Sporting Goods Industry Hall of Famer Stan Jurga Sr. Passes Away

DOWNERS GROVE, ILLINOIS and SHIRLEY, MASSACHUSETTS (March 2, 2026) – Stan Jurga Sr.’s influence on the sporting goods industry is on display to millions of people during the baseball season. Fans who are watching games from the major league level on down are likely to see a catcher wearing All-Star gear.

Jurga and his sons Stan Jr., and Brad helped make All-Star a prominent brand trusted by some of the best catchers in baseball. Their innovations also made a significant impact in helping catchers play better and stay healthier and led to the induction of Stan Jurga Sr., into the Sporting Goods Industry Hall of Fame in 2018.

Jurga, who led All-Star from a small company to a prominent baseball, softball and football equipment manufacturer, passed away on February 24 after a battle with a rare and aggressive cancer. He was 73.

“Any time you watch a baseball game from Little League to the big leagues, your focus is on the catcher and the prominence of the All-Star brand,” said Matt Carlson, NSGA President & CEO. “Stan Jurga Sr., was so influential in All-Star’s rise to prominence and making the game better and safer for catchers with his tireless work and drive to innovate the gear required to play such a demanding position.

“Stan Jurga Sr., also became a good friend, was one of the classiest people to work with in our industry and it was gratifying to witness his induction into the Sporting Goods Industry Hall of Fame in 2018. I’ll miss Stan’s softspoken wisdom when we had the opportunity to talk. Our heartfelt thoughts on his passing go out to his family, friends and everyone in our industry who had the good fortune to cross paths with him.”

Jurga joined the George Frost Company in 1972 as Assistant Plant Manager. George Frost was the parent company of All-Star Sporting Goods, which started in 1960. Jurga became the National Sales Manager of All-Star Sporting Goods in 1977 and was promoted to Vice President of Sales approximately three years later.

Jurga and Dave Holden purchased the All-Star Division of George Frost Company in October 1988 under the corporate name of Ampac Enterprises Inc. Jurga became the President of All-Star Sports in 1993 and he added the CEO title in 2011 after Holden passed away.

All-Star became a family business with Jurga’s sons Brad and Stan Jr. Brad is the CEO/President and Stan Jr., is the Vice President of Product Development. Stan Jurga Sr., started going into Major League Baseball clubhouses in the early 1980s to get a better idea of what catchers wanted from their gear and his sons have continued that tradition by annually visiting the spring training camps of every team in Arizona and Florida.

“Our dad did simple listening like, ‘Hey, if you could have whatever you wanted, what would it be?’” said Stan Jurga Jr., in a story in the January-February 2026 edition of NSGA NOW magazine. “The catchers would give him some honest feedback.

“He’d come back, work on some prototypes, go back a couple of weeks later and say, ‘What do you think of this?’ And the catchers would say, ‘Wow, that’s cool. Can you tweak this?’ My brother and I do the same thing now.”

Stan Jurga Sr., held at least five patents for protective equipment. One of his most famous innovations was working with 15-year big-league veteran catcher Charlie O’Brien on the development of a hockey-style catcher’s mask in the 1990s. He was also the first to offer full team colors in catcher’s gear to Major League Baseball catchers and matching-color facemasks.

Stan Jurga Sr., was born in Leominster, Massachusetts on April 27, 1952 and was a lifelong resident of Shirley, Massachusetts. He is survived by his wife of 51 years Carol, his sons Stan Jurga Jr., and Brad and his daughter Sara, two sisters and four grandchildren.

Stan’s family will receive relatives and friends from 4 p.m.-7 p.m. on Thursday, March 5 at the Anderson Funeral Home, 25 Fitchburg Road (Massachusetts Route 2A) in Ayer, Massachusetts. A funeral mass will be held at 11 a.m. on Friday, March 6 at St. Anthony’s Church, 14 Phoenix Street, in Shirley. There will be a spring internment in Center Cemetery in Shirley.

About the Sporting Goods Industry Hall of Fame

NSGA created the Sporting Goods Industry Hall of Fame in 1955 to honor sporting goods pioneers, innovators and leaders, while recognizing and encouraging continued excellence in the industry. Since the first induction in 1956, 185 men and women have been inducted. For more information on the Sporting Goods Industry Hall of Fame, please visit https://www.nsga.org/hall-of-fame/.

About the National Sporting Goods Association

Since 1929, the National Sporting Goods Association (NSGA) has been the leading voice and go-to resource for the sporting goods industry. NSGA helps the industry grow its businesses through research, advocacy and networking. For more information about membership or NSGA’s products and services, please visit www.nsga.org.