The Rutherford Little League notes with sadness the passing of Andrew Ortega, a 2010 Rutherford Little Leaguer and tournament player who died suddenly Saturday 28-Aug-2010 at age 13.
The League notes with extreme sadness the passing of league president Walt Mager, who died Thursday 14-May-2015 at age 68.
Mager, a native of Batavia, N.Y., who was raised in East Orange and served in the Marine Corps in Vietnam, was a plumber by trade. He served as a plumbing inspector as well as an instructor at Hohokus School of Trade, part of Eastwick College.
He joined Rutherford Little League in 1991, when his youngest son, John, joined Tee Ball. He managed his son at that level and in Minor League for three seasons. He also coordinated the Tee Ball league in 1992.
In the fall of 1992, Mager volunteered to coordinate the hosting of the 1993 state finals at Rutherford Little League. Following that success, he became an integral member of the Board of Directors, and he was elected president for the 1995 season.
For the next two decades, Mager remained at the helm of the league, introducing enhancements to the Minor Leagues and Tee Ball as well as overseeing the arrival of Recreation softball to the Little League program in 2011. He also spearheaded a safety program that received a regional award, advocating for enhanced protective equipment such as face guards for all batters and heart guards for all pitchers.
Health issues dogged him over the last few years, but he remained active in league operations until a week before his death.
In addition to John, Walt leaves behind his wife, the former Christine Dunn, as well as several children from this and a previous marriage. The League extends its most earnest condolences to his entire family.
The Rutherford Little League notes with extreme sadness the death in active duty of Spc. Jonathan Batista (Flash 2002), killed in action in Afghanistan Sunday 8-Jul-2012.
Batista, 22, who played just one season in the League, was part of the Flash team that rallied from a third-place finish in the American League to win the town championship. He also played on the tournament team that won the District 5 championship.
He was a 2007 graduate of Rutherford High School serving his first tour in Afghanistan as an infantryman. He perished when enemy forces attacked his unit with small arms fire in Zharay, Kandahar province.
In addition to other tributes, the Lyndhurst Little League has generously arranged to donate a portion of the proceeds from 50/50 raffle revenues at the 2012 Lyndhurst Junior League Tournament to the Wounded Warrior Project in Spc. Batista’s memory.
The League extends its condolences to all of Batista’s family and honors his service to our country.
The Rutherford Little League notes with sadness the passing of Heather Sartori, a player on the Lions team in Junior Softball, who died suddenly Thursday 12-Apr-2012 at age 13.
Sartori came out for softball for the first time in 2012 and was looking forward to playing her first game as a Rutherford Little Leaguer on Saturday.
The League extends its sincerest condolences to Heather’s father, Phil (Elks 1982), and her entire family.
The Rutherford Little League notes with sadness the passing of Andrew Ortega, a 2010 Rutherford Little Leaguer and tournament player who died suddenly Saturday 28-Aug-2010 at age 13.
Ortega joined the league as a Tee Ball player in 2003, and he was drafted into the Major level by Flash Cleaners in 2007. He played for the team through its two seasons as Cedola’s Friendly Service and into 2010 as Elks. He was the team’s catcher the last two seasons, and as a league age 12-year-old in 2010, he hit .500 (25/50) with three home runs, playing his way onto the American League tournament team. This was his only career tournament appearance.
In addition, he went 5-for-5 with two doubles in the 2010 town playoffs, completing a playoff career in which he batted an outstanding .875 (7/8) in four games.
The League extends its sincerest condolences to Andrew Ortega’s entire family at this difficult time.
The Rutherford Little League notes with sadness the passing of Jim Manning, who died Tuesday 7-Apr at age 78.
Manning, a former baseball player at Brooklyn Prep, at Notre Dame, with the Quantico Marines, and with the Great Falls Electrics of the Pioneer League, a Brooklyn Dodgers farm club, came to Rutherford in the 1960s and became the manager of Flash Cleaners in 1968. Over ten seasons managing his sons’ teams, Flash won the American League title six times and captured the Town Series four times.
Jim’s five sons, Steve, Fran, Jamie, Bill, and Henry, all played on his Flash teams and on American League tournament teams. Bill holds the league’s career home-run record with 16, including eight in 1977, while Henry went on to a five-year career in the Chicago White Sox organization and is now the head coach at Pace University.
The League extends its condolences to Jim’s wife Bert and his entire family.
The Rutherford Little League notes with sadness the passing of Jack Dunn, former manager and member of the Board of Directors, on Monday, December 22.
