Baseball fans at Village Park in Millstadt have likely already seen a nearby box set up like a free little library over the past few weeks, allowing them to trade memorabilia and borrow any balls or bats they might need.

The idea for the “Millswap Baseball Exchange” came from Matt Weiler, who set the box up right outside his backyard to encourage folks to play America’s pastime.

He has a strong background in baseball himself, with his father and grandparents long being big St. Louis Cardinals fans. Having played as a student, Weiler has had a love for the sport all his life.

“I played baseball in high school at Belleville East and just have always loved the game, back when (Mark) McGwire and (Sammy) Sosa were doing their thing in ’98, that kinda got me going on it,” Weiler said.

His passion for the game has continued well into adulthood, as he served as a coach at Belle Valley School for about a decade while also working as an elementary PE teacher.

As Weiler said, he’s always been interested in sharing his passion for athletics.

“I just like trying to facilitate that same type of love for baseball and activity, getting outside and enjoying that type of thing,” Weiler said.

The baseball exchange serves as another way for him to share his passion for the sport, as folks visiting Leroy Franke Field can now feel free to stop by the nearby box, grab a ball or bat as they need and return it once they’re done.

While Weiler is pleased to be able to help facilitate people playing, one of the biggest reasons he decided to set up this exchange was to solve a problem he and his family have run into as a natural consequence of living right next to a baseball field.

“I’d say we probably get four to five balls in our yard a week,” Weiler said. “You have kids coming over, jumping the fence. I’ve had grown men jump the fence. It’s just one of those, ‘What can I do about this?’ We love our spot. I love being by the field. Shoot, I’ll be sitting in the backyard watching the game most of the time.”

The exchange thus serves as a way for folks to keep playing even when their ball lands in the Weilers’ yard, letting them grab from the box rather than climb over his fence.

As mentioned, joining the collection of baseballs inside the box and the bats beside the post is a collection of memorabilia.

Weiler spoke about his passion as a collector of various baseball merchandise.

“I’ve always been a baseball collector in general, not necessarily just baseballs but baseball cards, bobbleheads, memorabilia, anything baseball-related I like to collect,” Weiler said. “The idea that maybe I could pass on some of that to other people…”

His hopes of sharing his enthusiasm for baseball with other folks in Millstadt seems to have been successful already even with the exchange only popping up at the end of June.

He voiced a desire to continue sharing this major part of his childhood with the rest of the community, further remarking on how nice it is to be part of a “baseball town” like Millstadt.

“It’s been a really, really positive response from the parents that are in the park or the kids,” Weiler said. “I had half of a baseball team over the other day that were just going through, looking at all the cards.”