Baldur ball legend Jones calls it a career
BY PERRY BERGSON
After a long-playing career in baseball that finally ended this summer, Darrick Jones prizes the intangibles he accrued on the diamond over everything else. The 44-year-old Baldur resident, who played the game for decades in national events, at an American college, in the pro ranks and for many years with his hometown Regals, said the relationships he built are what matters.
“The championships and all that stuff are great, but it’s the friendships and the people you meet and the places you get to go,” Jones said. “I’ve been all across Canada and in a number of states and met I don’t know how many dozen or hundred teammates along the way.
“I walk through many doors every day for work, and you’d be surprised how many people I run into who I played with or against over the years. It’s a great way to have conversations and reminisce. It’s definitely the people and relationships I’m most grateful for.”
FARM SYSTEM
The path to the baseball field started on the family farm 40 years ago. Jones said his parents Gordon and Lauren encouraged him to try the sport, a seed that rapidly took root.
“I would take a broken broomstick and would smash rocks around for a while,” said Jones, who has a younger sister, Donalee. “I always just thought that was just a cool way to spend time, whether it was that or throwing the tennis ball off the back of the house. Baseball and I just clicked.”
The second part of the equation was the support of his folks, who unselfishly drove him wherever he needed, which was key for a farm kid.
In the youngest age groups, there were enough local kids for Baldur teams, with some players from nearby Belmont occasionally supplementing their ranks. In their early teenage years, they also combined with Cartwright at times.
Gerry Janz coached Jones as a youngster and later when he played with the Regals. He remembers Jones’ first game, which was in Cartwright in an era when a coach pitched to their own team.
“He came to bat and I lobbed one in to him and he lined it past my right ear,” Janz said. “It was a missile. I came into the bench after our bat was done and I said to Rob Ramage who was helping me coach ‘I think that kid is going to be a pretty good hitter.’ “Yes he was. He was a great hitter.”
He also turned into a great catcher. The team also included Janz’s son Jesse, who played centre-field and pitcher Nathan Ramage, who played second base when he wasn’t on the mound. That meant they were always solid up the middle.
It was a talented trio that would last from minor ball to senior ball.
“I don’t know if it was because I had a strong arm or was one of those guys who is high energy so they’re trying to rein it in, but I just found I wanted to be involved in the game and involved in the play, and there’s no better place for it than catcher,” Jones said. “Every ball that’s pitched, you’re right in the middle of it. You get to see the game from a different perspective. Everybody else is looking into the plate and you have everything in front of you and you can be a bit of a director of traffic.
“I found it a lot more enjoyable to be back there.”
Janz said there is a simpler reason why Jones ended up behind the plate. It was because Ramage threw so hard.
“Jonesy was the only one at that age who could handle him,” Janz said. “He was always mad at me because I would never let him pitch. I said ‘Jonesy, I pitched and I caught and by the time I was late 20s I couldn’t throw anymore because you wreck your arm. We’re not going to wreck that cannon you have.’” Janz agreed to take a coaching course at one point so he could help manage a regional team going to provincials, and at the clinic the game was broken down for the baseball veteran in a new way. He took that knowledge back to his young team, and discovered they were eager to learn too.
“They were like sponges and sucked it up,” Janz said. “Jonesy learned quick, and he’s a sharp guy. He picked up on stuff like that. It’s so much easier to do something when you know what to do.”
Jones was picked up by teams for big events when he was younger and soon made his first trips to nationals and westerns, eventually earning a spot on Team Manitoba for the first time at 15. Janz wasn’t surprised by his success, in part due to Jones’ live arm.
“At a very young age, a guy would just take off from first and trot down to second,” Janz said. “Nobody was ever thrown out. The look on their faces when Ramage was standing there with the ball and they’re four steps off the bag, it was amazing. ‘How the hell did he get that?’” Jones looked up to older players such as Travis and Mike Johnson, Doug Roeges and Darcy Dearsley when he was a little guy, and later joined them on the Regals when he began playing senior baseball at 14 in 1994 as the team struggled to find players. That was another education for the teenager.
