TOTS' duo played baseball for the Arizona Wildcats in the early 1950s

Two members of the Tucson Old Timers (TOTS) baseball club played for the Arizona Wildcats back in the early 1950s. Brad Tolson, 83, and Dick McAnally, 80, played for the 'Cats more than 60 years ago. Tolson played at Tucson High School and went on to become a top relief pitcher for the Wildcats, while McAnally played his high school ball in Casa Grande, Arizona, before joining the Wildcats and becoming a teammate of Tolson in 1953.

The TOTS have been around since 1968 and records show that Tolson and McAnally are the only two ballplayers to have played for the TOTS and the University of Arizona.

McAnally (bottom photo), who played under the direction of Frank Sancet,  was a catcher at the UofA and was a member of a battery which included the great Wildcat pitcher Donnie Lee.

Tolson (top photo) played for Pop McKale and Sancet and at one time held the Wildcat record for the most consecutive scoreless innings. Brad's father, Andy, was a four-year letterman and an outstanding pitcher at the UofA in the 1920s.

When Brad Tolson was busy recording strikeouts for the UofA in the early 1950s, I was just a young kid in elementary school. I grew up in Tucson and one of my wishes was someday to play baseball for the University of Arizona.

It never happened. But I'm honored to play with a couple of "good old boys" that did.