There were a heck of a lot of great baseball players in Dubuque County when I was growing up. I’d put Dubuque County’s talent up against any county in the state.
I’ve always thought it would be fun to build a 25-man roster of the players I watched when I was a kid. Today that’s what I’ll attempt to do.
This is not meant to be the end-all, be-all, definitive list of the county’s best. Rather, these are the best players that I watched regularly. This list will not end any debates, but it will undoubtedly start a few.
Here goes nothing (ALL CAPS denotes former professional baseball player)…
Starting pitcher No. 1: JOHN ACKERMAN, Farley – Without a doubt, the best local baseball player I ever saw. The most exciting, too. Originally from Cassville, Wis., “Ack” spent enough time with Farley to be considered a Dubuque County native. The guy threw about 90 mph with a wicked slider, and he had a rubber arm. Did I mention he could hit the crap out of the ball, too?
Starting pitcher No. 2: TOM WEGMANN, Dyersville – The best-pitched game I ever saw was at the Holy Cross Tournament, where Ackerman beat Wegmann 1-0 (Loras Simon had an RBI triple to boost Farley). Wegmann pitched as high as triple-A for the Mets and Orioles. He was best known for his change-up and his outstanding control.
Starting pitcher No. 3: Pat Weber, Cascade – The most intense competitor I’ve ever seen. Nasty slider. Never afraid to pitch inside or put one in the batter’s ribs. Yipe has gotta have about 300 wins by now.
Starting pitcher No. 4: NIC UNGS, Dyersville – Ungsie is younger than I am, so his best days came after I stopped watching him. Still, the guy has been in triple-A for years, so he deserves a spot in my rotation. Sort of a side-arm delivery. Great control.
Starting pitcher No. 5: Dave Schenk, New Vienna – Nasty, nasty stuff. Hard thrower. Good breaking ball. Rubber arm. Confidence bordering on cockiness, but he could back it up.
Reliever: Frank Dardis, Peosta – The craftiest veteran you’ll ever find. He would be my situational lefty, or I’d bring him in if I needed to pick off the runner at first base. Legend has it that Frank is the only Loras pitcher to beat the University of Iowa.
Reliever: MIKE UNGS, Epworth — I caught the tail end of Ungs’ career, when he was a regular for Farley. He was still good at that point, but I’m told he was a real stud when he pitched for Epworth.
Reliever: Larry Jansen, Dubuque– The Dubuque Budweisers were a powerful team when I was a kid, in large part because of this right-hander.
Catcher: PAUL SCHERRMAN, Farley – There was a season right around 1991 or 1992 when “Sharm” (about 40 years old at the time) simply dominated the Prairie and Eastern Iowa Hawkeye leagues. Watching Paul that season is one of the great memories of my childhood. I can still remember his bat from that season (a white ceramic Easton). Paul was a great hitter and catcher for about three decades. Quite simply, Paul Scherrman IS Farley baseball.
Catcher: Tim Boge, Dyersville — I believe he played for the University of Alabama. Enough said. He could hit, and he threw lasers to second base. I think arm injuries might have sidelined his career.
First base: Dave Simon, Cascade – Swung for the fences every time, and often found them.
First base: Marty Till, Farley — I’ve never seen a better defensive first baseman … anywhere. Seriously, Marty was as good or better defensively than most major-league first basemen. And he was a fine, fine hitter who batted cleanup for the great Farley teams of the late 80s and early 90s.
First base: SCOTT SAVORY, Dubuque — Smooth operator with the glove and bat, this lefty caught scouts’ attention with his surprising foot speed.
Second base: Chris Hoefer, Epworth — This guy could pitch, too, and threw extremely hard. But he makes my team as an infielder because of his powerful left-handed bat.
Shortstop: Tim Felderman, Rickardsville — A remarkably gifted athlete out of Dubuque. He can catch it, throw it, hit it.
Shortstop: Ron Wedewer, New Vienna — He and Pat Weber had legendary battles back in the day. Probably still do, for all I know. A frighteningly good hitter with matching intensity.
Third base: Mark Pins, Farley – Pinsie has been a great player for the Hawks since he joined the team straight out of high school 20 years ago.
Third base: Chris Kerper, New Vienna – Izzy was a terrific all-around player at Beckman and with the N.V. Stars. He plays for Farley these days and is still pretty good, from what I hear.
Outfield: Shane Simon, Cascade – Built like Schwarzenegger. Grew up with a batting cage in his backyard, and he always knew what to do with a fastball.
Outfield: Scott Harris, Farley – Possibly the best hitting technician to ever come out of Dubuque County. Scottie knows as much about the mechanics of hitting as anyone I know. Go-to line was “Top hand over!”
Outfield: Jeff Nadermann, Dyersville – I didn’t see him play a lot, but a good friend of mine (whose opinion I respect) said Nadermann belongs on this list. Good enough for me.
Utility: Sean Dardis, Peosta — Frank’s son was such a natural. It seemed like there was never any wasted motion when he threw the ball, swung the bat, ran the bases.
Designated hitter: Justin Pierro, Epworth – Joined Epworth from Loras College via Chicago. He could hit a ball as far as anyone.
Designated hitter: Dennis Jaeger, New Vienna – Part of New Vienna’s “Murderer’s Row” of hitters. If you held that lineup to five runs, you did a good job.
Late-inning pinch-hitter: Loras Simon, Bernard/Cascade/Farley — Honestly, is there any other person for this job? “Si” was best known for that gravelly voice, his roofless International Scout, and his fearless disposition at the plate.
WITH APOLOGIES TO … Guys like Terry McDermott of Epworth, Hank Lucas of Holy Cross, Lenny TeKippe of Rickardsville and Don Till of Farley. There were a lot of very, very good players whose careers were over by the time I started paying attention. The only reason they aren’t on this list is that I was born too late.
OK, gang, who do you think should be on this list? Take your best shot!
