Julie Pusateri raised the bar on what a team mom and baseball
mom should be.
Julie Pusateri raised the bar on what a team mom and baseball mom should be.
Every player who crossed her path over the years was treated like her own son.
Parents sensed her compassion and soon realized she was the rock that kept every team glued together.
As every baseball season wore on she was always the one keeping everyone on schedule, making sure people abided by their snack schedule, acting as a peacemaker between coaches and parent, and most importantly seeing to the needs for every child on the team.
If a player needed a ride home she was always there to lend a ride even if it meant going all the way across town.
Missing a sock? She’d find the replacement.
Needing a laugh? She’d find a way to cheer you up with her distinct sense of humor.
Her treks took her to exotic places that she probably considered her own private seven wonders of the world, namely, Manteca, Rainbow Fields in Modesto, Salinas, Redding, Twin Creeks, Paso Robles and Monterey.
She could have qualified for the frequent driver gas mileage card if any of the big oil companies ever issued such a card.
The odometer on her SUV has probably been in triple digits for a long time and the car itself has seen every major artery in the state of California.
Through scorching heat and dusty fields she never became unfazed.
Chilling winds and monsoon rains never kept her from her quest to see another game, drive another mile or help another player.
It was just something she did and something she quietly enjoyed.
Upon my arrival in Morgan Hill some years ago, her family is one of the first I came in contact with.
My own son was a baseball player and soon struck up a friendship with her son.
As she did with every kid, she treated him like one of her own.
I’ll always be internally grateful for the way she cared for my son and got him going with playing baseball in town.
Her passing has left many players and parents shedding tears and suffering through days of sadness.
You just can’t replace a person who had passion for what she did and someone who put the needs of others before her own.
Right now in heaven she’s probably explaining to everyone that will listen as to why the scorebook should be revamped to make it better suited for the people aspiring to keep score.
And you know what? God is listening because he knows she was the best in her time here among us.
Julie Pusateri raised the bar on what a team mom and baseball mom should be.
She’ll be sorely missed by the youth baseball and sports community because she set the standards for everyone else to follow and attain.
If every new mother embarking on her child’s sports career can follow in Julie’s footsteps, the world will be a better place for every player that takes the field.
Rich Taylor is the CEO and head instructor of California Pitching Academy and a scout for the New York Mets. Reach him at rj********@***oo.com.
