3Dpostcrescent.com

July 6, 20= 08

Root= , root, root for the home team
In places like Navarino, cheering for local nine= is a tradition

By Brett Christopherson
Post-Crescent staff writer

NAVARINO — A familiar face is relaxing in his lawn chair, the promise of another Sunday summer afternoon fading by each passing inning. He’s framed overhead = by the leaves of a maple tree, enthusiasts nearby and an old friend — as radiant as ever despite the erosion of six decades — to his right and= in front. “I built this ballpark," said Ed Krohlow, the pride in his 90-year-old eyes evident as he scans every inch of Navarino Athletic Field, home of the Navarino Rangers, one of nine amateur baseball clubs that compr= ise the Dairyland League. “This old ballpark was just a field. I built it, most of it, because I came in here with a tractor and equipment. Somebody g= ave us the property, and I worked it up like a garden."

That somebody was George and Rosetta Henn, who in 19= 48 sold it to the local school district for a mere $1 and other considerations= a parcel of vacant land on the western edge of this unincorporated town in southern Shawano County, 35 miles from Appleton, that has since grown into something of a cathedral for many of the 4o8 souls who live here. Baseball = fans might croon over Wrigley Field or Fenway Park, but the Navar= ino faithful hold nothing back in gushing over their own slice of Camelot. “It’s one of the best ballparks in the league," said Krohl= ow, a handful of outs separating the Rangers from completing a 4-1 Dairyland victory on June 29 against Bonduel, a win that handed the rival Broncos the= ir first league loss in six tries. "There's no doubt about it."

Throughout Wisconsin, and across the nation, amateur baseball fills summer calendars. There are no egotistical owners, meddling agents, talk of free agency and bonus babies — unless you count the capitalistic-minded youngsters at Rangers game= s, who sprint after foul balls knowing their safe return t= o the PA booth means a shiny quarter in their pocket. Some of the amateur clu= bs in this state reside in larger cities, like Madison, Milwaukee, Green Bay= and Appleton. But many breathe life into sleepy outposts and are called the Seeley Mudpuppies, the Interwald Woodticks and the Navarino Rangers. They give the= ir small communities a face, and baseball is the excuse for people to come together and rehash yesterday, contemplate tomorrow and cheer for today = 212; all within the confines of a couple of hot dogs and a few lazy hours.

That's what Krohlow, a retired dairy farmer who rarely misses a game, finds so appealing about the amateur level. “You can always come home from chu= rch and change clothes, even if you had to be back home at 5 o'clock to milk cows," said Krohlow, a Navarino outfielder and first baseman for 22 ye= ars, beginning in 1934, that was interrupted only by a four-year stint in the service. "It's something to do. “In other words, it's a cherished pastime — whether the team name splashed across the jersey reads Hager City, Washington Island or Navarino.

'We had a good brand of baseball'

Tuna's Tavern bumps against State 156, just west of the Navarino-Lessor Fire and <= st1:PlaceName w:st=3D"on">EMS Building, but a quick spin east of the Sgt. Avery Wilber Memorial Bridge, a short span that crosses the wandering Shioc Ri= ver. From the outside, an overhang bolstered by two stone pillars identifies the longtime watering hole, an otherwise unassuming place that sits in the cent= er of town. But walk inside and you'll find an 800-square-foot shrine to Navar= ino baseball.

On one wall are a handful of team pictures, along with three framed jerseys, o= ne of which says Galesburg on the front. Although Navarino baseball dates back to the 1900s, the town = team officially got its start in 1934 through the efforts of Ira Hilliker and was known as Galesburg until 1950.Hilliker's grandson, 57-year-old Lon Hilliker, recently unearthed a pair of team scorebooks, one from the inaugural 1934 season and another from 1940 that demonstrates a seemingly simpler time by = the printing on its cover: Spalding Official Base Ball Score Book No. 91-835."We went every Sunday," said Lon, a Navarino resident who works for Miller Electric Manufacturing Company in <= st1:City w:st=3D"on">Appleton. "My dad went to them, ma= naged the team and then followed them after that. That's what you did on Sunday. = You just went to the ballgames. I still follow them."

Another jersey is from the 1994 season, which ended with the Rangers beating Cecil = in the Dairyland grand championship game to finish 16-0 — and led to pac= king the tavern, then known as Walt's Bar, in celebration afterward."This p= lace would be full of beer on the floor, just people everywhere," said Kobey Pues, 43, a Navarino native and a sweet-swinging first baseman on that 1994 team who lives in Shawano. "= They were outside this door, that door — they were everywhere. Our fan base here, the 25 years I played, was better than anybody else. “We’= d go to some of these places, and they'd have 10 people there. We'd take our fans with us. We'd have 100 at away games. And when we were winning in the '80s,= it would be nothing to have 200 people at a game, and that's a lot for a little town like this. We had a good brand of baseball, and people liked to watch = that baseball. “The results of that brand — strong pitching, solid hitting, sound defense — can be seen on shelves above the tavern's entrance in the 10 grand championship trophies on display. Navarino, which = in 1959 joined Black Creek, Bonduel, Hofa Park, Landstad and Nichols in forming the first Dairyland L= eague slate, won titles in 1960, '84-86,'88, '90-91, '94-95 and 2003.

