When the Lehigh Valley IronPigs get a new player - whether it’s through a trade, someone moving up from a lower level, down from the majors or coming in as a free agent - the news is made public in the morning and by game time, the player is in town, has a clean, well-fitting uniform complete with his nameplate on the back of the jersey.

For the IronPigs, that all falls on Jason Ross.

Around the ballpark, most people know him as “J-Ross.” His days in baseball started in 1995 when he was a bat boy for the Ottawa Lynx. From there, he worked his way through the ranks in various clubhouse and stadium operations jobs.

In 2007, the Lynx were being dissolved but Ross was invited by the Phillies to apply for the job with the fledgling Lehigh Valley IronPigs. Even though Ross is a Canadian through and through, he applied and has been the home clubhouse manager ever since.

If there are no player moves, Ross still has a full day of work ahead of him, but at any minute his phone can go off and the to-do list gets longer - often with tight deadlines.

The Phillies staff handles the travel details if it is someone on the 40-man roster and Ross takes over with everything they need - hotel room, rental car, locker, uniform - once they arrive. Each affiliate is responsible for getting the player leaving their roster to wherever they need to be, and then their new team clubhouse manager takes over.

“Once they get to the city where we are at, it becomes my responsibility, so from the airport to the hotel in Rochester or wherever and then to the field, that’s my responsibility,” said Ross.

A player going to the majors is Ross’ responsibility until his flight leaves for wherever he is bound, and then the Phillies staff takes over once he arrives wherever the team is playing.

Another issue is the uniform. Professional players don’t wear adjustable hats and they can be particular about just how their uniform fits. Remember too, that the IronPigs home jerseys have the player’s name on the back, so that’s another issue to contend with. Luckily, there’s an app - or at least a website - for that.

“I’m not really sure where it originated from, but it’s a website that we can log into and can find and edit information. I can search players and get their sizing,” Ross said. “When I needed (Bryce) Harper, I could search for him and get all the sizes I needed.”

Probably the most difficult part of the uniform is the nameplate on the back of the home jerseys. They are ordered from Majestic and take two or three days to be completed, and then they go to a local seamstress to be sewn on the uniform. Preparation for the nameplates begins in spring training.

“I prep 70 or 80 names that I think could touch our roster throughout the year,” Ross said. “I’ll get guys that I thought might have been here two years ago and I still have their nameplate.”

As if he needed another area to worry about, Ross is also in charge of having baseballs ready for each game. That responsibility used to belong to Marty Ondrovic - a locally well-known former coach, affectionately known around the ballpark as “Uncle Marty,” - who would rub down all the baseballs and serve as an attendant for the umpires.

Ondrovic has had to cut back on his work and was going to have to step away from the game he loved.

“I had always told Uncle Marty that as long as I was here, he was going to have a job. When he called me and said he was not going to be able to do the baseballs, we came up with the idea of taking everything to him so he could do them and then we would pick them up. We go over two or three times during a homestand and drop off more balls and pick up the ones he has done. We use the tips that the umpires give us for helping them to pay Marty,” said Ross.

ROCHESTER REUNION ... On July 31, 2021, the IronPigs were in Rochester and third baseman Daniel Brito collapsed on the field in the middle of an inning. Brito had suffered a brain hemorrage and required surgery and a 59-day stay in the intensive care unit of Rochester University’s Strong Memorial Hospital. Brito has worked his way back to performing baseball activities and continues to rehab and work out in Columbus, Ohio - where he and his fiance live. During the Pigs road trip to Rochester last week, Brito was reunited on the field with emergency workers who assisted him immediately after his collapse and during the long months afterward.

THE STATE OF THE PIGS ... With nine games remaining in the season, Lehigh Valley has fallen off the pace being set by Durham and Scranton/Wilkes-Barre. By virtue of a 4-6 record in their last 10 games, the IronPigs are 5.5 games behind Durham, four behind Scranton and two behind Jacksonville in the International League East. Lehigh Valley plays six games at home this week against the RailRiders before finishing the season with three games in Syracuse next week.