Walsh Jesuit High School's baseball program raised $40,000 for Ohio State University's James Medical Center at this year's "Showcase for the Cure" baseball scouting event on June 18.
The annual event draws top baseball prospects and scouts from throughout the region and, since 2006, has raised money for cancer research.
This year's showcase drew 125 top-level players from Ohio and over 60 college and professional scouts, and honored Chad Crawford and the entire Crawford family. Crawford, a beloved member of the Walsh Jesuit baseball community, died last fall after a courageous battle with sarcoma, a rare form of bone cancer.
To raise money for cancer research, Walsh Jesuit baseball coach Chris Kaczmar and event chair Gary Minorick asked the invited college prospects to make a donation in lieu of charging players a fee to participate. Vendors also sold a variety of products at the event and donated their proceeds to the cause.
"Our incredible team of volunteers gave tirelessly of their time and talent and were committed to making this year's showcase one of the most successful," Minorick said in a prepared statement. "We are overwhelmed with gratitude to our past sponsors and we were thrilled to have many new patrons step forward this year."
Dr. Tom Scharschmidt accepted a ceremonial check on behalf of The James and spoke briefly about advances that have been made in the fight against sarcoma.
Ohio State baseball coach Greg Beals served as the event's keynote speaker.
Since its inception nine years ago, donations to the showcase each year have raised over $200,000 given to six different charities dedicated to fighting cancer.
Kaczmar established the showcase over a decade ago. Originally called "The Walsh Jesuit Baseball Junior Day," Kaczmar reformatted the event in 2006 after a number of parents and relatives connected to the school's baseball program were diagnosed with cancer. Known today as "Showcase for the Cure," the event is dedicated to raising awareness about cancer and donating toward cancer research. It continues to attract the area's top baseball players and college and professional scouts from organizations throughout the Midwest.
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