WINNIPEG — It’s a fantasy shared by many baseball fans – to travel around North America to see a game in every Major League city.

For most, the dream never becomes a reality.

But south Winnipeg resident Matthew Leibl’s, left, wish came true
when he departed the Manitoba capital on June 16 for an 11-week
coast-to-coast visit of all 30 big league ballparks.

The 2003 graduate of Joseph Wolinsky Collegiate, Winnipeg’s Jewish high school, fulfilled his aspirations for the most part.

Unfortunately, fate didn’t co-operate completely.

“I had been saving for the trip for several years,” the 23-year-old said. “Since I was 10, my zaida and I talked about taking the trip together. It was a childhood dream.”

Leibl’s grandfather, Harold Pollock, was a respected teacher and administrator in the Winnipeg School Division.

“One day in March, my grandfather phoned and told me he was very sick, but I should still plan on taking the baseball trip and that I should go for both of them. I knew when I set out that it was 99 per cent that he wouldn’t be there when I returned,” Leibl said.

“Almost three weeks into my trip, on July 1, he died. I interrupted my travels and flew in from Toronto to be at the funeral. Several days later, I returned and continued on from that point.”

How did Leibl, who played baseball for 10 years up to midget level and who describes himself as “a weak hitter and pretty good fielder,” manage to co-ordinate a trip so complicated that it might lead a travel agent to drink?

“It took real hard-core planning that started in February,” he said. “I stared at the schedules on my computer, and finally, after several days, I came up with a route that worked. Then it became an issue to find places to stay.

“I was traveling all alone and I didn’t have a car. I used public transit in the cities and took buses, trains, and planes. I figured that I could stay in hostels or cheaper hotels, but even that would cost a lot of money.”

Leibl networked with friends and relatives, asking who might know other people in the American cities who would offer lodging to a certified baseball nut for a night or two.

Before long, the hotel and hostel businesses lost a potential customer. Matthew the Magician batted .961 in managing to locate accommodation on 74 of 77 nights.

Several of this hosts on the road were rabbis who were contacted by Rabbi Larry Pinsker of Shaarey Zedek Synagogue.

“I worked as the assistant cantor on the bimah for three years,” Leibl said of his connection to the shul. “Every Saturday, I would read from the Torah. I also taught about a dozen students at any given time their maftirs, plus a host of other duties.”

Leibl is also well known to the Shaarey Zedek sisterhood, which invited him to be the main speaker for their opening function on Sept. 18. On that evening, he shared the story of his baseball journey with a crowd of about 60.

Seeing the various teams was, of course, the highlight of the trip. As for tickets, Leibl said that with the exception of the all-star game in July and two games at Yankee Stadium, for which he bought seats in advance, he managed to purchase the others at the gate or from scalpers.

He also took a few side trips to the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame ad Museum in Cleveland and the Baseball Hall of Fame in Cooperstown, N.Y.

Leibl discovered that despite travelling alone, fans at the ballparks were always friendly, since they all speak the language of baseball. He was even fortunate to retrieve a baseball hit into the stands at an Arizona Diamondbacks game in Phoenix.

In Pittsburgh, he met and had his photo taken with former Pittsburgh Pirates star catcher Manny Sanguillen, who today works a barbecue stand in front of the stadium.

Leibel – who says he loves baseball more than any other sport because of its tradition, history, and statistics – was only back in Winnipeg for a short stay. Earlier this month, he headed to Halifax, where he will work for the Atlantic Jewish Council, the local Jewish federation.