February 18, 2022

By Bob Elliott

Canadian Baseball Network

First time I ever spoke to Jack Dominico it wasn’t exactly smooth.

It was the first month of 1983 when I called him, identified myself and asked about lefty Tony Nicometi, who the Montreal Expos had selected in the seventh round of the January draft. After dropping out of the University of Buffalo, he had pitched for the Toronto Maple Leafs.

“WhoAreYouWith? HowDidYouGetMyNumber? What’sYourName?” Dominico demanded.

“Pardon,” I answered.

“I SAID who are you with? How did you get my number? What is your name?”

I told him I covered the Expos and was writing about Nicometi because I had heard Dominico had asked the Expos to replace the lefty starter and to give him financial compensation for “developing” Nicometi.

I explained Ken Fidlin had given me his phone number.

“HowDoYouKnowKen?” he asked.

Pardon.

“How do you know Ken?”

I explained Ken and I had worked together both in Kingston and Ottawa.

Dominico slammed down the phone.

Well, that’s that, I thought.

The phone rang again minutes later. It was Dominico.

“I had to check you out with Ken -- I was worried you were from another team in our league,” Dominico said. “Now, what do you want?”

Well, did your team ask the Expos for money. Dominico said yes and claimed he had developed Nicometi, 20, after the Buffalo native had dropped out of school making him eligible for the January draft.

The lefty had one regular-season start -- pitching eight innings allowing two runs on six hits and five walks, while fanning seven. He went 6-2 in the playoffs.

Dominico argued how the NHL pay junior teams for drafted players and then pay them again when the player is promoted.

We remember Blue Jays player personnel director Elliott Wahle not agreeing with Dominico.

“Compensation is not in order,” said Wahle who had signed two players from Stratford. The Expos didn’t do anything out of the ordinary. “The juniors are in essence the minor leagues of hockey.”

Most major league clubs would have hung up the phone.

But Dominico pushed and fought for his team.

Nicometi pitched 150 games in four seasons (23-24, 3.61 ERA and nine saves) in the Expos system at class-A Gastonia, class-A West Palm Beach double-A Jacksonville and triple-A Indianapolis.

Nicometi remembered Dominico fighting for him and his team. And when he left pro ball, Nicometi returned to Christie Pitts to pitch from 1989 to 1994.

The lefty had an ERA under 2.00 in three of their seven seasons as he went 10-5 with 11 saves and a 2.59 ERA with 128 strikeouts in 149 2/3 innings.

And what did Fanning do back in 1983? Gentlemen Jim promised him to send a lefty to replace Nicometi.

* * *

Flash forward to 1999. I was at Clarkson Park in Mississauga watching my son play an exhibition game against the Etobicoke Rangers, who were a year younger. I seldom stand with other parents.

But there was an ex-Toronto Maple Leaf there and he asked me to go over to bleachers with him since he had to talk to a friend. He had played for Dominico and now he was knocking him.

As we reached the back of the bleachers I said “Yeah ... Dominico ... he pays gas money to guys from Buffalo and not to Canadian guys.” I said that because that is what I had been told by a half dozen Leafs or ex-Leafs over the years.

Suddenly this woman sitting in front of me whipped around and gave me a mother’s glare.

“You think you know Jack Dominico do you? You think he is a cheap? Well, you see that team in the red out there. Who do you think paid for their uniforms. JACK DOMINICO! This team would not exist without Jack Dominico.”

I apologized and then moved elsewhere.

Later I found out that the woman was Patricia Kniginyzky, wife of Roman Kniginysky, who played for the Leafs and mother of Matt Kniginyzky, who went to the Kansas City Royals in the 23rd round a few years later and pitched six seasons in the minors. The last time we saw Patricia and Matt was at Jim Ridley’s funeral in Milton.

Patricia and I always got along after the night I put both feet in my mouth.

Selected from High Point, Matt pitched with rookie-class Idaho Falls, class-A Burlington, class-A Wilmington and double-A Northwest Arkansas in the Royals’ system and one year with the Winnipeg Goldeyes in the independent Northern League.

Matt was 26-28 with a 4.13 ERA plus five career saves. He struck out 339 in 457 2/3 innings.

