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Stoneman family has opened its doors to Scrappers players since 2013
By charles grove
Four seasons ago, Dave and Denise Stoneman decided to welcome a ballplayer into their home. And their summers haven’t been the same since.
The Stonemans have been a host family for the Mahoning Valley Scrappers since 2013, providing a home for one or two Scrappers each season as the players chase their Major League dreams.
“We thought we could expose our family to something different and give it a try,” Dave said. “It’s been good for our sons learning from them and seeing their work ethic and how they’re chasing a dream.”
Longtime baseball fans, the Boardman family would go to Scrappers games regularly. One night, they were seated next to another host family who introduced them to the idea. Denise said it’s been “a wonderful experience.”
“The first player we got [Ben Heller] was placed in another home and it appeared we weren’t going to get any players but the place he was sent to had pets that he was allergic to,” she said. “We got a phone call on a Sunday saying the team manager was going to be dropping a player off in three hours so we had to scramble to put together Ben’s room.
“But it’s been a fabulous experience.”
In addition to Heller who’s in AAA Columbus, the Stonemans also have hosted David Speer (now in High-A Lynchburg), Billy Strode (Lynchburg) and Brock Harston (A Lake County).
This year, the Stonemans are hosting catcher Logan Ice and pitcher Micah Miniard.
Husband and wife said the players have been a very positive influence on their sons, 12-year-old Andrew and 15-year-old Alex.
“We’ve had very good role models for our boys,” Dave said. “They handle themselves well and it’s something for them to look up to. And the players have all been very receptive to having younger brothers for the summer.”
That connection that the family makes with the players is something the family described as something that goes beyond just having a baseball player staying at your house. The players become much more.
“In the three months that they’re here, they truly become part of our extended family,” Denise said. “So many times their families or girlfriends will come visit.
“So not only do the players become part of our family but their families become part of our family as well.”
As families do their best to support each other, the Stonemans are no different. Denise said she knows part of their job is to help these guys move up through the Indians organization and part of that is providing a comfortable home experience.
“I do their laundry and we cook their breakfast,” Denise said. “We tell them when they get here, ‘You’re here to develop, to learn and to get the hell out of here.’ As much as it breaks my heart at the end of the season, we know they do their job and we do our job as being their family away from home.”
A typical home gameday for the Stonemans doesn’t impact the family nearly as much as the family wondered about before Heller showed up with manager Ted Kubiak on their doorstep in 2013.
“Most home days, the boys have the be at the field no later than 1 p.m.,” Dave said. “They usually sleep in until eight or nine in the morning since they were up from last night’s game. Usually they’ll have breakfast with the family, they’ll hang out or do some errands, head to the field and then get home around 10-11 p.m.
“We kind of catch up with them and maybe the guys will play some video games with my sons. They’re not in the house a whole lot. There’s time involved obviously but it hasn’t changed their day-to-day lives too much.”
Ice and Miniard are two of the lucky ones who landed a host family. Denise said many of the players are living in an apartment that really puts the lives of minor leaguers compared to major leaguers into perspective.
“They’re in need of host families,” Denise said. “The Scrappers are so short on them they had to rent an apartment and there’s four guys staying there in an unfurnished apartment living basically on blow-up beds.”
The question about professional athletes needing to stay with a family is one the Stonemans have heard all too often.
“People say all the time, ‘Why do they have to live with you? They should have enough money to live on their own.’” Dave said. “I tell them, ‘Do you have any idea what these guys are making?’ The average person has no clue.
“I think they make about $1,200 a month before taxes so do the math on that if you need to rent a place, eat, pay utilities, it doesn’t add up to very much.”
But the goal of any minor leaguer is to make it to the level where they can make a comfortable living. And when the players get called up to the next level, the Stonemans are often one of the very first calls the players make.
“We continue to follow all the boys as they continue to move through the different levels of the organization,” Denise said. “We are always following their games.
“There’s many days where we’re sitting at the Scrappers game and we have our phones following two or three different games to see how our other players are doing. We’ll shoot them a text if they played that night and they appreciate that support.
“Once they hear they’re getting called up they tell their families or girlfriends and then we’re their next call. It makes us feel like they’re happy that we’re part of their support system.”
Once the short season of baseball ends, the players pack up and leave, but the Stonemans always keep in touch with her “Scrappers sons.”
“Even after they leave they’re still an extension of our family,” Denise said.