POCATELLO — When Art Beery moved to Pocatello from Chicago and attended his first Gate City Grays game last summer, he knew the team belonged.

But he also recognized a problem.

Fans were encouraged to return foul balls they retrieved. The traditional in-game souvenirs that are associated with American’s pastime were a costly expense for the club’s ownership and became little more than a bargaining tool for a piece of candy.

“I thought, that’s unbaseball-like,” Beery said “So, we found a niche.”

Beery, general manager of the Cole Chevrolet dealership in Pocatello, reached out to Grays co-owner Terry Fredrickson and arranged a partnership. Beery would buy the season’s supply of baseballs, and fans would get to keep errant flies into the stands.

“I like Terry, and I like what he does for the community,” Beery said. “When I knew that he was retrieving balls, and he told me what he was trying do with this ball club. … I know the feel and the vibe of what a successful team can do for a community, and I wanted to be part of it.”

Beery and Cole Chevrolet hosted the Grays meet and greet event Saturday morning. Fans young and old visited the players for pictures and autographs and helped themselves to the spread of baseball-themed snacks.

Fourteen-year-old fan and baseball player Brody Marlatt and his family have been attending Grays games since the team’s inception four years ago.

“You can see how much experience these guys have,” said Brody’s mom, Shannon Marlatt, of Inkom. “It’s fun. The atmosphere at the game is what I love. There’s an energy and an excitement. I love that.”

Brody and his cousin, 10-year-old Keira Heyrend, of Pocatello, had Grays players sign their official 2017 team program. Brody declared first baseman and four-year Grays veteran Nick Winters as his favorite Gate City player, but couldn’t forget favorite pro slugger David Ortiz, who had his No. 34 retired by the Boston Red Sox on Friday.

Brody said he looks up to the local ball players as inspiration for his baseball future.

“I want to play baseball my whole life,” Brody said. “I love it.”

Beery, a decade-long Chicago Cubs fan and baseball buff, drew parallels between the baseball cultures in the Windy City and the Gate City.

While Beery only had to agonize over the Cubs’ title drought for 10 years while the rest of the fanbase waited more than a century, he was absorbed into the community’s baseball hardship.

“You can’t help but get swarmed in,” Beery said. “You internalize that because you see everyone else. … This town has got everything Chicago has to offer. It’s just more compact. One of the things I did find about this whole community is they like stuff like this. It brings in the families, the whole thing. This just fits.

“I want the Grays to be part of everybody’s list of things to do.”

K.C. Marlatt, Shannon’s husband and Brody’s dad, noted Fredrickson’s accommodating ownership style.

“He’s always out in the crowd doing stuff,” K.C. Said. “Throwing shirts or just doing something, introducing himself. I think that’s really cool. (Brody) wanted to get his signature, too.”

Fredrickson always deflects credit, whether it be to his wife and co-owner, Erica, or to the sponsors or dedicated fans.

To be compared to the storied Cubbies — the winning version — takes a village.

Souvenir baseballs help.

“I’m grateful for Pocatello,” Terry said.