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Broadcaster viewed baseball parks as `equivalent of heaven' continued from p.28 "But baseball has always been (No. 1). You can even ask me in January, if the Leafs are on a 10-game winning streak. Baseball is still my favourite sport. "I love the strategy. I enjoy the pace. I know a lot of people don't. There's just something about a summer day, the grass, the smell of the grills in a ballpark. The fact is at the major league level, guys work hard, but it's really a dream world. "When I was little, I always idealized a ballpark as something being the equivalent of heaven. You can visit with people while the game is going on, you can talk strategy between pitches, you can watch the infielders move and guess the next pitch. A lot of it is little things like that, and a lot of it is just natural in the blood. The strategies, the personalities, all of that." First sports coverage was hockey Not long ago, it seemed hockey, not baseball, would define MacArthur's sports media career. While studying radio broadcasting at Algonquin College, MacArthur landed a weekend job as an overnight board operator at Ottawa's Team 1200. That led to a job in the newsroom of sister station CFRA, where he would spend seven years as the news anchor of afternoon drive programming. MacArthur's first foray into sports broadcasting came in the spring of 2003, when Team 1200 needed a co-host for a program that aired on evenings when the NHL's Senators and OHL's 67's were not in action. That same spring, a position opened up as the host of a Saturday afternoon Senators discussion show. When the NHL lockout occurred in 2004, MacArthur turned to Rogers Community TV , hosting 67's broadcasts. On Friday evenings, the team's regular home nights, MacArthur would conclude his CFRA newscast at 6:30 p.m., run to his car, make the 10-minute drive to the Civic Centre and be on camera for a pre-taped stand-up at 7 p.m. A few years later, MacArthur took over as dubious defence and notable injuries have all contributed to a miserable campaign that will see the Blue Jays finish last in the American League East. That has taken some sheen off the job, but it's still been a dream summer. "There are always stories. There is always intrigue," MacArthur said. "The one thing I knew going into this was if the Jays performed according to expectations, it would be a fun ride, and if they didn't, which turned out to be the case, there would be plenty of compelling debate and stories. There really has been no shortage of that. It's been fun. The days fly by, they really do." Highlights from the season include trips to San Francisco's AT&T Park and Seattle's Safeco Field, venues MacArthur ranks as No. 1 and 1-A in the majors, as well as a visit to San Diego's Petco Park. Favourite memories are headed by fan favourite Munenori Kawasaki's dramatic tworun double to complete a come-from-behind win over the Orioles May 26 -- and the euphoria that followed. "People love the guy. That was a great moment for him," MacArthur said. "He is limited in ability, relative to peers at that level, but he created a moment for himself that people will remember." And, unlike the Jays, MacArthur will be going to the playoffs. After Toronto concludes the regular season this Sunday against Tampa Bay, MacArthur will get a short break from work before covering the American League Championship Series and then the World Series. Then, at last, some rest and relaxation. Until it all begins again next February, that is. "Am I tired in an airport at five (o'clock) in the morning sometimes? Yeah, like anybody else would be," MacArthur said. "But it's unreal. It's just amazing. I've got no right to complain, nor would I, about this job. Even if I am dragging my feet some days. No right to complain." -- Jon Kuiperij can be followed on Twitter @Beaversports 29 | Friday, September 27, 2013 | OAKVILLE BEAVER | www.insideHALTON.com Scott MacArthur shows off his vantage point for all Toronto Blue Jays' home games this season. The former Oakville A's rep player says the Jays' struggles have not taken away any enjoyment of covering the team. | photo by Riziero Vertolli -- Oakville Beaver -- @Halton_Photog the host of Team 1200's Senators post-game coverage, sharing the mic with former Maple Leafs forward Mike Eastwood. "For the 2006-07 hockey season, I was reading news, hosting Senators post-game three to four nights a week and doing 67's on Friday nights and Sunday afternoons. It was insane," MacArthur said. "Looking back, you can only do that when you're young. "It's a lot of hours for not a lot of money when you're young. I tell this to students when I speak to my old college... you can make more being a greeter at Walmart when you break into the business. It's only your passion and your desire to grind through that time that will get you to the other side. You have to have some talent, and there's nothing wrong with early on looking at your paycheck or whatever drives you and saying this is not enough." MacArthur lived and worked in Ottawa until April of 2011, when he was hired by TSN Radio 1050. He hosted shows for the Toronto station for nearly two years, when the excitement over the Blue Jays' off-season moves led TSN to create a position for a Jays beat reporter. MacArthur got the job. Jays' tough season has been `compelling' MacArthur was supposed to spend this month writing about pennant races, analyzing pivotal plays in crucial games, assessing the Jays' chances in the playoffs. "I was asked at the start of the year how many wins the Jays would have," he recalled. "And I said 93." Things have obviously not gone according to plan for a Toronto franchise seeking its first post-season appearance in two decades. An underperforming starting rotation, Dundas title `caps' season The Oakville Whitecaps 11-under select team (pictured, right) recently concluded a successful baseball season by winning the Dundas Major Little League September Classic's American League title. Oakville defeated another Whitecaps squad, the 12U selects, 6-3 in the final. It was the teams' second meeting in the tournament, with the first ending in a 6-6 stalemate. In the 11U Whitecaps' other games, they defeated the Dundas major selects 13-3 and the Ancaster major selects 13-6. The Whitecaps finished the season with a record of 12-61 against teams from Ontario and the United States. Members of the 11U Whitecaps are Daniel Arruda, Nicholas DiGennaro, Peter Fornasiero, Robbie Gauthier, Curtis Hui, Evan Hum, Kieran Human, Derek Kusmenko, Jack Lahey, Kevin Stam, Anthony Stewart and Nicholas Zuliani. The team is coached by James Gauthier, Fern Arruda and Mark Fornasiero, and Maria Hui is the manager. John Wood golf tournament Oct. 4 at Piper's Heath The first annual John Wood Memorial Golf Tournament and Olympic Gala Dinner will take place Friday, Oct. 4 at Piper's Heath Golf Club. The tournament will benefit Canada's Olympians in honour of the late national paddling icon, who won men's canoeing silver at the 1976 Summer Games. Wood is credited for inspiring generations of local athletes, including Burloak Canoe Club's Adam van Koeverden, Larry Cain, Scott Oldershaw and Mark Oldershaw. CBC Sports' Ron MacLean, former Toronto Maple Leafs goalie Johnny Bower and Olympic triathlon champion Simon Whitfield will be among the special guests at the event. For more information, call Craig Jobber at 416-277-6067 or Alan Wood at 905-616-7218.