Sarge, as he was affectionately known, served as a batboy for the Moose Jaw Miller Express and a number of other teams over the years here in the Friendly City, spanning over four decades.
“Me and Sarge were going on 25 years,” said Cory Olafson, a former Millers player and now general manager and coach. “I started playing with the Astros it was in 1988 and it was really from then on.”
Sarge started working as a batboy for teams in his late-teens or early-20s and didn't miss many games after that. Olafson says there are many people who have fond memories of Sarge, “I was talking to Rod Heisler on the phone and I told him that if him, me and Terry Marak got together, we could share hours and hours of stuff. The memories are plentiful because he used to travel with us on the road. Lots of stories, lots of memories there.”
While the news of Ostrom's passing last Thursday hit everyone in the Moose Jaw baseball community hard. It might not hit home until summer comes and the first season in 40 years without him actually comes. “I'm sure I'll find myself looking down the third baseline a few times this year looking for Sarge and not being able to see him,” said Olafson, who had developed a very good friendship with Sarge over the years.
“He was a fixture in our dugout for the first 15 years I played, he didn't miss many games and when his health started to deteriorate over the last few years, he was always at the games he could make down the third baseline in his wheelchair.”
This is the second passing to hit the Miller Express baseball family this winter after Brennan Luffman passed away in a car accident earlier in December. Olafson says they will honour both of them on opening day of the WMBL season, “Opening Day is definitely going to be a sad because we definitely have to something for both Brennan and Sarge on opening day.”
A funeral service is planned for Wednesday, January 2nd, 1:30pm, at the Parkview Funeral Chapel.
Thu, Apr 25, 8:00 AM
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