The masked men at Udall

Conway Twitty once said -- "It's only make believe"


Tucson Old Timers (TOTS)

60-and-over baseball

The Corona Games

The two teams took the field at Udall Park this morning to play the game of baseball. The players practiced social distancing, six feet apart when they were at bat and even longer distances apart when they were on the field.

Whatever it takes. Right?  No umpires present. No balls and strikes. No walks. Take your cut and get on with it.

The 60-and-over Tucson Old Timers had just enough players to field two teams-- each team dressed out in their familiar blue and white TOTS' uniforms, with one major add-on: face masks.

The tall and slender Tim Boyd took the mound for Team Blue and the hard-throwing Doc Escala got the call for Team White.

A half a mile away at the intersection of Sabino and Tanque Verde, only two automobiles came to a stop and the drivers of the vehicles waited patiently for the light to turn green. The players could hear the sound of a firetruck a mile away, roaring in what seemed to be in an easterly direction down Wrightstown Road. No doubt responding to the latest call.

A hawk flew over the TOTS' field and found a resting place atop the batting cage, just 100 feet away from Team White's first baseman Ron Carlson, who was busy tossing ground balls to his infielders -- Ray Garcia at third, Reed Palmer at short and Pigpen Price at second.

Four masked baseball fans sat in the stands behind the backstop. One spectator walked by with his Golden Retriever at his side...the dog anxiously awaiting a foul ball to come his way.

Escala's first pitch was right on the money to Team Blue's leadoff hitter Roger Beebe. The next pitch was a slow curve ball and Beebe timed it perfectly and sent a screaming line drive by Garcia.

Bill Mishler followed and punched a slower roller down third. By the time catcher Mike Steele retrieved the ball, Beebe had scampered into second and Mishler was safe at first with an infield-hit.

The hard-hitting lefty Tim Tolson stepped in and worked the count to 3-2 before drilling an opposite-field double to left field. Beebe and Mishler scored easily and Team Blue held an early 2-0 lead.

Both pitchers found themselves in a pitching duel for the next three innings, but in the bottom of the fourth Team White plated four runs to jump into the lead. It was a bad luck inning for Boyd as the first two runners reached on errors and Phil Gordon stepped to the plate, looking to do some damage.

He did just that as he burned Team Blue's right fielder Denny Leonard. The hard hit ball sailed over Leonard's head, two runs scored and Gordon labored into second with a double.

Joe Opocensky followed with his first home run of the year, a smoking line drive that cleared the right field fence with room to spare. Suddenly, Boyd and his teammates were down 4-2 and came to bat in the top of fifth in hopes of regaining the lead.

Boyd got the inning going with a triple to the gap in right center and Big John Mathews doubled to right center to pull Team Blue to within one run. Mathews scored later in the inning when Joe Aparicio reached on a fielding error.

The score remained 4-4 until the top of the seventh inning. Escala struck out the first two batters in the top of the seventh, but gave up a blooper to Beebe, a single up the middle to Bob Daliege and Doc Thompson got a hold of an Escala fastball and drilled a gapper to left center. Beebe rambled home and Daliege scored all the way from first to give Team Blue a 6-4 lead.

In the bottom of the seventh, Boyd needed just nine pitches to get the win for Team Blue. Lloyd Barzell grounded out to second, Gordon drilled a shot into the glove of Garcia at third and Miguel Urtaza hit a harmless come-backer to Boyd to end the game.

The TOTS packed up their gear, remained six feet apart and headed for the parking lot. The hawk had seen enough and headed south. Minutes later, the players were gone.

The coronavirus continues...


TOTS fantasy boxscore:

Team Blue  6  Team White  4

WP  Tim Boyd

LP   Doc Escala

Home runs:  Joe Opocensky (Team White)

Coronavirus Update

Coronavirus Update (Monday evening -- March 30, 2020)

1,157 cases now reported in Arizona

20 deaths

USA

163,479 total cases

3,148  deaths

Worldwide

784, 381 total cases

37,780  deaths

The TOTS' April Fools' Day Game

Tucson Old Timers (TOTS)

60-and-over baseball

On April Fools' Day, Team White stunned Team Blue with a walk-off win in the bottom of the seventh inning and came away with a thrilling 11-10 win in a 60-and-over Tucson Old Timers game at Udall Park.

