Bat Dog: Hitting a Home Run with Baseball Fans
Diamond in the Rough
Jake “The Diamond Dog” delights
baseball fans across the country
by Greg Presto
If you attend a minor league baseball game this summer, you might notice something a little different about the ballpark staff: Instead of seeing bright-eyed, bushy-tailed youngsters chasing foul balls, acting as bat boys, and bringing water to the umpires, you might see a bright-eyed, bushy-tailed...Golden Retriever performing these tasks. But not to worry, this pooch isn’t a cost-cutting measure to reduce staff for the fledgling ball clubs, he’s Jake “The Diamond Dog,” and the ballpark is his playground.
Along with his guardian, 49-year-old Jeff Marshall of Harrod, Ohio, Jake visits more than 15 minor league stadiums each summer, doing more than 50 total appearances as far away as Birmingham, Alabama and Boston, and as far west as Peoria, Illinois, doing up to ten dates in each city. He’s appeared at countless minor league games, and has even walked on the friendly confines of the big league’s Wrigley Field. Marshall took time out of his busy travel schedule to talk to Tails about Jake, baseball, and minions of fans.
Tails: What is a typical Jake the Diamond Dog appearance like?
Jeff Marshall: We meet and greet fans as they come through the gate. But in some places, there’s a stampede, so we have a table set up on the main concourse for fans to meet [him and] ask questions. For fans who’ve had dogs in their lifetime, it brings memories back of when they had a great dog. And kids seem to idolize him. They look at him in awe.
During the game, Jake chases foul balls, picks up bats, and takes water to the umpires. He carries a basket of water to the home plate umpire, and waits while the umpire drinks. He then goes to the other umpires. He’ll do that three or four times throughout the game.
Tails: Does Jake do any other tricks during games?
JM: We’ll catch Frisbees during pitching changes and other breaks in the game. We throw Frisbees into the stands, and people throw them onto the field for Jake to fetch. And Jake always seems to find a ballpark sweetheart. We’ll [pick] a young girl with red hair—to match Jake’s—as the sweetheart, and Jake will carry her a bouquet of flowers.
Tails: How did you and Jake get involved in this?
JM: Before Jake, I [lived with] his father, Jericho the Miracle Dog, who was the mascot for the Fort Myers Miracle, a team in Florida.
Tails: And how did that get started?
JM: There’s this crazy guy named Mike Veeck (of the legendary Veeck baseball promotions family). I was working at a restaurant in Pompano Beach, and Mike knew my neighbor Judy Dowling. They came to the restaurant, and I proceeded to have Jericho retrieve the money for Mr. Veeck’s order from my neighbor. He liked the act, so he contacted me and a star was born.
Tails: What’s life on the road like for Jake?
JM: Oh, he’s got it made in the shade. We have a 2003 Ford F-250 Supercrew that we travel in; the back seat is removed, and I fill it with a big dog bed. There’s an orthopedic mattress on the bed, and the windows are all limo-tinted, so it stays cool for him. If it’s pretty hot at the game, there’s a dog pool for him to sit in. He’ll sit in there, kids pet him and he’s happy as a clam.
Along with his guardian, 49-year-old Jeff Marshall of Harrod, Ohio, Jake visits more than 15 minor league stadiums each summer, doing more than 50 total appearances as far away as Birmingham, Alabama and Boston, and as far west as Peoria, Illinois, doing up to ten dates in each city. He’s appeared at countless minor league games, and has even walked on the friendly confines of the big league’s Wrigley Field. Marshall took time out of his busy travel schedule to talk to Tails about Jake, baseball, and minions of fans.
Tails: What is a typical Jake the Diamond Dog appearance like?
Jeff Marshall: We meet and greet fans as they come through the gate. But in some places, there’s a stampede, so we have a table set up on the main concourse for fans to meet [him and] ask questions. For fans who’ve had dogs in their lifetime, it brings memories back of when they had a great dog. And kids seem to idolize him. They look at him in awe.
During the game, Jake chases foul balls, picks up bats, and takes water to the umpires. He carries a basket of water to the home plate umpire, and waits while the umpire drinks. He then goes to the other umpires. He’ll do that three or four times throughout the game.
Tails: Does Jake do any other tricks during games?
JM: We’ll catch Frisbees during pitching changes and other breaks in the game. We throw Frisbees into the stands, and people throw them onto the field for Jake to fetch. And Jake always seems to find a ballpark sweetheart. We’ll [pick] a young girl with red hair—to match Jake’s—as the sweetheart, and Jake will carry her a bouquet of flowers.
Tails: How did you and Jake get involved in this?
JM: Before Jake, I [lived with] his father, Jericho the Miracle Dog, who was the mascot for the Fort Myers Miracle, a team in Florida.
Tails: And how did that get started?
JM: There’s this crazy guy named Mike Veeck (of the legendary Veeck baseball promotions family). I was working at a restaurant in Pompano Beach, and Mike knew my neighbor Judy Dowling. They came to the restaurant, and I proceeded to have Jericho retrieve the money for Mr. Veeck’s order from my neighbor. He liked the act, so he contacted me and a star was born.
Tails: What’s life on the road like for Jake?
JM: Oh, he’s got it made in the shade. We have a 2003 Ford F-250 Supercrew that we travel in; the back seat is removed, and I fill it with a big dog bed. There’s an orthopedic mattress on the bed, and the windows are all limo-tinted, so it stays cool for him. If it’s pretty hot at the game, there’s a dog pool for him to sit in. He’ll sit in there, kids pet him and he’s happy as a clam.
