Gene MacDonald criss-crossed Prince Edward Island calling balls and strikes and declaring players safe or out on bang-bang plays.
But after 40 years, the Souris native and Cherry Valley resident hung up his counter in 2019 and stepped away from the field he spent much of his summers on.
“I played, I coached and then, when I was done coaching, I started umpiring,” he said earlier this week at Central Field in Charlottetown. “I enjoyed it.”
MacDonald, 73, played first base before getting into coaching. His final season, he managed a men’s team from Souris to a Maritime championship. With the achievement accomplished, someone suggested umpiring, and the goal-oriented man decided to give it a shot the next year.
Always a competitor during his playing and coaching days, MacDonald said it helped him when he donned the blue-coloured uniform of the umpire crew. The experience helped in the transition, but the new role also provided him with a new perspective.
“When I was coaching, sometimes I’d be umpiring and then, when I started umpiring, I knew exactly how umpires felt if it was a close call.”
He began in the Souris area and did lots of tournaments. He also did a couple of years in the Kings County Baseball League, but most of his time was spent on the softball diamond.
“You try to bring your A-game every evening to the ballpark, no matter if it’s minor league or intermediate level,” he said. “The desire to do as best as I can in the game, I think that is sort of what kept me going, and the love for the game as well.”
MacDonald was one of the first umpires Michael French worked with when he started umpiring about 20 years ago. He called him a true gentleman who was involved for the right reasons.
“You don’t umpire for 40 years for nothing,” he said. “Obviously, he had a passion for the game; he had a passion for the people and that’s the biggest thing. ... He was an A-1 umpire, but he was an even better person.”
He was struck by the professionalism and way MacDonald handled his role in the game.
“He’s a teacher by trade, a principal,” French said. “His communication with the kids and the coaches was very calm. …
“He’s so calm with everything he does, you can’t help but start to follow his example.”
Softball P.E.I. president Chris Halliwell agreed.
“He’s a great umpire,” he said, “and a great personality, too. He had a good demeanour for umpiring because he’s friendly but a no-nonsense kind of guy. He seemed to get along with everybody he dealt with.”
“He’s a great umpire and a great personality, too. He had a good demeanour for umpiring because he’s friendly but a no-nonsense kind of guy. He seemed to get along with everybody he dealt with.”
- Chris Halliwell
MacDonald got into administration in the education system as a vice-principal at Souris Regional School and had a few more stops before retiring in 2005 after eight years as principal at Eliot River Elementary School in Cornwall.
There were similarities between the school and the field.
“Just like a teacher, he loves to see them grow as an athlete,” French said. “That teacher in him really came out.”
French could lean on MacDonald anytime he needed him. Sometimes it would be with a ruling of a call, and other times it was just to see how the veteran would approach a situation.
“We’re losing a huge mentor,” French said. “Any of our younger umpires – I could set them with him – and he could take them under his wing.”
And while MacDonald may not be physically on the field this year, a part of him is in some ways still there, given the wisdom he has instilled organically in the next generation through the years.
“It’s humbling in a way,” said MacDonald, who earned the senior umpire of the year award in 2018 from Softball P.E.I.
He said he has many great memories and made many lifelong friendships from his time on the diamond. He worked two nationals, including the 1983 junior men’s competition in Summerside. He doesn’t know how many games he would have done in his career, but recalled he did 118 contests in 1983.
Halliwell said Prince Edward Island summers are cherished and for MacDonald to give up a few nights through the week and many weekends, shows his love and dedication to softball.
“He’s probably given up a couple of summers of his life to the sport, so he’s got to love the sport.”
MacDonald chuckled when recalling one of the things his son, Shawn, said.
“That’s a lot of bug spray over 40 years,” he smiled.