“It was kind of the group you wanted to belong to,” Jones said. “We had lots of fun, and they were always good to the younger guys, not only myself, but all the guys that I started with.”
Mike Johnson, who is Jones’ brother- in-law and the editor and publisher of the Baldur Gazette, said it was apparent he was a special player. Johnson pitched, so he worked closely with Jones.
“Right from the get-go you could see he had catching skills I hadn’t seen before, at our level anyhow,” Johnson said.
Jones was also successful outside baseball.
He played hockey growing up as well, including at the under-18 AAA level with the Pembina Valley Hawks, where he won a championship in 1997 and fell in the final to the Southwest Cougars in 1998.
NEXT STEP
When Jones was in high school, he began to look at baseball colleges in North Dakota, but didn’t necessarily want to follow the same path as everyone else. His provincial teammate Jared Froese was recruited by the Graceland University Yellowjackets and let Jones know about the team’s pressing need for a catcher.
The Jones family drove down to Lamoni, Iowa — located near Kansas City, about 520 kilometres straight south of Minneapolis — and met with the coach and toured the facilities. “I don’t know why, but it just felt right to go down there,” Jones said of the community of about 2,000, which is pronounced Le-MOAN-i. It was his first time off the farm, but it was a comfortable fit after the inevitable challenges that follow everyone who leaves home. As it turned out, he eventually ended up as roommates with a pitcher from Wisconsin named Jay Steffen.
“Just having a guy from a similar background as me — he was a farm kid from Wisconsin and I was a farm kid from Manitoba — we hit it off,” Jones said. “That made it a lot easier to go through the process. It was a bit of a culture shock but the Midwest isn’t a heckuva lot different than rural Manitoba in a way.”
That two buddies lived together for the rest of their collegiate careers, and Steffen came up to Baldur after they graduated and pitched for the Regals in the Manitoba Senior Baseball League for a summer.
Recruiting the catcher from smalltown Manitoba quickly proved to be a godsend for the Yellowjackets, who played a fall-ball season, worked out all winter and had a second season starting in February.
Jones spent four seasons with Graceland from 1999 to 2002, batting .388 with 24 home runs and 131 RBI in 160 games over his NAIA baseball career. With a .471 on-base percentage and a slugging percentage of .647, he earned all-conference honours and was named a second-team All-American in his final year.
Behind the plate, he finished his career with a .983 fielding percentage, with 790 putouts and 140 assists.
Jones said it was a Division 2 level of ball, with some strong teams and guys who throwing in the high 80s, but it reminded him of the guys he played against in Manitoba.
“Playing senior ball up here definitely gives you the background or confidence that the stuff you’re going to see down there isn’t a heckuva lot different,” said Jones, noting he was hitting against guys like Vinnie Eastman, Ryan Boguski, Jeff Wiebe and Shane Moffatt in the MSBL. “If you can battle with them, it definitely increases your confidence when you go down south.”
In fact, his college career was so outstanding that he was enshrined in Graceland’s Hall of Fame in 2012.
“Honestly it was just nice to get back down there,” Jones said. “I hadn’t been since I graduated so it would be 10 years at that point. It was a nice experience. It was cool to show the boys where I played. They were pretty young, but it was a nice honour.”
LEFT: Winnipeg Goldeyes catcher Darrick Jones throws to first after tagging out St. Paul Saints runner Justin Hall on Sept. 6, 2003. (Winnipeg Free Press file)
RIGHT: Darrick Jones connects with the ball for the Morden Mohawks in front of Hamiota Red Sox catcher Joben Smith in their 2-1 victory over the Hamiota Red Sox on Aug. 12, 2018 to capture the senior AA provincial baseball championship in Neepawa. Jones was picked up by the Mohawks for the event. (Perry Bergson/The Brandon Sun)
PRO BASEBALL
After his senior year, he went to an open tryout with about 70 other players looking to launch pro careers but it didn’t lead to anything.