It was standing-room only at the ball park as 30 fans gathered six feet apart, behind the back stop and up and down the first and third base lines.

Under blue skies and a mid-morning temperature in the mid-70s, both teams battled from the start. There were three lead changes in the first four innings of play. Team Blue's Reed Palmer belted his third home run of the season in the top of the first inning with a solo shot over the right field fence.

Team White came right back in the bottom of the first, scoring two runs on bases-loaded RBI singles from Ken Nebesny and Mike Steele. In the second inning, Team Blue's Ron Ryan drilled an opposite-field triple down the first baseline. Pigpen Price and Steve Foster, with back-to-back singles to start the inning, raced home to give Team Blue a 3-2 lead and with two outs Ryan was able to score from third on a shot to left field by Jesse Ochoa for an insurance run.

Down 4-2 in the bottom of the fifth, it looked like Team White was back in business when they plated seven runs -- thanks to triples from John Mathews, Pete Peters and John Misiaszek. With the bases loaded, Mathews drilled an inside fastball from Pete Maldonado down third. The ball went all the way to the fence and Mathews cruised into third, while Joe Aparicio, Bobby Stofft and Brad Vermeer scampered home to give Team White a 5-4 lead. Later in the inning, Peters tripled to the gap in right-center to score two runs and Misiaszek ended the barrage with an opposite-field 2-run triple to right field.

Suddenly, Team White held a commanding 9-4 lead.

Team White's starter Mike Dawson returned to the mound in the top of the sixth in hopes of shutting down Team Blue the rest of the way. Dawson struck out the first two batters, but allowed singles to Tim Tolson and a double to Joe Opocensky. After a walk to Billy Heiny,  the hard-hitting David Byars stepped to the plate with the bases loaded and drilled a Dawson fastball over the left field fence for a grand slam home run to pull Team Blue to within one run at 9-8. It was Byars first home run as a TOT.

"I've been hitting the ball hard all year, but I just haven't been able to put one out." Byars said. "Today, I felt a slight gust of wind behind me and I did have an extra bowl of Wheaties for breakfast this morning."

In the bottom of the sixth, Maldonado struck out the side and Team Blue came to bat in the top of the seventh, needing a run to tie and two runs to take the lead.

Dawson fanned the first two batters, but Doc Thompson belted a ground-rule double, Foster singled  and Team Blue was in business with runners at the corners. Ryan followed with his third hit of the game, a screamer down the first base line and two runs scored to give Team Blue a 10-9 lead. Ochoa followed with a smash to the fence in center field, but Dennis Crowley caught the ball on a dead run to end the top of the seventh.

The hard-throwing Palmer replaced Maldonado in the bottom of the seventh and quickly fanned the first two batters, but Bob Daliege blooped a single to right and suddenly Team White had the tying run on first and the winning run at the plate. Mathews stepped into the batter's box and took two Palmer fastballs right down the middle. On the next pitch, Mathews swung. The ball sailed high and deep to left field, clearing the fence by 20 feet for a game-winning two-run, walk-off home run.

"Reed is tough to get around on, but he threw the third pitch right over the heart of the plate and I got all of it," said a smiling Mathews, after the game.

Okay. Just kidding!

April Fools.

Boxscore:

Team White  11  Team Blue  10

WP  Mike Dawson

LP  Reed Palmer

Home runs:  Reed Palmer (Team Blue), David Byars (Team Blue), John Mathews (Team White).

Note: I woke up at midnight...couldn't sleep, got on the computer...and the above is what came out of my head.

Coronavirus Update

Coronavirus Update (March 30, 2020)


Confirmed cases in the United States  144,280 (No. 1 in the world)

Deaths  2,597 (6)

Let's go back in time...say 23 years!

Arizona wins! Arizona wins!

1997 NCAA Basketball Championship

In overtime  -- Arizona 84  Kentucky  79

A happy time...