Roman played nine years (1975-84) and 273 games with the Maple Leafs, hitting .294 with 58 doubles, six triples, 46 homers and 173 RBIs. He also stole 47 bases.

The next Sunday after the Clarkson encounter I headed to Christie Pitts. Eventually I found Jack.

“Hey Jack,” I said.

“What’s the big shot from the SkyDome doing here at our little park?” Jack asked.

“I just came to tell you that I’ve got you,” I said.

“Whataya mean?” Jack answered.

“Well, I found out you bought uniforms for Etobicoke. Very nice gesture. The next time you hassle me or phone and demand me to write something I am going to write what a noble citizen you are buying uniforms. Then you will have teams from across the province phoning asking for donations. I’ve got you.”

Jack spun and walked away.

* * *

I didn’t get along with Jack all the time, maybe most of the time.

He was gruff, snarky and caustic -- that was only to his own players and management around the Intercounty.

But you know what he brought a solid brand of ball to town. Alex Stanley entered the team in the Intercounty in 1969, but struggled financially. Dominico took over the next year and operated the franchise for an amazing 52 seasons.

* * *

Around 1985 or so I phoned the office at the newspaper and asked for Ken. Fidlin.

“Sure, let me put you on hold Jack.”

“Fids .... Jack Dominico ... Line 3.”

I was mistaken for Jack’s happy-go-lucky demeanor?

* * *

Jack always had a program. The breakdown is usually 60% copy and 40% ads. Some years Jack’s book would hit 70-30 with the ads winning.

The dandelions of Toronto journalism appeared each year: Milt Dunnell, Christie Blatchford, Jim Proudfoot, George Gross, Jim Hunt, Tim Wharnsby, Mike Ganter and Mike Koreen.

I seldom wrote in the yearbook because Jack would demand 1,000 or 2,000 words or whatever and in the rare year you saw a program it was 1/3 or 1/4 of what was originally written.

* * *

One night at a sold-out SkyDome the Blue Jays were playing when there was a bench-clearing brawl. I called the office to see if our photographer was still there. In those days, due to their equipment, photographers could only stay for the first five innings.

I called the office to see if our photo guy was still there.

The man in sports answered “Ahhhh … Jack phoned and demanded we sent a photographer to his playoff game.”

“Jack who?” I asked.

“Jack Dominico … his Leafs are in the playoffs.”

* * *

That all changed in 2001 ... for a little while. Jack hired legendary Leaf outfielder Rick Johnston to manage. I volunteered to write and said “now Jack, you treat him right.”

Mike Koreen’s pre-season story said eight Leafs were headed to the Canada Summer Games in London in August.

Ontario manager Remo Cardinale, with Johnston as one of his coaches, selected four Leafs -- infielders Gamin Teague and David Quattrocicchi, right-hander Jeff Reeves and outfielder Len Elias.

Jack told Koreen: “We’re going for a championship and these slime balls from the OBA come in and start tampering with our players and take our manager. The OBA are a bunch of nothings from another planet.

“Bitter isn’t a strong enough word to describe how I feel.”

Jack fired Johnston and then went George Steinbrenner on him. I headed to London to write about Jeff Francis, who was scheduled to pitch the next day. I read the Hamilton Spectator, the Kitchener-Waterloo Record when I stopped to see my aunt, the Guelph Mercury and the London Free Press.

Each story had Jack ripping his former manager and the Canada Games event. This was before Zoom calls. It was five different interview/rip jobs.

Adam Loewen and Francis, who went fourth and ninth respectively the next June in the draft, beat Ontario in the gold medal game.

The next day Johnston was coaching third at the Pitts. Greg Cranker, who has run the Erindale Cardinals for decades, and I went to a playoff game against Kitchener.

Jack walked by. He didn’t say a word to either of us. Just an icy glare. Cranker, whose motto is “I don’t open my mouth to be wrong,” said “Jack I thought this league was the senior Intercounty.”

* * *

Ball fans, ex-players and others will say goodbye to the Dean of the Pitts with the baseball-shaped heart on May 14. A Celebration of Life will begin at 3 p.m., at the Turner & Porter Yorke Chapel, 2357 Bloor St. W. in Toronto.