Potential host families meet Cougars

Before the Kane County Cougars open their 2008 Class A Midwest League schedule Thursday at Beloit, there is this little matter of making sure the 26 players on the roster have a place to live.

The players left their Arizona spring training site Monday morning to take up residence for the next three days at a Best Western Inn in Naperville. But they converged en masse on Riverside Receptions in Geneva on Monday night to meet potential host families in the annual Adopt a Cougar program the minor-league ball club has staged for 16 years.

Smiles, hugs and warm greetings made the event much like a family reunion for many returning players, some of whom were returning to the same host family.

Max and Jane Ackerman of Wheaton have taken players into their home each of the past 15 seasons, and they were ready to welcome two more -- catcher Jake Smith and second-baseman Matt Ray -- this season.

"When you become empty-nesters it is fun to have these players as part of your family," Jane Ackerman said. "Some of the players we have hosted in the past have already made it to the 'bigs,' like Mike Redmond, Scott Podsednik and Ross Gload."

As a player with a busy schedule ahead of him, Ray was happy to have secured a spot in the Ackerman home.

"You don't want to be running around with no place to live," said Ray, a resident of eastern Tennessee.

"This event is really important because you want to get comfortable with your host family and that just makes it a whole lot easier."

Cougars assistant general manager Jeff Ney, overseeing the player-family meetings, encouraged players to visit with all potential hosts who were seated at dining tables throughout the room.

"These players make only about $1,000 a month, so it is important that they find host families by tonight or within the next couple of days," Ney said. "Some of the guys talk about getting an apartment, but it doesn't take long to realize how expensive apartments are around here."

Ney said many players will make verbal commitments with host families after Monday's event, or firm up living arrangements with follow-up phone calls the next day.

Larry Majkszak of Elburn became a father of twins -- a boy and a girl -- in the past month, but he was on hand Monday because he has hosted Cougars in the past, and was prepared to take in two more players.

"A fair amount to charge a player is about $150 a month," Majkszak said. "You don't do this for the money, you do it to help out and tell these guys to enjoy the living arrangements and accommodations.

"If it doesn't work out, with us having two new babies in the house, we can make other arrangements, but these players are at your home to shut their eyes, and not much else, really," he said. "They are gone on the road for half of the season, so you do have time to yourself, but otherwise they have your space and they are your guests."

Majkszak said there are never any problems because "they don't want to do anything to hurt the organization."

Cyndi Peterik of Geneva said she has been adopting

players for the past nine years to feed her love of watching baseball.

"My boys had played baseball since they were 4, and when they left for college, I still needed baseball games to go to," Peterik said. "So I started hosting players in my home."

Oddly enough, Peterik hosted a former Cougar, Kelly Washington, who is now a football player on the New England Patriots.

Sally Nelson of Geneva attended Monday to adopt a player for the first time, but she felt she had a benefit that some other families might not be able to offer.

"I live on the east side of Geneva, and they could probably walk to the ball park (on Kirk Road) from there, or take a bicycle or whatever," she laughed.