Hi, I’m Ruth Kapelus. I’m very excited to be part of the team at The Fair Catch, and bring my perspective as a Canadian and woman to this site. Thanks for having me Zak!
A little about me: I have worked in the nonprofit world for close to the entirety of my career. I also write on the side, both in my personal Substack newsletter and as a baseball writer for Daily Hive among other publications.
A few years back before the pandemic, I was at my friend’s son’s bar mitzvah. A fellow guest who I hadn’t seen in over 20 years asked me “Are you still such a huge Jays fan?” My first thought was perhaps it was time for a personal brand refresh. But baseball is what I was known for.
The first time I fell in love it wasn’t with a person; but a sport, on a school trip to Exhibition Stadium when I was in grade four to watch a Jays game. My legs burning on the hard metal bleachers overlooking right field, watching Barfield, Moseby and Bell – I fell and fell hard. It started what I always believed would be a lifelong relationship.
As a Jewish South African immigrant who never felt like I quite fit in, loving baseball was the first time I could believe that I belonged in this city and country where it was just my small family of 5. Over the years, I followed the fortunes of the Toronto Blue Jays with a fervor that at times seemed almost religious. The back-to-back World Series in 1992 and 93, and the wild playoff runs of 2015 and 2016 provided the backdrop to some of the best memories of my life.
I never imagined that a single school trip to Exhibition Stadium could so change the trajectory of my life, but baseball has brought me some of my best experiences, best trips, best friends. And for that, I am inordinately grateful.
I’ve since expanded my worldview when it comes to baseball to be more all-encompassing. It’s shifted from ‘rooting for laundry’ to supporting Canadian baseball, and becoming more aware of the issues in MLB – and doing what I can in my small way to make working in the sport, or simply being a baseball fan safer and more inclusive.
And it’s with that lens that I hope to approach this site. Sharing the stories that matter to all of us, remembering that women play baseball too and that they play it well. That MLB is far from perfect, but at times – baseball can be.
