Kids robbed of baseball
Sydney and District Little League discovers equipment stolen from shed
SYDNEY — As Scott Lecky walked towards one of Sydney and District Little League’s equipment sheds on Sunday, he could tell something wasn’t right.
Lecky and his son Anthony had visited the shed located near McCormick Ball Field on Cabot Street in Sydney to check on baseball gear in preparation for the start of the 2021 season on Monday.
As the two walked around the corner, they discovered the door to the red and yellow shed had been kicked open and all the gear and hangers inside stolen.
“I almost fell to my knees, I was that taken back by it,” said Lecky, an on-field liaison and coach with the Sydney program. “We’re a non-profit organization and everything we have we’ve sort of scrounged over the years — it’s not like we have a bunch of extra gear lying around.”
The association doesn’t know when the theft occurred. Other than driving by to ensure it wasn’t tipped over, Lecky hasn’t been inside the shed since last fall.
“We’re trying to piece together from people in the neighbourhood saying they thought they seen it open in April but we really don’t know exactly when it may have happened,” said Lecky.
The equipment inside included a bag of bats and helmets, 10 dozen baseballs, a recently purchased set of rubber bases, a field liner as well as jerseys. An estimated cost for the equipment was not available.
“It makes no sense because the stuff is useless to them,” said Lecky. “It’s such a senseless crime. If it was something valuable that they were going to take and make some money from you can see it, people get desperate, but nobody is going to take this equipment or buy anything in there.”
The stolen equipment was mainly used by the association for its under-10 programs.
“I don’t think it’s teenagers because it wouldn’t even fit them, it’s gear for kids,” said Lecky. “Hopefully someone has it and they’re using it and they didn’t just fire it in the harbour or burn it.”
“I almost fell to my knees, I was that taken back by it.” Scott Lecky SDLL coach
Ken Bradley, Atlantic divisional director for Little League Canada, couldn’t fathom the reason someone would steal from kids in the community.
“I really don’t know what they would get out of it,” said Bradley, a Sydney Mines product. “It’s hard to believe someone would actually do that and go through the trouble of taking the door off — it’s a new low for Cape Breton.”
RECEIVING SUPPORT
Since discovering the stolen equipment around 2 p.m. Sunday, Lecky said the association has received support and donations both locally and across the country.
“My phone, as we’re doing this interview, is dinging and vibrating with people as far away as British Columbia wanting to send money and former players who have played Sydney and District Little League wanting to help,” he said. “It’s the typical Cape Breton way. When somebody gets kicked down, the community is there to rally around them. It’s truly amazing.”
After learning the news, Bradley sent a press release to Little League Canada and leagues across the country in an attempt to help the Sydney association.
“I know everyone will come together and help them out,” said Bradley. “It’s going to be the Cape Breton community that will really help them out. The Cape Breton you and I know will display its true colours this week — we all rally around each other in time of need.”
Bradley said Sydney and District Little League isn’t a rich organization and every bit will help them.
“They basically go from year to year and really depend on every dollar they get to purchase equipment and to provide baseball for the kids,” he said. “You have people there who are working tirelessly to try to provide baseball for the kids and this is the first hurdle they’ve come upon to get back to playing ball again – it’s heartbreaking.”
Glace Bay and Sydney Mines Little League programs have already reached out to the Sydney association to offer them gear to begin their season on time.
Lecky said the association is overwhelmed by the support.
“These are teams that we compete against tooth and nail every year on the field,” he said. “They’re reaching into their pockets to help us out. We can’t thank them enough for the support.
“It went from a day of absolute devastation walking around the corner and seeing that to sitting home and reading all the messages and trying to process everything. It’s an amazing feeling of gratitude that you get.”
A GoFundMe page has been created to support the Little League program. As of early Monday evening, $2,410 had been raised with a goal of raising $10,000. The page can be found by searching “Help Sydney Little League Replace Stolen Equipment” at gofundme.com.
NEXT STEP
Despite the heartbreak, the association planned to start its season on time with onfield training scheduled for Monday.
The association planned to file a police report on Monday, but Lecky doesn’t anticipate much happening.
“I don’t expect anything to come of it unless someone comes forward,” he said. “It makes no sense, it’s such a senseless crime to me. All the equipment is replaceable but it’s senseless.”
Personally, Lecky isn’t focusing his attention on the crime — instead, he’s looking forward to the season.
“The crime is committed,” said Lecky. “We have a busy season ahead of us and I’m not putting any time into trying to chase lowlifes who steal from kids.”
Last month, Little League Canada announced the cancellation of all national championships for a second consecutive year. However, the organization has permitted local leagues to play once permission is granted by public health officials.
Under current provincial restrictions, no games are permitted for the time being but practices are allowed in groups of 10 outdoors.
No timeline had been set for when teams will be allowed to play games as of press time.
For more information, or to assist Sydney and District Little League, contact Michelle Ferguson at 902-578-4580.