Lee Gehring field is Foss' labor of love

The game of baseball is often used as a metaphor for life. A nine-inning baseball game, like life, can be long and filled with moments where nothing exciting happens. Then with the crack of the bat the crowd goes wild and it provides a reminder of why baseball is America’s pastime.

For Libby resident Scott Foss the game of baseball is a passion.

“I love the game of baseball,” Foss said. “I played second base for the Libby Loggers from 1989 to 1992.”

Foss was born and raised in Libby. After finishing high school he attended the University of Jamestown in Jamestown, N.D. At Jamestown he pursued a degree in chiropractic and played baseball for the Jimmies.

During his final season with the Jimmies in 1996, Foss had a .423 batting average and hit 14 home runs with a .909 slugging percentage. At that time his batting average; home runs and slugging percentage were all Jamestown records. His .423 batting average is tied for 11th all time in school history. His 14 home runs in a season are sixth all time in school history.

After school he played a year in the minors with the Dakota Rattlers in Bismark, N.D. Foss played second base for the Rattlers and hit second in the lineup. With the Rattlers he got to play against former major league players, Gregg Olson formerly of the Atlanta Braves and Juan Berenguera, formerly of the Minnesota Twins.

Aside from being the town’s chiropractor, he helps maintain Lee Gehring Field.

When Foss played for the Loggers from 1989 to 1992 the field he played on wasn’t in the best condition.

“When I played for the Loggers the field wasn’t in the best shape,” he said.

Foss told himself if he ever made it back to Libby that he would do what he could to improve the field conditions for the local park.

“If I ever got back to town I was going to take it upon myself to make it a nice playing surface for the local youth,” he said. “Over 20 years it’s been an idea that’s marinated. It is what it is I guess.”

Since returning to Libby, Foss has been the driving force to improve the local park. In 2003 the grandstand received protective netting and the press box was constructed. A pro-style batting cage was acquired in 2008. A state of the art scoreboard was installed in 2009.

Loggers manager Kelly Morford said Foss is the brains behind all the upgrades at Lee Gehring field.

“Scott has been at the forefront of making Lee Gehring field one of the premier ballparks in the Northwest,” he said. There have been countless volunteers over the years that are always willing to pitch in and help on projects, but it is Doc who has been the main visionary and driving force behind those efforts.”

At times Morford can’t believe the work that Foss puts in and the ideas that he comes up with for the field.

“I admit that I have shook my head a few times when he tells me what project he wants to do next,” he said. “I think ‘no way can we get that done,’ but he always proves me wrong.”

Even after his playing days, Dr. Foss has been able to be a valuable asset to the Loggers program.

“Scott is an unbelievable asset for our program in multiple ways,” he said. “It is so great for me as the head coach to be able to work with him as our President. He is a baseball guy through and through and he understands what we need as a program to be successful between the lines. If we need new equipment or if we want to let the boys experience something like a Mariners game he always finds a way to make it happen.”

When Foss first returned to town he maintained the field entirely by himself and it kept him busy outside of work.

“When I first started I was by myself maintaining the field,” he said. “Now I have a good group of guys that help out.”

Foss said that taking care of the field is like taking care of the lawn, just on a bigger scale.

“When we go down to take care of it, we look over what needs to be done,” he said. “We mow it, we stripe it to get those lines in there. We take care of the mounds. We pack in the new clay. It’s like taking care of a lawn, just a tad bit bigger and more detailed.”

This is not something Foss or his volunteers get paid for. They just do it for the love of the game.

“I don’t know why I do it,” he said. “I do enjoy it a lot. I guess it’s just a break from my every day normal routine. I love the game of baseball and it’s a way to stay in touch with something I love.”

Morford and the players that have played for the Loggers over the years are appreciative of the work Foss and his volunteers have done upgrading the field and playing experience in Libby.

“Probably the coolest thing about what he and Michelle do for our program is that they do it for all the right reasons,” he said. “They have all girls, which I give Scott a hard time about often, so they don’t have any kids in the program. They do what they do because Scott knows how valuable playing American Legion Baseball in Libby was for him and he wants these kids to have the best possible experience while playing for the Loggers.”