Columbia Basin River Dogs celebrate 20th anniversary

EPHRATA - Okay. If one wants to get better at something, what does one do? Practice, of course, but what else? Well, one way is to find other people who are good at it and learn from them. Compete with them, if that's the game.

That's how the Columbia Basin River Dogs were born.

The River Dogs, the 16-18 Babe Ruth baseball team that has attracted players from throughout north central Washington, celebrates its 20th anniversary this year, and will host the 16-18 Babe Ruth World Series Aug. 7 through 14. Games will be at Johnson-O'Brien Stadium, the field for Ephrata High School.

The mission of the River Dogs is to find the best competition and good coaching and learn from it - and not just about baseball, said Sam Boruff. Boruff is a River Dogs coach, a former player and the son of founder Randy Boruff.

Randy Boruff is a former baseball player, son of a summer ball coach, and he and a friend from Moses Lake were talking over the opportunities, back in the spring of 1994. Boruff, Ephrata class of 1969, said it started with that conversation with longtime friend Jerry Thaut, former Moses Lake Parks and Recreation Department director and Moses Lake class of 1968. Boruff and Thaut played on a summer team back in the day. "We were called the Columbia Basin Stars," Boruff said.

They saw a lot of talent around the Basin that summer of 1994, Boruff said, and thought those kids would benefit from a team that challenged them. "We need a place for kids who want to take their baseball to the next level," he remembered saying.

Moses Lake teens started playing for River Dogs in 1995, Boruff said, and in the team's 20 years, players have come from Warden, Ellensburg, Brewster, East Wenatchee, Othello, Quincy, Chelan, all over the place. But the core is "mainly the Columbia Basin," Sam Boruff said.

The 1998 River Dogs won the Babe Ruth World Series, and the team finished third in 2005, 2007 and 2009. The 16-year-old team won the World Series in 1995, finished second in 2000, third in 1997 and seventh in 2004.

Boruff "had the idea to get players the best possible coaches and the most highly competitive baseball, with the opportunity to be seen by college coaches and professional (baseball) scouts weekend after weekend," Sam Boruff said. It's paid off - many River Dogs have played college baseball and 20 players have been drafted by major league teams, Sam Boruff said. One River Dog, Ryan Doumit, made it all the way to the Big Leagues. (He's a catcher with the Atlanta Braves.)

Edward Rodriguez is a graduate of Warden, Wenatchee Valley College and the University of Oregon. The River Dogs "provided me with lessons on discipline, mental toughness, work ethic and loyalty," he wrote in a letter that will be included in a publication commemorating the River Dogs' 20th anniversary.

"Every practice and game was a new lesson learned, whether it be baseball or life, and it was not forgotten," Rodriguez wrote.

Krysta Gribble's son is playing his last year for the River Dogs. Summer ball has meant a lot of weekends on the road, a lot of motel rooms, a lot of restaurant meals, she said. "It's a really big, costly undertaking and you wouldn't trade it for the world," Gribble said.

Bryan Johnson, Ephrata, was a pitcher on the 1998 World Series winner. "What a thrill it was to be the winning pitcher in the intense final game, and part of an Ephrata-Quincy battery - if someone had told me I would be dog piling and celebrating with our arch rival Quincy, I would never have believed it," he wrote.

Johnson attended the University of Washington and played two seasons of professional baseball in the Arizona Diamondbacks organization. He was a River Dogs coach in 2005 and 2006. "It was refreshing to see players have the same opportunities and exposure that I did. Players from 1A and 2A high schools, such as George Reyes and Michael Ratigan, had the opportunity to go on and play in the Pac-12, the College World Series and/or professional baseball," he wrote.

"Some of the greatest memories I have involve relationships formed with players and coaches from other high schools. Spending the summers doing nothing but play baseball with a fun group of guys was an enviable experience," Johnson wrote.

Sam Boruff said he made lifelong friends in the River Dogs, a sentiment Rodriguez echoed. "Our team was a very tight-knit group, and we're still tight to this day," Rodriguez said.

Ten teams participate in the World Series, nine regional winners and the host team. Appearing in the World Series is a lock, so the River Dogs have set a different goal. "They want to win it. All these returning players want to win it. They want to win it at home," Gribble said.