Gus Paine played his high school baseball for coach John Heinrick at Bellarmine Prep from 1928-30. During his high school years and into the 1930s, Paine played in the Industrial, Timber and Northwest Leagues. From 1936-41 he caught for and managed Cammarano Brothers, called by sportswriter Ed Honeywell “the best baseball team of that era.”

Paine played for the House of David for two years in the 1930s, barnstorming up and down the West Coast with the Satchel Paige Negro League All-Stars. When the All-Stars’ catcher got hurt, Paine donned a Kansas City Monarchs uniform and caught Paige for three games.

After World War II, Paine was a key figure in the creation of the City League. Teams in the league included K Street, McKinley Hill, 38th Street, Proctor and South Tacoma. The City League at that time was very popular and outdrew the Tacoma Tigers in attendance. Games were played in Lincoln Bowl and the hat was passed among the crowd for the teams to meet their expenses.

When professional baseball came to Tacoma and Cheney Stadium, Paine became one of the team’s owners and rarely missed a game. After Paine died in 1983, Tacoma sportswriter Earl Luebker wrote this about him: “He was an important part of the Tacoma baseball scene, as a player, as a manager and as an owner and a fan. … He was a baseball man through and through.”