Part-time TOTS are a hit

Tucson Old Timers (TOTS)

60-and-over baseball

During 2016, 47 different players played for the 60-and-over Tucson Old Timers (TOTS).

Most of the players on the roster play year around, some are winter visitors and play three or four months out of the year, and then there are a few who still work for a living and join their TOTS' teammates during the summer months and over the holidays.

The top part-time TOT is 69-year-old Mike Steele, a member of the TOTS since 2008. Mike is a school teacher and hustles over to Udall Park to play baseball, mostly during the heat of the summer and during all the holiday breaks.

And when he shows up, Mike typically lights up the scoreboard. Take for instance his stats in 2016.

Steele played in just 33 games in 2016, but batted .548 with 51 hits in 93 trips to the plate. He scored 34 runs, collected six doubles and a triple and drove in 23 runs.

Another member of the TOTS who still works for a living is Joe Opocensky. Joe, 66, is a meat cutter, but no matter how you slice it, he makes the most out of his time on the ball field. In 2016, Joe played in 58 games and batted .484 with 90 hits in 184 at bats. A lefty, Opocensky, who joined the TOTS in 2014, drove in 69 runs -- good enough for fifth place among all TOTS' hitters in 2016.

The most games played by a TOT in 2016 was 112. Just think the stats part-timers Steele and Opocensky would end up with, if they were able to play every month.

Way to go, Mike and Joe!

Photos: (top) Mike Steele, (bottom) Joe Opocensky