If you ever happen to see a white baseline in the SABL, just follow the trail of chalk to find league veteran
Gord Smerdenkas. Gord is literally the only player in the league who ever bothers to lay down the lines, even when it comes at the expense of his own pre-game warmup routine.
Smardenkas, 50, has played (approximately, since nobody knows for sure) 20 seasons in the SABL, making him one of the league’s true veterans and a veritable god in and around Scarborough. However, Gordie didn’t acquire legendary status simply through longevity and the laying down of chalk. This man can play.
According to longtime teammate
Rick Lam, Smerdenkas has been a baseball prodigy for as long as anyone can remember, considered one of the best young players to come out of Scarborough before the proliferation of baseball talent in Canada.
“When Gord was young, he caught and played the outfield with an absolute canon,” said Lam. “He probably threw about 90 miles per hour from the outfield.”
Adam Beck of the Mets also remembers the incredible strength of Smardenkas’ arm, even if that power never translated to a career on the mound.
“There aren’t too many of us around anymore who remember how strong and deadly accurate Gord’s arm was from the outfield,” said Beck. “We used to joke that he had a better chance of throwing a strike from the outfield than from the pitcher’s mound.”
Like most of us, Smardenkas has slowly lost some of his physical prowess over the years. But, incredibly, he’s managed to adjust accordingly, remaining an effective player into his fifties.
“As his arm strength waned, Gord learned to adapt his game,” said Beck. “This inevitably led to his being the only baseball player in history at any level to gun down a
potential base stealer with a windmill throw.”
“I don’t care who you are, where you come from, or how long you’ve been in the game. You just never forget the first time you see Gordie crank up that ole windmill from behind the dish.”
Mythical arm strength aside, it’s been Smardenkas’ bat that has continued to make him a game changing presence in the modern day SABL. During the website era of 2009-present, Smardenkas has hit a robust .385 to go along with 12 homers and 188 RBI. Impressively, Gord has stolen 19 bases without ever being caught.
More than statistics, however, it’s Smardenkas’ indescribable power that has made him the subject of post-game beer chatter throughout the SABL. He is the author of some of the longest bombs in league history.
Grant Brown of the Royals recalls a feat of strength by Smardenkas:
“It was a night game at Highview,” remembered Brown, owner of .455 batting average in 2015. “Gord basically smashed the longest ball I’ve ever served. It went deep into the shadows of left field. Unfortunately for him, there’s no fence out there, so it was only a triple.”
In addition to being one of the SABL’s greatest players, Smardenkas is also considered one of its most eccentric, at least by those who know him. According to Beck, there may be a good reason for that.
“I remember playing against the Indians at Wishing Well when we were the Brewers,” he said. “We had those big blue popsicle helmets. Gordie was wearing one of them as the pitcher threw a 35 mile per hour curveball way inside. Gordie ducked and the helmet fell off. The ball hits him square in the noggin. Unphased, he heads on his way to first, pardon the pun. And he’s never been the same since!”
“Actually, that’s not true at all,” said Beck, reconsidering his prior statement. "Gordie’s exactly the same.”
"His hair saved him.”