Jack, 55, managed Tee Ball teams that his sons Steve and Garrett played on in 1991-92 and in 1995, and then became the manager of Rotary in the Major League in 1998. He stayed at the helm of the team, which became P.B.A. Local 300 in 1999, through the 2002 season. Jack then served on the Board of Directors for three seasons, 2003 through 2005.
The League extends its condolences to Jack’s wife Nancy and his entire family.
The Rutherford Little League notes with sadness the passing of its founder and first president, Paul Devlin, on Monday 17-Nov-2008, at age 97.
Devlin was working with the Rutherford High School baseball team in 1950 when he noticed the success of the Little League program that had begun in Lyndhurst the year before. He pushed for such a program to begin in Rutherford, and along with his friend Ed Morse of the Rutherford YMCA, he started a Little League in Rutherford. Four teams of fifteen players each participated in 1951, with games taking place during that summer at Rutherford Field (now Tamblyn Field).
When the League reorganized and obtained an official Williamsport charter for 1952, Devlin stepped aside and allowed others to carry the program forward. In 1953, the League moved to its current field at the recently dedicated Memorial Park, and Devlin, who lived half a block away, would be seen for the next 56 seasons taking walks in the park and stopping to enjoy the Little League action.
Paul’s two sons played in Rutherford Little League, Gerry for Kiwanis through 1958 and Billy for Gilio Music through 1965. A grandson, Jeff Crowley, played for Tommy’s Towing through 1998.
The League extends its condolences to Paul Devlin’s entire family.
The Rutherford Little League expresses its deep sorrow to the families and friends of the four individuals with ties to the League who perished in the destruction of New York’s World Trade Center 11-Sep-2001:
Harry L. Usher, a Rutherford Little Leaguer during the League's first season in 1951 who became a successful lawyer and an organizer of the 1984 Los Angeles Olympics, died Thursday 22-Jun-2000 in Secaucus, N.J. He was 61.
Usher played for the second-place Kiwanis team in 1951, as a 12-year-old. On 9-Aug, he pitched a perfect game, one of only three recorded in the League's 50-year history. Joe Rybka (1958) and John Dolan (1983) are the two other pitchers to accomplish the feat. [Note: In 2004, Steven Macri pitched the League's fourth perfect game.]
Following his Little League career, Usher was a three-sport athlete at Rutherford High School, graduating in 1957 after serving as the football team's quarterback and also playing basketball and baseball for the Bulldogs. He continued his football career at Brown University (Providence, R.I.), where he earned his bachelor's degree. He then received his law degree from Stanford University (Palo Alto, Calif.), and practiced law in California for 15 years.
In 1981, Usher joined the staff of the Los Angeles Olympic Organizing Committee as No. 2 man to Peter Ueberroth, who later became the Commissioner of Baseball. Usher's fiscal diligence helped the 1984 Summer Games turn a profit of over $200 million.
Shortly after the L.A. Games, Usher was named to succeed Chet Simmons as commissioner of the United States Football League. Usher held that post in 1985, when he was honored at the Rutherford Little League's 35th opening ceremony and was joined by Dr. Creighton J. Hale, then chief executive officer of Little League Baseball Inc.
More recently, Usher held several business posts, working as a consultant to General Electric Financial Services and heading Genesis Direct, a retailer of licensed apparel.
The League notes with sadness the passing of long-time member and supporter Bill Edwards, who died 16-Feb.
"Mr. Bill" spent 30 years as a manager and coach in the League, serving from 1966-1970 with Boiling Springs Savings (3 years as manager) and from 1971-1995 with Pasquin Motors and Naborhood Pharmacy (16 years as manager). He also managed several tournament teams during his tenure.
When he wasn't in the dugout (or pacing just outside it), he could often be found just outside the fence, either at the Little League field or at other local sports events, always cheering on the children of Rutherford.
Bill Edwards' presence will be dearly missed. We extend our sincerest condolences to his family and friends.
George Prince, a long-time member of Rutherford Little League, died Monday (26-May-1997). He was 75.
Prince joined the Rutherford Little League in 1961 and served as an assistant coach for Gilio Music under Tom Mellody. His sons, Billy and Tommy, played under him during those years. Tommy currently serves as the District 5 Administrator.
Following a short period away from the League, Prince rejoined the League in the mid-1970s and remained active through 1991, managing Tommy's Towing Service in the 1991 season.
Prince also served in several capacities on the League's board of directors, including secretary and treasurer.
The Rutherford Little League mourns the passing of George Prince, and extends its condolences to his wife, Bea; his sons, Billy and Tommy, and his daughter, Barbara.