Many of those championships were sparked by the dominant pitching of left-hander Kevin Thiel, who played from 1984 to '95. Thiel, a Marion High School graduat= e, pitched in the California Angels farm system from 1972 to '76.Future big le= ague hurler Bob Wickman, from nearby Abrams, was also known to make cameo appearances with the Rangers in the '80s.The wood bat league is celebrating its 50th season this summer. “You go back all t= hose years, it was the activity for the whole town," said 63-year-old Jack Dingeldein, a retail lumber yard owner who lives in Oconto Falls, but grew up in Navarino. He played for the Rangers f= or 28 years and once served as the Dairyland president. “Everybody came = to the ballgame. The camaraderie and even the families interacting at the games — I don't know, maybe there wasn't a lot else to do. But this town to= ok its baseball seriously, it really did."

'Your dad played, and you played'

A quiet crowd ignored a gloomy sky and unseasonably cool temperatures and dol= ed out $2 in admission to watch Navarino improve to 3-4 in league play with its win over Bonduel. No attendance totals were taken, but the murmur throughout the park had that number anywhere between 100 and 150.Some sat under the covered bleachers behind home plate — the canopy installed last fall = to complete another in a long line of improvements seen at Navarino Athletic F= ield — now the property of the township — over the years. Some hung = out in the spacious concession shelter, sitting on picnic tables or their own portable chairs and within easy reach of an array of snacks and beverages. = The area is a major upgrade from the old 10-foot-by-10-foot ice shacks that were once used as beer stands. A new outfield chain-link fence and scoreboard, bordered by tall pines, topped the project list in 2005, while lights were added in 1991.The Navarino Athletic Association U.A. (unincorporated association), a nonprofit organization that oversees Rangers baseball, and private donations helped fund those projects. “It’s as nice as = any in the league, maybe nicer than any of them," Dingeldein, also a past president of the athletic association, said of the field, which measures 340 feet to straight-a-way center, 330 in the alleys, 310 to left and 285 to ri= ght. "The facility, the stands. Us and Bonduel have the two nicest parks, the two best-kept parks. “The = two teams are also steeped in tradition, having combined to win 18 Dairyland gr= and championships. “I still don't think anybody knows how much it meant to the ballplaye= rs to win," Dingeldein said. "Sometimes, nowadays, we're teaching our young kids — we shake our hands after the game and everybody's 'Yeah, Yeah. You played good, that's all that counts.' That wasn't so with us, and= I don't think it was true of the league. “I didn't like the guys from <= st1:place w:st=3D"on">Hofa Park and Bonduel, e= ven though I knew them. I wanted to beat them worse than anything you can possi= bly imagine. I don't think some people know or can understand that feeling about playing baseball.

"Every Sunday was the World Series. I don't want to make it sound too much like the players were bloodthirsty animals out there. But dammi= t, you played to win. “So, what's the secret? Why have amateur teams fad= ed in places like Black Creek and Shiocton but remained vibrant in Navarino?"Your dad played, and you played," said Dan Diemel, a 62-year-old who has lived in Navarino his entire life. He played 14 years w= ith the Rangers and also served as the athletic association president. "Th= at's the way it kind of went with my family. That's what most of them are, a cou= sin of this guy or a son of this guy. That's kind of how it gets passed around. “Look on the roster list of those who have played on Navarino title-winning teams and you'll find a number of Diemels and Dingeldeins and= Herbs and Pues and Richters.Dingeldein even played long enough — from age 14 through 42 — to catch for his oldest son, Scott, who's now the Ranger= s' manager. “I told my wife, if (my 13-year-old son) wants to play ball when he's= 16 and comes out here, I think I might have to come back out of retirement and play some more," Pues said with a smile. But could a day loom in Navar= ino when amateur ball becomes a memory? “I hope not," Pues said. "Every year, I tell them, if they need a player to avoid a forfeit, ca= ll me. I'll put the uniform on, and I'll be here in a second. I hope it never = dies out here because of the history. But could you see it happening? Yeah. Black Creek is much bigger than we are, and they died out. It’s that fear, along with a craving for the game that keeps Ch= ris Herb in uniform. At 35 and in his 20th season with the Rangers, Herb is the oldest player on the roster. He said the onus is on veterans like him he has played on multiple grand championship teams —= ; to instill the tradition onto the next generation of Navarino ballplayers.

The youngest age on this year's club is 16, with the majority being in their 20s and hailing from Navarino.Twenty-five player names are listed on the Ranger= s' official roster. “There are a couple of years where we struggled getting players out," said Herb, a designated hitter/outfielder who was raised in Navarino and now lives in Wittenberg. "But now, kids are coming out and playing and sticking around, which is nice. I've been talking about retirement, but what else are you going to do= on a Sunday? Come down here and watch the baseball? If I'm coming to watch, I'd just as soon be playing. “And winning. When Rangers pitcher Matt Krause struck out the final batter to cap the victory = in a snappy one hour, 52 minutes; Diemel leaned over to Krohlow, smiled, extended his right hand and said, "I'll shake on that one."

A little while later, the concession shelter continued to fill as players and fans gathered for food, spirits and lively conversation. But the diamond wa= sn't deserted. One young boy stood near the mound, another was crouched behind t= he plate. Maybe they were pretending to be Milwaukee Brewers, Chicago Cubs or New Yor= k Yankees. Or perhaps their minds were on something more meaningful. Perhaps they just wanted to be Navarino Rangers.