CONWAY, Ark. (KTHV) - Mary Hiegel has seen Pete Rose, Joe DiMaggio, Mickey Mantle and Nolan Ryan play in person.
She listened to Benny Craig on the radio and has ticket stubs that date back six decades. And she remembers all of it. But this Arkansas woman’s love of baseball has lasted a lifetime.
Professional baseball in Arkansas dates back to the 1800’s. Hiegel’s love for the game goes back almost as far.
“I’m 90 years old and I was born in 1928. When I was about four or five years old my dad took me with him to the Travelers field for a baseball game. And I just remember seeing all the men running out there. It was my first time to go. And we would go all that summer,” said Hiegel.
Nearly nine decades of being a baseball fan has brought with it a lifetime of memories. “It’s when the Travelers won the Southern Association Pennant. I’ve had this for 80 years,” Hiegel said laughing while holding up an old baseball bat. And she loves to hold onto her ticket stubs.
“Well, the first one is 1964,” said Hiegel. It’s the Saint Louis Cardinals versus the Kansas City Royals. Hiegel has seen almost half of the major league baseball teams play in person. To see future Hall of Famer, Johnny Bench, it was quick thinking and even quicker feet that got Hiegel into what ended up being a sold out game in Cincinnati.
“They let me out to go get the tickets. And so, same time I got out, a car pulled up and had some man got out and he was going to get tickets, so I ran,” Hiegel said laughing.
Her pace may be a little slower these days, but her passion for the game is stronger than ever.