COOPERSTOWN, New York (Ticker) -- When Carlton Fisk hit one of the most famous homers in baseball history, he passed Tony Perez along the way. The two now have another historic link as the first Hall of Fame inductees of the 21st century.

Fisk, the all-time leader in games caught, and Perez, one of the game's most prolific run producers, were given baseball's highest honor today in balloting conducted by the Baseball Writers Association of America.

A record 499 votes were cast by 10-year members of the BBWAA, with 375 votes required for election. Fisk was the top vote-getter with 397 votes (79.6 percent) in just his second year of eligibility.

"I don't know if it was relief, but .. it was a proud moment," Fisk said. "It really was emotional. My wife and kids and I had tears in our eyes."

The wait was substantially greater for Perez, a teammate of Fisk in 1980 in Boston who garnered 385 votes (77.2 percent) in his ninth year on the ballot.

"Sometimes I got disappointed but I still got a lot of support" Perez said. "It's sweet now. I know I don't have to wait anymore."

Jim Rice, a teammate of both Fisk and Perez, was a distant third in the voting with 257 votes. Gary Carter, the National League counterpart to Fisk for most of his career, was fourth with 248.

Fisk's defining moment was a 12th-inning homer to win Game Six of the 1975 World Series for the Boston Red Sox over the Cincinnati Reds. His leaping celebration as the ball hit the foul poul at Fenway Park is entrenched in baseball lore.

"People that viewed that game saw that we were all people and we run the full gamut of emotions," Fisk said of his celebration. "It gave a little human touch to the game. I was happy to be part of it."

One of the closest players to Fisk was Perez, the first baseman of the Reds who walked off in defeat.

"It was a great game. We battled and they came back. We knew we had another game the next day," said Perez, who hit a key homer the following night to give the Reds a 4-3 win in Game Seven.

Fisk fell 43 votes shy of induction last season and might have gained entry in his first try if not for the star-studded 1999 ballot of Nolan Ryan, George Brett and Robin Yount.

"I was somewhat disappointed last year," Fisk said. "I thought last year's group was ultimately qualified, but I thought I was as good at my position over the same period as they were at theirs."

Fisk and Perez were fourth and fifth, respectively, in the voting last season.

"There were a lot of people telling me this way my year, so I started feeling a little confident about it," Perez admitted.

A native of Vermont who grew up in New Hampshire, the 52-year-old Fisk played his first 11 seasons with the Red Sox and 13 more with the Chicago White Sox.

Just the 13th catcher elected, Fisk has yet to decide the team cap he will wear on his Hall of Fame plaque.

"I'm going to let today's decision become absorbed," Fisk said. "Both places are where I have enjoyed playing. Too bad I couldn't wear both of them."

Eight Hall of Famers represent the Red Sox on their Hall of Fame plaques. According to the Red Sox media guide, 14 players who spent a "significant" portion of their career with the club are enshrined in the Hall.

Fisk is the 13th member of the White Sox with at least five years of service to be elected.

Fisk becomes the seventh Hall of Famer who has played for both the Red Sox and White Sox, joining Luis Aparicio, Harry Hooper, George Kell, Red Ruffing, Tom Seaver and Al Simmons.

An 11-time All-Star as well as the American League Rookie of the Year in 1972, Fisk was a career .269 hitter with 376 homers and 1,330 RBI. He caught 2,226 games and also holds the record for most homers by a catcher (351).

In this relatively weak year, strong sentiment grew for Perez, whose impressive numbers finally were recognized. The native of Cuba becomes the 18th first baseman to gain election.

In a 23-year career with Cincinnati, Montreal and Philadelphia, Perez batted .279 with 379 homers while driving in 1,652 runs.

The 57-year-old appeared in six National League Championship Series and five World Series. He hit .435 in the 1972 World Series, collecting hits in all seven games. While never an MVP he was highly consistent, driving in over 100 runs on seven occasions.

He was an All-Star seven times and was named the MVP of the 1967 contest in Anaheim. Perez is the third member of the "Big Red Machine" to be inducted, joining Johnny Bench and Joe Morgan.

"I think it helped my chances to be on a team with so many great players," Perez said. "It will be something to follow my teammates and be there with Johnny and Joe."

He is the 32nd Hall of Famer to play at least part of his career in Cincinnati.

Perez is currently an assistant to the general manager of the Florida Marlins.

Rounding out the top 10 in voting were Bruce Sutter (192), Rich Gossage (166), Steve Garvey (160), Tommy John (135), Jim Kaat (125) and Dale Murphy (116).

Gossage, who has 310 saves, had the most votes of any of the 14 first-year players on the ballot. No reliever has been honored with a first-year election and Hoyt Wilhelm and Rollie Fingers are the only relievers enshrined.

Jack Morris, the winningest pitcher of the 1980s, was 11th with just 111 votes. He was the only other first-year candidate to gain enough support to remain on the ballot.

Candidates may stay on the ballot up to 15 years provided they receive five percent of the vote. In this year's ballot, 25 are required to remain. Six writers submitted blank votes, which are added to the total.

Dave Parker was 12th in the voting with 104 votes and was followed by Bert Blyleven (87), Luis Tiant (86), Dave Concepcion (67), Keith Hernandez (52) and Ron Guidry (44).

Reliever Jeff Reardon will be off next year's ballot after collecting 24 votes, as will Bob Boone (21), Willie Wilson (10), Rick Sutcliffe (9), Kent Hrbek (5), Charlie Hough (4), Dave Henderson (2), Steve Sax (2), Bill Gullickson (1), Bruce Hurst (1), Lonnie Smith (1), Bob Welch (1) and Hubie Brooks (0).

Induction ceremonies, which will increase the number of Hall of Fame members to 246, are scheduled for July 23.

Additional enshrinees can be named by the Veterans Committee, which meets February 29 in Tampa, Florida. Among the leading candidates will be Sparky Anderson, Perez's manager in Cincinnati.

Eligible players in 2001 will include Dave Winfield, Don Mattingly and Kirby Puckett.