Mary Anne Gaetz is in a class of her own
Mary Anne Gaetz, Unity, Saskatchewan, loved baseball and was a familiar sight at all levels of Unity ball games and tournaments. She then became scorekeeper for baseball in Unity for 51 years.
During that very first game as scorekeeper, Mary Anne took a hard-hit foul ball to the side of her head. She does not remember who played that first game, but she does remember sitting on a bench with telephone poles just inside the fence, when hit by a foul ball, giving her “a pretty hard smack”, on the side of her head. She was moved to the outer edge of the bench in concern for her safety. As well, the players were ordered to catch any foul balls hit in that direction.
Since Mary Anne loved watching ball, she kept coming back and continued to keep score at all the games. When the Saskatchewan Major Baseball League folded, Gaetz started attending more minor baseball games. After 54 years, Mary Anne can still be found with her clipboard and score sheets, sitting behind the fence or in the announcer’s booth.
Seeing the growth of the players and the development of their skills over the years became one of her favourite things about ball. She has seen generations of ball players from grandfathers and fathers of the children now on the diamonds. Whether it’s Mosquitos to Seniors in baseball, or Squirts to Juniors in softball, Mary Anne does not have a favourite league or level. She loves it all!
2014 Mary Anne was asked, and willingly helped keep score at the Westerns in Battleford.
2017 was a busy year culminating with keeping score for most of the games in the 18 Senior AA Tier 3 Provincials.
2018 was a very busy year for Mary Anne, scorekeeping a total of 62 games over the season.
Unlike umpires, scorekeepers are not paid. It is a volunteer position taken on by a parent, assistant coach or shared by players on the bench. This makes Gaetz 50 plus years contribution to Unity ball history even more remarkable and a vital part of the ball community.
Mary Anne Gaetz is in a class of her own!
