If one were to place a face to Canadian baseball, the face would probably belong to Ferguson Jenkins.

And despite the fact Jenkins is 60, lives in Guthrie, Okla., and hasn't been in the baseball spotlight for several years, the Chatham native remains Canada's premier baseball icon.

So it shouldn't have come as much of a surprise that when the Canadian Baseball League was looking for a Canadian identity, looking for a credible name to put onto a league not many people believed was credible, they went to Jenkins.

Who wouldn't want to use the only Canadian in the Baseball Hall of Fame, a multiple 20-game winner with 284 career wins. He's the only pitcher to strike out more than 3,000 batters and walk less than 1,000.

Jenkins took on the task as the CBL's first commissioner. He appears at all the major CBL events. At times, he also works out players who might play in the CBL. His role, without question, is mostly public relations and promotion. He'll be front and centre today when the CBL kicks off its season at Labatt Park as the London Monarchs take on the Montreal Royales.

With the first pitch, Jenkins will have put his reputation on the line.

"There is no question I wouldn't want this to fall on its face," he says. "But if I had to do it over again, I would still get involved. I'm not worried about the league. We had a great idea. The project is working. We went into some cities where the facilities weren't being used, where we could sell the game.

"I think people are going to enjoy watching. I think people are going to be surprised. From all indications I have, the players we've signed and I see, there's some good talent.

"We haven't kicked anything off yet. We're still in the infancy stage. The league is taking baby steps and until you get things going, you aren't going to see where the bumps are."

To Jenkins' credit, he's always been proud of his Canadian roots. He has always been a terrific ambassador for the game. In the past month, he has travelled to several CBL cities. The more he sees of the teams, the more he likes what he sees. The Jenkins family has a real connection to the CBL. His daughter Kimberly is assistant general manager of the Niagara Stars.

"As an independent league, it means you aren't looking to see a star at every position," Jenkins says.

"You are going to see a lot of players who got signed and released who fundamentally can play but organizations say 'this is not the type of player we are looking for.'

"Our league is looking at enhancing our league with these players who play sound, fundamental baseball. Fans can see it at a good price and it will be fan friendly. I don't know how many times I've said those words fan-friendly. In the major leagues, the players, I don't think, are friendly. They don't sign very many autographs, they don't talk to fans; they are aloof.

"I just think these young men want to get back into the game and they will make it be a fan-friendly game."

All that nice stuff aside, Jenkins is aware that a great many things can go wrong. Selling the game is probably the first obstacle. Minor league baseball is in critical condition in Canada.

While all the costs for this league are in Canadian dollars, fans still have to venture out to the games for the league to survive.

"Being a Canadian, I think these cities can support baseball. Thirty-six games isn't a lot," he said.

"The scheduling makes it easy to attend and it will be affordable. I think the fans have to show they want the game as well. They have to support it with their money."

The opener is 70-per-cent sold out of its 5,400 tickets.

This will be the third time a minor professional baseball team has come to the city. Both the London Tigers and the London Werewolves were sold and moved to another location.

In this case, however, the league and all the teams are owned by the same people -- a group of shareholders, so if a franchise turns out to be a disaster and a drain on the rest of the teams, it will likely die a quick death.

But for now, there are no thorns -- just roses.

Jenkins is living on his farm in Guthrie, Okla. It's for sale but so far he hasn't heard the right numbers. When he does sell, he plans to move to Arizona so that his wife Lydia can be closer to her mother.

He has 50 head of cattle and 11 horses. He cultivates about 65 acres of grazing grass. Despite all the wild weather in Oklahoma, Jenkins has managed to avoid the 100 or so twisters that have appeared this spring.

In 1999, a tornado did considerable damage to his farm.

"The travel has been a bit much from time to time," he said. "I've been used to that. But I've been gone a lot. I had to hire a new foreman. The one I had died. That's the thing -- I am leaving my business to someone else. Someone else has to take pride in my business. I worry a little about that.

"This is my escape here. People in Guthrie still don't know I live here. I fill up my truck with gas and show them my credit card. The guy will look at it and say, 'You aren't related to that Jenkins guy? How long you been here?' I tell him 15 years. I'm living my life and relaxing. It's a great life."

Despite the number of well-publicized tragedies that have forced him to rebuild his life several times, Jenkins remains upbeat.

"Life throws you a curve every so often," he said. "With me, it's been a few times. You can live through it. You just have to keep plugging at it."

Which is why he is so well suited to the Canadian Baseball League.