Captains name Roth assistant GM

In a sports world filled with uncertainty because no one knows how the novel coronavirus will affect the future, the Lake County Captains nevertheless are rewarding Kate Roth for her hard work.

The Captains on Oct. 28 promoted Roth from Director of Ticket Sales to Assistant General Manager. Jen Yorko is the Captains general manager, thus the Yorko-Roth duo is the first all-female general managerassistant general manager pair in team and Midwest League history.

The Captains are the low-A minor league affiliate of the Indians. They have played home games at Classic Park in Eastlake since 2003.

“In a year that has been incredibly challenging, it has been so fulfilling to watch Kate continue to develop into the leadership role she has earned,” Yorko said in a statement. “Minor League Baseball executives are used to a normal work day of ‘Wearing a lot of hats,’ but COVID-19 has certainly added to that and Kate has been able to take our challenges in stride and is deserving of this promotion.”

Roth began working for the Captains as an Account Executive in 2016 and continued in that role in 2017. She held the same job for Louisville City FC of the United Soccer League (USL) in 2018 and returned to the Captains in 2019 as the team’s Director of Ticket Sales.

Roth, a native of Norwalk, graduated from Bowling Green State University in August of 2015 where she studied Sports Management and Marketing.

In addition to promoting Roth, the Captains also named Drew Maskey the team’s Director of Turf Management. Maskey had been working as a member of the Indians grounds crew and, most notably, mowed the outfield grass for all to see at the 2019 All-Star game at Progressive Field.

Maskey began his career with the Indians in 2007 after graduating from North Olmsted High School. He moved to Arizona in 2012 to work at Camelback Ranch, spring training home of the Chicago White Sox and Los Angeles Dodgers.

Three years later, he was hired by Papago Sports Complex in Phoenix to maintain the fields for the Kansas City Royals and the LG Twins of the Korean Baseball Organization (KBO). Maskey served as the head groundskeeper for the Altoona Curve (Double-A Pirates affiliate) before returning to the Indians. He now lives in Cleveland with his wife and son.