DRESL’s 2015 Hall of Fame Class

Is there any higher honor in Chicago commercial real estate? After its Sixth Annual Winter Classic tomorrow on the frigid North Avenue Fields, the Downtown Real Estate Softball League will honor four of its greats during the after party at Gamekeepers and Hall of Fame induction ceremony. (Barry Bonds didn't make this one either.)  Meet these veteran boys of summer, who all credit Commissioner Richie Klein as DRESL's driving force and tireless organizer (from securing sponsorships to penning hilarious weekly newsletters).

JLL’s Bill Rogers

How I joined DRESL: I went to work for CBRE in February of ’95 and started playing soon after. Our CBRE team was loaded for those 12 years but never won a championship until my last year in ’06. My partner of 20 years Jeff Liljeberg (right, Bill's on the left) and I joined a young JLL team at the same time and we won four championships in five years.
Favorite memory: Back in our younger days, we kept track of not only statistics on the field but statistics at the bar. You had a batting average, but also a bar average, meaning what percentage of Monday nights you made it out to the bar. That was almost more important and many of us wanted to be batting a thousand in bar attendance. I wasn’t big on karaoke, unless it was “We Are the Champions.”
Lessons learned: Patience and never count your chickens. You might think you have the best team, but there are a lot of good teams in the league so you better be ready come playoff time.
Baseball player you’d compare your game to: From a pitching perspective, Greg Maddux. From a hitting perspective, Tony Gwynn.
Pre-game ritual: Just getting out to the field early to hang out with the guys. Jeff always got there early with me to loosen up and stretch.
Favorite baseball movies: Bull Durham, The Natural
What’s new at work: Last year was full of big law firm deals for us: DLA Piper, Katten Muchin, Pedersen & Haupt, Fisher Kanaris, etc. JLL’s tenant rep group had a career year and we hope to duplicate it in 2015.

 JLL's Jeff Liljeberg

How I joined DRESL: My first year in the business at Coldwell Banker (now CBRE), I learned there was a softball team and the guys invited me to play, so I joined in the summer of ’85. Competitive softball is a really cool way to start your workweek. (Jeff's on the left next to Richie.)
Favorite memory: My five championship wins. We’d stay out all night having a great time. I loved the camaraderie, it was a unique opportunity to hang out with brokers on other teams and make friends.
Lessons learned: As my body has slowed down over the years, it’s been interesting that the positions I play tend to align themselves with my skill level and ability (running, reaction speed) at that time. I really enjoyed left field, back when I was pretty fast, because you get a lot of balls. I also liked shortstop, an important position, and I've spent the last five or six years on third base. You don’t have to move very far, but you need a strong throwing arm, which I’ve been able to maintain (and keeps me off the bench).
Baseball player you’d compare your game to: Ryne Sandberg. He had a lot of versatility (good fielder, good hitter, lot of power), and played at a high level for a long time.
Pre-game ritual: I did a lot of pre-game jogging and stretching. I ruptured my Achilles about nine years ago and came back very sensitive to not getting hurt again.
Favorite baseball movie: Bull Durham
What’s new at work: The downtown market is exploding and the amount of space available to larger office tenants is dwindling fast. Such a tight market challenges tenant reps to get creative.

 CBRE’s Mike Nardini

How I joined DRESL: I worked for Lee Golub in ’94, and we haven’t stopped playing in 16-inch softball leagues together for 20 years. (Mike's pictured on the left.)
Favorite memory: Back when I was at Golub, Lee fired me on a Friday. After I packed my bag and boxed up my stuff, he said “Hey, make sure you’re at batting practice at 5:30pm on Monday. I didn’t fire you from softball.” We still joke about it today.
Lessons learned: DRESL has 100-plus downtown real estate brokers playing softball on Monday nights and celebrating at Gamekeepers. Where do you see that? It’s so important for young brokers. People may change uniforms, but the longtime relationships you form are so valuable.
Baseball player you’d compare your game to: No comment. But I’d call Bill the best leadoff hitter I’ve seen in 25 years, similar to Rickey Henderson. He may not hit as many home runs but he can get on base just as much. Jeff, with his great glove, I’d compare to Mike Schmidt.
Pre-game ritual: At Golub we got there early and I’ve never stopped doing that. Get there early, get yourself together and be ready when it’s time to play. We all try not to schedule Monday afternoon meetings.
Favorite baseball movie: Field of Dreams
What’s new at work: My partner, Mitch Adams, and I, along with Ware Realty Group's Sarah Ware, are handling the sales of all CPS closed schools. We’re mostly seeing residential conversions on the North Side, but there’s also mixed-use. These school closings were painful, and the aldermen want to make sure the buildings will continue to have a community use. Peabody School in West Town went to Northwestern as a clinic. A beautiful one in Humboldt Park will probably go to a theater group and could also include housing and a community gym.

 Coldwell Banker Commercial NRT’s Dickie Wolk

How I joined DRESL: I had always played fast-pitch 12-inch softball, then switched over to 16-inch when I started to play with DRESL in the late '70s and early '80s. We had no formal uniforms back then, and the post-game party locations were generally chosen after the game. (But we stuck to the Armitage, Halsted and Lincoln area.)
Favorite memory: My teammates and I had "winter meetings" with the Commish (Richie) down in Negril, Jamaica, every January. (Dickie's on the left with Richie at one of those meetings 30-some years ago.)
Lessons learned: DRESL has such great camaraderie and you build lasting friendships with teammates, fans and opposing players. The games and the post-game parties were equally important parts of the experience.
Baseball player you’d compare your game to: Hank Aaron. (I was a shortstop on the Arthur Rubloff team.)
Pre-game ritual: I was a suburban boy, so it was finding someone's apartment or laundry room where I could change into my uniform.
Favorite baseball movie: Major League
What’s new at work: I started off as a suburban office leasing broker at Rubloff and over the years I've branched out into investment sales, site selection for developers and expanded my office leasing throughout the Chicago metro area.