Doug played slowpitch softball for 26 years. He played on Colfax Grain, Standard Oil Bulk, Chuck’s Off Sale and M&M Construction teams that won three state championships and played in national tournaments at York, Pennsylvania, Jacksonville, Florida and Las Vegas, Nevada.  

He took the game very seriously. When he was stationed at the Minot Air Force Base, he would drive back and forth to Wahpeton in his lime green Maverick for Wednesday night league games. In 1987, he had to leave a Detroit Lakes, MN tournament early to take wife Lucy to the Breckenridge, MN hospital to have their third son.

He was a slick fielding second baseman with a strong arm who would wind up from home plate and throw the softball over a 275’ fence.

Doug had the uncanny ability of place hitting about as well as anybody in the state. His batting average was .550 in Gold Dot softball and XBH bat days. One year, he hit 34 home runs.

He would not wait until softball fields were ready to use. The cow pasture on his farm was high so the sun melted snow early and February practices were not uncommon. Cow pies were set at base distances and as many teammates know, a pail of balls was hit towards each line, up the middle and holes between makeup cow pie infielders.

Doug worked incredibly hard and if he was dissatisfied after a tournament, he would recruit an equally passionate teammate who would pitch him balls the same night til dark on the Abercrombie field.

Walt Stack wrote in his Hall of Fame recommendation letter “when he hit a ball into the outfield, I headed towards second base because I knew that’s where he was headed. He was a quick, daring base runner.” Doug was the type of player who created the need to change base lengths from 60’ to 65’.

Parkinson’s Disease caused challenges but Doug never felt sorry for himself and continued to watch softball at every opportunity.