Coronavirus latest numbers

Coronavirus Update (3/29/2020)

Cases in the U.S.  123,781 (1)  Deaths  2,229 (6)

World wide: Cases  683,525  Deaths  32,139

Practice social distancing, but stay connected with your friends

Tucson Old Timers

60-and-over baseball

The last two days of March are upon us.

Along with the rest of the country and those of us lucky enough to remain isolated in our homes for most of the day, we continue to practice social distancing. It's hard, but we do what is necessary -- hiding, if you will... hourly, daily and weekly from the coronavirus.

We pray daily for the first responders...the doctors...the nurses, the grocery store clerks, our friends at the pharmacy...and even our newspaper delivery persons, who are up at the crack of down sorting...and then delivering our hometown paper. A paper which for the most part contains day-old news, but suddenly is becoming a close contact...a printed scroll, if you will -- allowing us to read on a daily basis about our neighbors and our fellow Tucsonans.

March, 2020 has blown by us. As for the 60-and-over Tucson Old Timers, the last official game was back on the ninth of the month. As of tomorrow, 21 days of being self-quarantined in the Old Pueblo, better known to outsiders as our hometown: Tucson, Arizona.

We lost a well-known Tucsonan yesterday. Richard Elias, a fixture on the Pima County Board of Supervisors since 2002, died at home, in his sleep, at the age of 61.

Tucson went through a recent cold spell. The last two days the early, morning temperatures dropped to 38 degrees -- a bit chilly for a year-around Tucson resident.

For 45 minutes, I ventured away from the house and drove to Udall Park yesterday morning and sat in the stands with seven of my teammates on the 60-and-over Tucson Old Timers. We sat, or stood six feet apart and for a few moments in time let loose with a few jokes and jibes at one another -- normally a usual occurrence for when we sit alongside each other in the dugout between innings of a regular-scheduled game at Udall.

I left, after the 45 minutes, and drove home with a smile on my face. Saying "hello" to my buddies was like a quick blood transfusion.

For the past three weeks, there has been no hits...no runs and no errors at our ball field. The pitching mound remains covered...the dugouts empty.

Until the dust settles and the coronavirus disappears, we remain steadfast -- awaiting our return to normalcy.

Take care my friends.

We'll be right back!

                                                Miss you guys, Pigpen Price

Hello walls

From the desk of Pigpen Price...


Hello walls.

The above is a title of a song written by Willie Nelson and released by country singer Faron Young in 1961. The tune is about a down-hearted man who lost his lover and is all alone in his house with nothing to do but stare at the walls and the ceiling.

Here we are in 2020 and quarantined in our home because of a virus, an unseen enemy which is  steamrolling across our country, infecting more than 100,000 of our fellow Americans and killing  2,000 of our citizens in the past 29 days.

Here in Arizona, the total infected has reached the 700-mark. We have lost 13 citizens.

Our schools are closed, our restaurants are reduced to take out only, our college campuses are closed. We are reduced to daily runs to the grocery stores, the pharmacies, the gas stations and a quick return on a side street back to the friendly confines of our home.

The old are  "the most vulnerable" to the virus. I fit the category. I'm among 'em at the age of 74 and pushing 75. Underlying health conditions? Yep, I fit that category as well with bypass surgery (12 years ago), asthma, breathing problems and a narrow esophagus (Who I inherited that from I do not know).

It's been seven decades and I'm still cruising. And you know what? This coronavirus, which has nothing to do with my favorite beer, will not get the upper hand. This too shall pass and I'll soon join my teammates on our 60-and-over baseball team and return to action.

Although I have to admit, I'm chomping at the bit to get back on the playing field with the 60-and-over Tucson Old Timers (TOTS). The organization has been around since 1968 (52 years) and we will not let this coronavirus keep us away from playing America's favorite pastime.

The TOTS received a new pitching machine today (see below). A beautiful piece of equipment with the ability to toss pitches up to 70 miles an hour.  Chances are when we do return to action we'll tone it down a bit to maybe 40, 50 or 60 mph.

