who is pals with Dusty reaches out. But fate intervenes. Dusty’s son Darren Baker gets called up to the Bigs and the Washington Nationals. Dusty is in the stands as Darren, a former Giants bat boy, singles off the first pitch he sees. A video captures the smile on Dusty’s face that can be seen from space without aid of a satellite. Chik Brenneman, the winemaker at Baker Family, says that Dusty is a realist when it comes to the family business. “He says his name might sell the first bottle. But it’s the wine we are making that sells the next bottle.” The story goes that Baker had opened a bottle of scotch being sold with a celebrity label. The scotch was terrible, and Baker said I can’t drink this junk. He then told Brenneman if Baker’s name was on it, the wine had to be good. So, no pressure for Chik. Brenneman was the winemaker at the University of California Davis Teaching and Research Winery for 13 years. Baker, like so many times on the baseball teams he managed, is counting on a veteran to produce in a key role. Baker originally asked for Brenneman’s help with a small plot of land at his home in Placer County to produce syrah. It was a hobby, just some wine for Baker and friends. Trouble was that the wine kept getting better. Baker played for the Atlanta Braves, the Dodgers, the Giants and the A’s. He was in the on-deck circle when Hank Aaron broke the pre-steroid period home run mark. He was on the all-star team twice and won a gold glove. He managed the Giants, the Nationals, the Reds, Cubs and the Astros and has been named manager of the year three times. That has never happened before, and he will make the Hall of Fame as a manager once he has been out of the game long enough for the vote.
A Barbary Coasters baserunner rounds third at the Balletto ballfield in Santa Rosa. [Duncan Garrett Photography]
for his employees and their families to enjoy. The field was his response to a staff request that he sponsor their local baseball team. The employees built the field with Balletto picking up the materials and equipment and setting aside the land. Balletto estimates that the land could have yielded 12 to 15 tons of grapes, but having the field for his employees is more important in the long run. The field of course has been compared to the Field of Dreams in Iowa made famous by the late, great James Earl Jones riding around in a vintage VW van, Costner hearing things and, of course, the ghosts of long dead players retreating into a corn field in the outfield. On summer and spring weekends, the field is the scene of surprising catches and close calls. While the other wineries in this story have their hook in the big leagues, Balletto is closer to what most of us remember. Wooden benches in the dugout. A pitcher’s mound that may change shape as the season moves along. It’s the romance of what can be. The laughter and cheers. The sharp ping of a well-struck ball. Watching a player dust themself off, knocking the dirt back onto the field as the dust disappears into the ether, like a ghost into the corn.
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“Baseball may be a religion full of magic, cosmic truth, and the fundamental ontological riddles of our time, but it's also a job.” — Annie Savoy from Bull Durham In the end, I have a theory about baseball and wine—why there are so many former players gravitating toward the vines for a living. Baseball is romantic. It’s fathers playing catch with sons. It’s sitting in the bleachers soaking up sun, spitting sunflower seeds and arguing with friends about why the pitcher should have been yanked sooner. And winemaking is side-by-side with farming, which is also romantic. Tending to the land. Creating something from the dirt via hard work. The vines coming alive with fruit, morning dew shining on the grapes. Wine swirled while holding it toward the sun to catch the legs on the side of the glass. Romance. Plus, wine tastes good. g Bill Meagher is a contributing editor at NorthBay biz where he pens the monthly column Only in Marin. He is also a senior reporter for The Deal . This story was written while listening to his baseball mix that includes Baseball by Michael Franks, Catfish by Bob Dylan and A Dying Cub Fan’s Last Request by Steve Goodman. It was also written while drinking Baker Family Wines Sauvignon Blanc—tart, grapefruit overtones with hints of the steal sign.
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“You have to be a man to play baseball for a living, but you gotta have a lot of little boy in you too.” —Roy Campanella
Baker Family Wines I’m trying to catch up with Dusty Baker to get his take on wine and baseball. I leave messages at the winery. An old friend of mine
Please email comments to jwalsh@NorthBaybiz.com
30 NorthBaybiz
October 2024
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