Jake the Diamond Dog Is the Best Thing to Happen to Baseball Since Peanuts and Crackerjacks

There’s nothing quite like the feeling of showing up to the baseball park with your friends, enjoying salty snacks and frosty beverages as your favorite team takes the field on a warm summer day. In fact, sitting back on the bleachers and gearing up for what should be an exciting game probably seems like the perfect way to spend an afternoon, but you still might ask yourself, “Could this get any better?”

Well, if you happen to see a ridiculously fluffy golden retriever carrying a wicker basket full of water bottles to thirsty umpires out on the field, the answer is a definite yes.

Jake the Diamond Dog has been getting a lot of attention over the past few days after footage went viral of the kindly canine strutting out onto Parkview Field in Fort Wayne, Indiana, and doing his thing. But even though he’s received a lot of publicity from this recent appearance, Jake has been showing up at baseball parks around the country for years.

And while Jake is famous for bringing refreshments to the parched umpires, that’s not all he can do. He also delivers bats, grabs foul balls, and mouth-delivers a bouquet of flowers to the ballpark sweetheart, among other impressive tricks.

Interestingly enough, he may be getting a ton of attention now thanks to the power of social media, but Jake the Diamond Dog has actually been around for nearly three decades. Yes, there have been other Jakes in the past.

Owner Jeff Marchal trained this Jake and the previous three to help out on the field while warming the hearts of attendees, and if the numerous videos of Jake posted to social media and news sites are any indication, he’s very good at his job.

“It’s kind of like Lassie. You have Jake the Diamond Dog — you just have to carry that over,” Marchal said, speaking to Inside Edition. He doesn’t like to play favorites either, saying that every Jake he has trained has been “great” and “superb.”

But the question remains: with a talent as incredible as Jake’s, is it finally time for this capable canine to take a swing at the big leagues? Well, after seeing him in action out on the field, we certainly think so.