark side of using performance-enhancing drugs.

"There's nothing wrong with the game of baseball," said Dawson, one of just three players to hit 400 homers and steal 300 bases. "Baseball will, from time to time like anything else in life, fall victim to the mistakes that people make. It's not pleasant and it's not right. Individuals have chosen the wrong road, and they're choosing that as their legacy. Those mistakes have hurt the game and taken a toll on all of us."

Dawson was part of a class that included former manager Whitey Herzog, umpire Doug Harvey, broadcaster Jon Miller and sports writer Bill Madden. The ceremony also honored Rock and Roll Hall of Famer John Fogerty, who sang his classic song "Centerfield."

Harvey, 80, who worked in the National League from 1962 to 1992, called 4,673 regular-season games during his major-league career and also umpired five World Series, six All-Star Games and nine National League Championship Series.