Memories of Baker Softball

What could be better than a late Sunday afternoon of softball played on a dirt field surrounded by the expanse of a beautiful high desert valley? Not much.

That was Baker softball in the 1980’s

Bill Ilchik and Jack Dalton

We didn’t start out surrounded by immense views. We started playing at the old Baker School yard. It was the only backstop in town. Players would come from all around the valley along with spectators. It was a tight space for the game and the power hitters. The school building, teacher’s house and the trees were all really close. The game was delayed a lot as we searched for the ball hit into the “rough”. I don’t remember exactly, but I bet a few windows were broken. It was fun.

Looking for a new field became a priority. Through the good graces of Dean Baker and the Baker Ranch we soon were fixing a new field south of the Baker Ranch apartments. It turned out to be one of the few places around Baker that wasn’t rocky. Nice sandy soil made a great sliding surface. Joe Griggs found some chain link for the backstop. He and Dean got the county to cover the liability, Dave Moore came up with some large and long iron pipes, Dennis Schlabtz augured the holes and boomed the pipes into place and Baker Ranch helped clear the ground. Bill Rountree, Bill Ilchik, Marty Reed from the Fish Hatchery and Russ Groves were all a part of the project and soon we had a great backstop, a swing-set, volley ball area and outhouse. A couple of picnic tables and we were set. (And now “Dear Reader”, here is where I need your memories. Who else was there and what other details can you remember?)

L to R Randy Wilson, Diane Bullock, Susannah Barnes. Julie Gregson, Dave Baker,???, Kristi Kaiser, Jerry Pelk, Val Taylor, ??? Dean Baker & Pete Kaiser

Michelle ?, & Tom Baker on the balance beam

We brought the old home plate and bases, which were starting to fall apart. After a game or two, I made covers for the bases out of heavy denim with machine embroidery that spelled “Gucci”, “Yves St. Laurent” and “Channel” and Voila we had “designer bags” for our bases. Next season we took up a collection and purchased a new set of really good bases. We had a great ball field.

Some players didn’t have gloves so when the side was out and the other team took the field, gloves were handed off to the players without gloves. Those with bats brought them and someone always brought softballs. At one time we even had orange and white team shirts and hats donated by Laura Dean and Kathy Rountree. Thus equipped we played until it was too dark to see the ball.

Kathy Kaiser-Rountree

Baker Softball rules were different.
Rule #1 was everyone got to play. To this end we “chose up sides” rather than having teams. Every one was picked right down to the smallest kid who wanted to play. Sometime we had 25 people per team. The outfield was full! We had shortstops, middle stops, short short stops, well you get the picture. If you came late you just joined the side that was short a player. If not enough players came, we played work-up.
Rule #2 - Little kids got to bat until they hit the ball. Then you should have seen the gross ineptitude of the infield fumbling the ball, throwing it the wrong way, and generally messing up until the little player made it to first base.
Rule #3 - If you were too old, out of shape, or otherwise couldn’t run you could bat and use a “pinch runner”.
Rule #4 Follow the real rules.

Joe Gleason, a retired banker and Bob Hunter, retired auto mechanic both from southern Nevada were our main umpires. Bob had the best Major League umpire “you’rrrre OOUUUT!! move you've ever seen.

Pete Kaiser, “ump” Joe Gleason, Russ Groves, John Sheppard

Players came from all over the valley and even Ely. More organized games were played against other teams once in a while. The better players amongst us put together a regular team and played Garrison, a Stanford field camp team, the Park Service and others. Once the team caravaned up to Ibapah to play, stopping at Blue Mass for a picnic. This outing was organized by Bill Ilchik and is remember by the players as one of the great times. Baker won.

A women’s softball team from Utah, going home from a tournament stopped at the Outlaw for burgers and wound up playing. They stomped us. We only got one hit.

As the seasons went on water fights broke out more and more. What better way to end a game on a hot summer night than with a rousing dowsing. It all culminated in the most spectacular water fight Baker had ever seen. Without saying much, word got around and people came prepared with all manner of water containers, Russ Grove built a water balloon catapult in the back of his truck. As the game wound down, tentatively a few cups of water were thrown, the squirt guns came out, Russ started lobbing water balloons, But wait what’s that? OMG here comes the Ranch water tanker truck equipped with a pump and fire hose. A water balloon catapult was no match for that. The Baker boys trumped us all. There’s an enduring snapshot memory of Kristy Ferguson holding Willis by an ankle, dunking him in a cooler, up down, up down with him yelling Maaaa!. And needless to say there was not a dry player in the house.

There were some injuries, sprains, bruises and that sort of thing. Jody Dalton loved to pitch. Once she was hit in the forehead by a line drive. The ball caromed straight up in the air, the ever alert Bill Rountree rushed to her aid from first base, on the way he caught the ball, flipped it to third base for a double play and was still the first one at the fallen player’s side. Joe Griggs went nuts.

People came just to watch and enjoy the wonderful evenings at the ball field. So many fabulous sunsets, the sounds of meadow larks and owls, the crack of the bat, good natured jeering and taunting, and afterwards a lot of players having a hamburger or a beer down at the Outlaw and laughing about the great hits, missed catches and other silly things that happened in the game.

It was about community.

PS I hope that you will add your memories of the softball games in the comments section below.
It might be fun to start a roster of the people who played and loved Baker Softball.



Bill Rountree, Rodney Wright, ? , Russ Groves