About Us

"So... What do you plan on doing with all those gloves?" Les Weber's wife asked him. "You should find something to do with them..." Like any good husband, Les understood the decree had been given. A curious thought began to form in his mind as he imagined the possibility of making a wallet from a baseball glove. After flattening a dismantled glove with his car and some wooden boards, Nancy, Les's sister, was able to help him make his first wallet. And thus began the idea behind When It Was A Game.

This story began about 7 years ago around 2017 in Nebraska. Over time, new ideas came to fruition and slowly the business and the demand grew. In late 2023, due to a need to focus more on his health, Les decided to sell the business. The stars aligned, and as is often the case when chance meets opportunity, I happened across this something unique, useful, and distinctly American. I decided to take him up on his offer of buying WhenItWasAGame.org and the inventory that came with it.

My name is Prenston Gale and i took over When It Was Game from Les in March of 2024. This is the first time I've owned a business and I jumped in head first. Since running it, I have come to learn a ton about the unique product offering we have and running the store. For those of you who have done business with Les in the past (and there are lots of fans of his) please be assured that I seek to uphold every gram of customer service, quality, and integrity that Les established.

In my time, I have to come understand our products carefully and technically. Over time, the soul of the company, grounded in baseball history, lore, and mystique has slowly become a part of me as well. I love the quality of our products and the possibilities it brings to people. The greatest joy I have running this business are the people who buy something for a loved one and cannot help but to send me a message like "this was my dad's favorite player," or "My son and I call each other silly gooses all the time, so this Goose Gossage wallet will be perfect!" It's insanely heartwarming to see the different ways that baseball lives in the homes of American families and I feel priviliged to be able to play my tiny part in these exchanges.

Thank you all for taking the time to read this and for being our customers. And please dont hesitate to contact me if you have any questions or concerns!

Prenston@oldbaseballwallets.com. If you are interested in seeing a recent interview I did with Les please check it out on Youtube: https://youtu.be/Qipjrb6vTeM

P.S. I sometimes say "our" because my best friend of 30 years keeps the inventory in his basement in Darien, IL, while I run the operations from my apartment in Seattle, WA.