For Immediate Release
March 13, 2009

(Mesa, Ariz.) – Former Cubs pitchers Fergie Jenkins and Lee Smith will be in Mesa, AZ, on Saturday March 28, 2009, to sign autographs for baseball fans at the state’s first-ever permanent Cactus League exhibition and experience in Mesa, known as “Play Ball: The Cactus League Experience.” Autographs will be $15 each, or $30 for both and free admission to the museum to see Play Ball!

Both Jenkins and Smith pitched for the Chicago Cubs, and Jenkins was elected to the National Baseball Hall of Fame in 1991, the first Canadian to be inducted.

Besides playing for the Chicago Cubs, Jenkins also played for the Philadelphia Phillies, Texas Rangers, and Boston Red Sox. In 1971, Jenkins won the National League Cy Young Award. Jenkins was also inducted into the Canadian Baseball Hall of Fame, and is one of very few pitchers to get more than 3,000 strikeouts and fewer than 1,000 walks.

Lee Smith played for the Chicago Cubs, Boston Red Sox, St. Louis Cardinals, and several other teams in 18 years of major league baseball. Smith racked up 478 career saves, and 1,022 games pitched. Since retiring in 1998, Smith has served as a pitching coach for both the San Francisco Giants and the South Africa national baseball team.
Visitors seeking more information as well as an extensive timeline on the league’s history can visit the website created specifically for the exhibit at www.PlayBallExperience.com. The Mesa Historical Museum will house the exhibition for an undisclosed amount of time. Plans are already in place to expand the exhibit and open a second phase at the museum by fall 2009.

Admission to the museum is $5 for adults, $4 for seniors (65 and older), $3 youth ages 3 to 12. Children under 3 and Mesa Historical Museum members are free. The Mesa Historical Museum is located at 2345 N. Horne Street. For more information, contact 480-835-7358, or visit www.MesaHistoricalMuseum.org. Fergie Jenkins and Lee Smith will sign autographs for $15 per item.

PLAY BALL: THE CACTUS LEAGUE EXPERIENCE SPONSORS & PARTNERS:
Play Ball: The Cactus League Experience at the Mesa Historical Museum is proudly supported by community and baseball interests vital to its success including The Cactus League Association, Arizona Major League Alumni Association, Arizona Fall League, Major League Baseball, and the Society for American Baseball Research (SABR). Sponsors include Wells Fargo, SRP, Tribune Newspapers, Mesa Convention & Visitors Bureau, The Phoenix Roadrunners, DMB, Riester, PBS&J, Arizona Humanities Council, Channel 3TV, and Bison Integrated Web Strategies, and US Airlines.
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About the Mesa Historical Museum:
The Mesa Historical Museum was founded as a non-profit entity in 1966, situated on over 4 acres in the heart of Mesa's historic Lehi neighborhood. In addition to more than 80,000 objects in its collection, the Museum makes its home in the oldest standing school building in the East Valley, recognized by the National Register of Historic Places. The museum is the recent recipient of the American Association of State and Local History Award of Excellence and the Museum Association of Arizona‘s Award of Excellence.

MEDIA CONTACT:
Lisa Anderson, Executive Director
Mesa Historical Museum
Direct: (480) 835-7358
Email: lisa@mesahistoricalmuseum.org