Not too many old timers find their way to the mound

Tucson Old Timers (TOTS)

60-and-over baseball

Sachel Paige pitched a major league game at the age of 59.

Knuckleballer Hoyt Wilhelm took the mound one last time when he was just a few weeks short of his 50th birthday.

That's getting up there, unless you compare (just for fun) the old timers who still take the mound for the 60-and-over Tucson Old Timers (TOTS).

Yes, the TOTS have some young studs in their 60s who still pitch for two hours or seven innings -- six during the warm days of summer, but there's five 70-somethings who answer the call at Udall Park on a weekly basis.

Let's call them the "Fabulous Five" for fun. They are: (the eldest statesman first) 75-year-old Arnie White, 74-year-old Doc Thompson, 71-year-old Dan Lundwall, 71-year-old Ron Petersen and 71-year-old Pigpen Price.

Of the five, only Thompson has actual professional baseball experience. The others? Well, it's more like "on the job training" at Udall Park every Monday, Wednesday and Friday -- depending on which one answers the call from the dugout (so to speak) and takes his stint on the mound.

Of the five, White seems to have the "rubber arm" and never turns down the daily manager's call to pitch. Maybe it's because he spends his winters in Tucson and most of late spring and the summer months on his ranch in Montana.

"Not a lot of people to throw to on the ranch," White admits. In fact, he gets his practice in by pounding his fastball at a target on the side of the barn. "When I'm in Tucson, I like to take the mound and pitch for the TOTS."

Price, on the other hand, is a Tucson resident year round, and has already pitched in ten games for the TOTS this year. "My problem is I'm either on or off. If I can't find the plate, I may throw 150 pitches in a seven-inning game and if that's the case, I then need four or five days to recover."

That seems to be the norm for all the 70-something pitchers. It's one thing to be a position player, but to be in your 70s and pitch, well that's a different story. Four or five days off before the next start, or at least a weekend off -- a Friday start, followed by a Monday start -- is the norm for an old timer who pitches on a regular bases for the TOTS.

As for speed, Thompson and Price have been known to reach 55 mph. Thompson has a bit more accuracy, while Price has been dubbed the "wild thing" on many occasions.

"I've bruised a batter or two, but not too many," Price says. "Let's just say the batters are wide awake while I'm on the mound."

A while back, the TOTS had a couple of 80-somethings take the mound, but it has become a safety issue of late. One pitcher wore a helmet when he pitched, but it takes some quick reflexes to either catch a "comebacker" or get out of the way when a 60-year-old connects and hits a shot back up the middle.

The TOTS use aluminum bats. A few of the players use wood bats. The aluminum bats are more lively. If you're a fielder, chances are you'll hear the sound first and suddenly the ball is bouncing off your chest or forearm.

Old-time baseball. You got to love it!


Photos: (top to bottom -- Arnie White, Doc Thompson, Dan Lundwall, Ron Petersen and Pigpen Price.