Geoffrey Gonsher

A longtime government executive, Geoffrey Gonsher played a key role in the effort to save the Cactus League, whose existence was threatened by a lack of public support for facilities in the late 1980s. As a policy advisor to former Arizona Gov. Rose Mofford, Gonsher established the Governor’s Special Task Force on Cactus League Baseball, providing policy advice and directing the state’s activities with team representatives, city officials, local communities and booster groups. Those efforts eventually led to the passage in November 2000 of Prop. 302, which provided public funding to assist with Cactus League facility construction and renovations within Maricopa County. Prop. 302 resulted in the Cactus League eventually expanding to 15 teams – half of Major League Baseball’s franchises – in 2010.