It was time for someone to give Dave Elmore a pat on the back, and the Pacific Coast League stepped up and did the honors Saturday at Security Service Field in Colorado Springs.
Elmore was inducted into the PCL’s Hall of Fame in recognition of his longtime ownership of one of the league’s teams.
As Elmore accepted the induction announcement from PCL president Branch Rickey III, it’s almost certain his thoughts went back 26 years to a time when he was surveying a new home for his Triple-A baseball franchise. The initial reaction wasn’t pretty.
“I thought, ‘Oh, my gosh, we’re out in the middle of nowhere,’ ” Elmore said. “You had to drive a couple of miles even to just find a place to have lunch.”
Elmore was moving his team from paradise (Honolulu) to nowhere . It was March as Elmore surveyed a plot of land well outside of the existing town on the east side of Colorado Springs.
“We took advantage of a natural bowl in the ground for the base of the grandstand,” Elmore said. “It was amazing, but by the end of June we were playing in our new ballpark.”
The Sky Sox had to play their home games downtown in old Memorial Park for the first couple of months of the 1988 season.
From the early days, the ballpark and the surrounding area have encountered considerable change. The area has built up with houses and commercial space. Lunch is no longer two miles away, and there have been additions to the ballpark and improvements to the playing field.
“A few years ago, there was talk about building a new baseball park downtown,” Elmore said. “We asked our fans, and they said to stay here. We try to do what our fans want. Our moving here has worked out great.”
Elmore was a participant in the formation of the Rockies franchise. He initially had discussions with principal owners Mickey Monus and John Antonucci about joining the ownership group. The Sky Sox became the Triple-A team in the Rockies’ farm system in 1993.
“I always wanted to be part of the Rockies’ organization, but it didn’t work at the time,” Elmore said. “We had some discussions, but I didn’t feel comfortable. There was something that didn’t seem right to me.”
Elmore wasn’t a stranger to the Denver sports scene. He had owned the Denver Grizzlies minor-league hockey team that had a good following before the Colorado Avalanche came to town. Elmore still operates the Grizzlies in Salt Lake City.
The Hall of Fame award from the PCL will go on Elmore’s wall. But he won’t have time to dwell on it. His time is absorbed with running minor-league baseball franchises in San Antonio; San Bernardino, Calif.; Eugene, Ore.; and Idaho Falls, Idaho. He’s also part owner of a soccer team in Eugene.
His entrepreneurial instincts still are very much alive. He says he can’t believe people retire and is hopeful of being involved as an owner of a women’s professional soccer team in San Diego. He’s awaiting final formation of a league.
“The Hall of Fame award was a total surprise to me.” Elmore said. “Our connection to the Rockies has worked out well, and I hope it continues. You’d be surprised at the number of people who drive down from Denver to see the Sky Sox play.”
Irv Moss: 303-954-1296, imoss@ denverpost. com
Elmore bio
Born: July 11, 1934, in Anderson, Ind.
High school: Anderson
College: Indiana University
Family: Wife Donna, sons D.G. and Doug, and daughter Heather
Hobbies: Operating sports teams
Future: Loves what he’s doing
Residence: Salt Lake City