Jones returned home with a business degree and was running the grocery store in Baldur for the Johnson brothers. Naturally, Jones was also playing with the Regals when he received a call from the Winnipeg Goldeyes, who were in the Northern League at the time. They had an injured catcher, so Jones joined them for a weekend series at home.
He saw action in the Sunday game after the score got a little lopsided, giving Jones his first taste of pro ball.
“It wasn’t necessarily high on my radar at that point,” Jones said. “With the Goldeyes being local, it was one of those things that was ‘That would be kind of cool to give it a shot.’” After his weekend in 2002, the Goldeyes asked if he would return the next spring for tryouts, and he earned a roster spot in 2003.
“That was a time I’ll never forget for sure,” said Jones, who took a leave from the grocery store. “Winnipeg as a rule is very strong but we were at the top of the Northern League for quite a while with sellout crowds, and being from Manitoba, you ran into people you knew all the time.”
Since the Northern League was a stepping stone for players making their way up — and some who were headed in the other direction — the talent was terrific.
Since Jones caught, he had an opportunity to handle a level of pitching he had never encountered before. Denny Wagner was near the tail end of his career.
“He threw a sinker like I had never seen before,” Jones said. “He was one of those guys who would almost break your thumb if you’re not careful. That was an experience, and then catching the likes of Donnie Smith, who is from Winnipeg, he had as nasty a slider from the right side as I’ve ever caught before, and George Sherrill is probably the name people might recognize from back then.
“He ended up getting picked up by Seattle and was in the majors with Seattle and Baltimore as an all-star relief pitcher. They were definitely a class above.”
Jones appeared in 34 games that season, hitting .232 with 10 RBI and a .589 on-base percentage. After the season, Jones sat down with then-manager Hal Lanier trying to get a commitment on playing time for the next season.
“If I’m coming back, it would be worth continuing to make peanuts if you’re going to try to get me in once a week at the very least,” Jones said. “He said he would make no promises and let me know, but he found another catcher. He called me back three or four days later and his position hadn’t changed and my position hadn’t changed and that was the end of it.
“It was a little bittersweet. I don’t know if I wish I had done it differently but when you’re making $300 a month with student loans, it’s a consideration. It was a great experience and I probably would have liked to continue it. If the financial situation had been slightly better or they would have got me in here or there, it probably would have continued.
“But there are no sour grapes at all from my end.”
Johnson, who was back home watching, said it as an impressive accomplishment.
“I don’t know if we ever thought Canadian kids would get a shot,” Johnson said. “He had the drive and put a lot of time in and it paid off for him.”
BACK HOME
The Regals played in the Manitoba Senior Baseball League for years — the boost of the young trio of Jones, Janz and Ramage gave them the talent to compete — but when their numbers dropped the team disbanded after the 2002 season. Jones suited up with the Killarney Lakers in the MSBL from 2003 to 2006, but when the Regals returned to Baldur in 2007, so did he.
He came back to a powerhouse. The team’s incredible run of success included winning six Border West Senior AA Baseball League titles from 2007 to 2012, earning the provincial crown from 2008 to 2011 and capturing the Western Canada championship in Alberta in 2009. They were so dominant that in 2015, the 2007-12 Regals were added to the Manitoba Baseball Hall of Fame.
“It was totally shocking we got inducted at that point because we still felt like, and I guess in a way we were, still in our prime,” Jones said. “It was one of those things that when we got the call, the guys were generally speaking still around so it was like an extra celebration of what we had accomplished. Lots of us continued to play and still had some success after that, but any time you get to be honoured like that is absolutely fantastic.”
They went on to win the western Canadian championship again in 2016.
Jones was named the top player in the province in 2009, and Janz was selected as the high performance coach of the year.
Baldur’s recipe for success included strong pitching, solid defence and offensive depth from the top of the lineup to the bottom, something that didn’t change even as some of the faces did over the years. But a big part of the equation was Jones.
Johnson remembers throwing to the perennial all-star Moffatt and deciding Jones had called the wrong pitch.
