By DAVE O’SULLIVAN
Staff Writer
On X @GDsullysays
In a 4-1 loss to Gloucester High on Friday afternoon, the Deptford baseball team played with the kind of energy, desire and purpose that perhaps most of them had never played with before. They wanted to win so badly for former star player Bobby Shisler, whose name now graces the scoreboard at the high school after a pregame ceremony in his honor.
Shisler, a 2014 graduate, was, by all accounts, a solid catcher and team leader during his days in the black-and-Vegas gold. He went on to become a police officer in his beloved hometown, and lost his life a year ago this weekend after being shot in the line of duty. He battled for two months after suffering a severe leg injury during the shooting, and a GoFundMe set up for he and his family raised more than $150,000 — a testament to what Officer Shisler meant to the Deptford community.
In the end, there was no storybook ending on Friday, as Gloucester pitcher Russell Medlar was simply too much, allowing just a couple of hits and one run as the Lions picked up their 12th win of the year. But even though the Spartans didn’t come up with the win, they left the newly named “Bobby Shisler Field” having earned a lot of respect.
“To see them come out and put forth the effort they did — knowing how important this game was for us, on multiple levels — to see them come out and put forth that extra effort was important to me,” Deptford coach Dave Prager said of his players. “The most important thing today was we put forth all the great memories we have of (Bobby) to try to make this a celebration of who Bobby was on the field, and all the good times he had on this field. And to make sure the kids understand the type of player he was and person he was.”
The emotions were raw and unbridled as Shisler’s parents, sister and brother were on hand to receive a framed Bobby Shisler jersey as well as throw out ceremonial first pitches. Gloucester coach Greg Galbraith said his team was honored to be Deptford’s opponent on the historic day, and the Lions know all about heartache as they lost 2023 graduate Gage Myers to a car accident prior to this season. His No. 6 jersey travel with the team wherever they go and is hung in the dugout each game.
“One of the hardest things I’ve ever had to go through as a coach, without a doubt, was watching these guys having to go through that,” Galbraith said. “One of the cool things about high school is you’re in a bubble, and that bubble shouldn’t burst yet. Some of these guys have had to deal with things outside of that bubble already in their lives, but I give them credit, they are having a great season.
“I talked to Dave,” he continued, “and I said, ‘we’re going to come early and do what we need to so we can get out of your way and you guys can handle your business.’”
Galbraith remembers coaching against Shisler and said the Lions feared whenever he came to bat.
“We played them when I was coaching at Gloucester High and it was a cold April game, and at our field the wind always blows in off the river,” Glabraith explained. “Our kid threw a lot of strikes and I was nervous because I knew they were a good baseball team that hit the ball well, and (Shisler) was one of their best hitters. With the wind blowing in I thought we had the advantage. We won, 2-1, and they hit about three balls that I thought were gone but got caught up in that ‘home-field’ wind. That’s what I remember about Bobby, he was a big kid who swung the bat well, but with the wind we were able to go after him, and luckily it worked out for us.”
The overriding theme of Friday’s game was a deep appreciation for law enforcement and first responders, and the risks they take every day when they get up and go to work.
“In Gloucester, we have so many first responders in our community, whether it’s in our building as school resource officers — we have guys on our team whose dads or brothers are police officers or firefighters. I feel like we’re fortunate in that sense, that our guys respect those people,” Galbraith said. “Some of my best friends are cops, and people always say that as teachers we do so much, but we don’t risk it like they do. The things they do are the reason we get to wake up every day and do what we do, because we don’t have to worry about something happening to us. So we appreciate everyone in law enforcement.”
Added Prager, “this is a great group and they are very appreciative and grateful for police officers, service members, the military, firefighters — everybody under that umbrella — we make sure that we instill appreciation for those people. Half my coaching staff are ex-police and they coached Bobby. The biggest thing is that (our players) understand that there is more out there than just baseball, and you have to make sure you take care of each other in your community. That’s the message we wanted to make sure we put forth today.”