“I shook him off,” Johnson said. “I never, ever shook him off and I did that time and Shane hit it about 420 feet. That was he was so good at as well, was calling a game. When you pitched to him, you didn’t have to worry about calling the game or anyone stealing bases.”
Jones said his baseball career wouldn’t have been possible without the support of his wife Debbie, his high-school sweetheart who he married in 2006. They have two children, 17-year-old Lachlan and 15-year-old Spencer.
Jones played a bit in the summer of 2023 — and even had the chance to catch Lachlan and throw to him in a game — but decided this summer it was time to bring his illustrious playing career to an end. Not surprisingly, he balanced the greater good in his decision as a new group of youngsters joined the team.
“I don’t want to be the guy taking reps from guys who deserve the chance I had when I was young,” Jones said. “I thought ‘You know what, I like helping and I like still being part of it, but for me when we have so many young guys who are keen on coming, I wasn’t going to stand in their way.’” He co-coached the team with Drew Janz instead.
Needless to say, his legacy in the sport is complete.
“I’ve been around baseball all my life and never in Manitoba did I see a better catcher,” Janz said. “He had all the tools. He could block, he went soft and the ball never bounced off him, it just dropped. I caught myself and you go rigid when that 58-foot curveball came in. It bounces off you and goes anywhere, but he goes soft and blocks it. “He had a cannon for an arm and everybody loved to pitch to him. They could throw that curveball in the dirt and know he was going to block it and get the strike three call. He was just a beauty.”
STILL BUSY
One of his other hobbies is curling in the Air Greenway Super League at the Baldur Curling Club on a team that includes Jesse Janz, Scott Crayston and Cody Chatham.
When Baldur hosted the provincial men’s curling zones in 2020, Janz, his sons Jesse and Drew and Jones decided to throw together a team to have a local representative. Jones played lead, and the quartet ended up winning and earned a berth in provincials.
They didn’t last long, but that really wasn’t the point.
“That was a cool experience,” Jones said. When he isn’t involved in sports, Jones is simply one of those people who keeps things thriving with his countless hours dedicated to the community.
“He’s done everything you can do as a volunteer in our small town,” Janz said. “We’re lucky to have a lot of people in this small community who care about the place. It keeps our clubs going.”
Jones was on the executive of the fire department but has stepped back from that. He is still on the Rec Centre’s building committee, is president of Baldur Minor Baseball and has served as the AAA co-ordinator of the Pembina Hills Regional Baseball Association for more than a decade after also serving as president there.
Naturally he also ran the curling club for a couple of years.
“I’m actually doing a little less right now than I have been, which is kind of nice,” Jones said with a chuckle. “But I’m sure something else will come up.”
He said the urge to be involved comes from his parents and the men who coached him like Janz.
“It’s the sense of community,” Jones said. “Coming from a small town, you realize things don’t get done on their own and it takes volunteers … I don’t know if it’s your duty but I enjoy being part of it. I wanted to make things better for not only my kids but other kids in the area.”
Johnson said that cohort of Baldur residents has always stepped up.
“A lot of our young guys and young gals step up to the plate,” Johnson said. “He’s been one of them. His friends and age group follow suit, and he sets an example.”
Jones is now the district manager for the Canadian Federation of Independent Business after many years as a territory manager for Pratt’s Wholesale out of Winnipeg. He’s on the road a lot in his new job but enjoys his work and the chance to see people.
Janz said the key to Jones is simple: He’s exactly the person you want him to be, something he first displayed on the baseball diamond many years ago.
“He was a leader,” Janz said. “He was never boisterous or saying he was better than you guys. He was a great teammate. The guys just loved to be around him.” They still do.
LEFT: Baldur Regals catcher Darrick Jones was named co-MVP at the western Canadian senior AA baseball championship in Baldur in 2016. The Regals won 10-0. (Perry Bergson/Brandon Sun)
RIGHT: Darrick Jones poses for a picture in 2005
Darrick Jones of Baldur throws a stone during the 2020 Viterra Championship at the Eric Coy Arena in Winnipeg.