The TOTS could be out of action for sometime. After all, the Major League Baseball season has been pushed back a couple of months and the Summer Olympics has been put off until 2021. Not a lot of sports going on. Right now the coronavirus has the upper hand, but the American people -- along with the politicians, the doctors and nurses, the first responders -- will win out in the end.

Someday soon, the members of the TOTS will make their way back to Udall Park and get back to baseball. Until then, I will have to keep busy at home and I'll try my best to keep from having conversations with the walls and the ceiling.

I'll keep writing, putter around the house and try not to annoy my readers too much.

Remember: Practice social distancing.

Photo: Our new pride and joy.

Coronavirus Update

Coronavirus Update (3/28/2020)

Our fellow American's with the virus:  104,277

The citizens we have lost:   1,704

2020 Major League Baseball season postponed

Today was supposed to be Opening Day of the 2020 Major League Baseball season.

Suddenly, we have more important things to consider.

To all my readers: All of you take care.

Coronavirus update:  Confirmed cases in the United States  80,854  Deaths 1,163

Quarantine continues...

To all my readers:


Most of my readers are senior citizens and currently 45 of them are members of my favorite baseball team in the world -- the 60-and-over Tucson Old Timers.

All of us are in quarantine, along with the rest of the country.

No baseball.

And like the rest of our great country, we sit at home waiting for the smoke to clear, so we can return to our daily routines and return to Udall Park three days a week to play America's Favorite Pastime.

With the coronavirus overtaking the country, we watch the news and roam around our homes looking for something to do...anything to pass the time. Most of us are forced to stay away from each other or at least six feet apart. As for the sports world, there is none.

So, for all my readers:  search the house for a pair of reading glasses, sit back in your recliner, grab your laptop or your smart phone and goggle my blog,  Bookemdanosports. I have posted two of my books, Billy's Victory, a middle reader book about a boy and his desire to play baseball, and my adult fiction book, The Loner, about a retired sports announcer.

Note: You will need to backtrack a bit on the blog. The Loner is broken down into five installments, Billy's Victory in seven. Go to the right side of the blog and click on each posts. Happy reading!

TOTS' field gets a facelift

Tucson Old Timers (TOTS)

60-and-over baseball

The home baseball field for the Tucson Old Timers remains vacant as the Coronavirus continues to play havoc for a group of old timers who are chomping at the bit to return to action.

The members of the 60-and-over amateur baseball organization are used to playing America's Favorite Pastime three days a week, but for the most of March the players have been glued to their own television sets at home -- awaiting the horn to sound, so to speak, signaling a return to the diamond at Udall Park.

According to co-manager Mike Dawson, employees of the City of Tucson Parks and Recreation Department are taking advantage of the lack of play to work on the fields.

"While no date is set for returning to the ball field, when we do we'll be playing on fresh infield dirt," said  Mike Dawson, co-manager of the club. "The City of Tucson dressed the infield (on Monday). There's a few rocks in the mix, but not too many."

One thing is for sure, the TOTS miss the old crack of the bat at Udall.

How much longer the members of the TOTS at Udall Park and the 30  Major League Baseball clubs around the nation remain in limbo is anyone's guess.

Until then us old timers remain in self quarantine, searching the channels on our television sets for MLB baseball replays, sipping on a glass of wine and watching reruns of Field of Dreams and For the Love of the Game.



Photo: New dirt at Udall...still no players.

No popcorn...no peanuts and no crackerjacks

I'm a former sports writer and I have nothing to write about.

Soon to be 75, my little corner of the world has disappeared.

And to make matters worse, the media says I'm a vulnerable old person.

The gates are locked at Hi Corbett Field, Spring Training is no longer an option as the wind echoes through all the vacant, beautiful baseball facilities in the Phoenix area. No crack of the bat...no March Madness...no Final Four ahead.

We're left with a bunch of TV news channels showing us the way to oblivion. You buy a local paper and there's nothing but day-old news in it and on the back of the sports section, no scores...no results...no sports heroes to read about.

For an aging sports writer, suddenly there's no light at the end of the tunnel. Not one ball is bouncing off the green monster at Fenway Park, no cheering inside the confines of a basketball arena and no hurry to get to the ball park, grab some popcorn...some peanuts and some crackerjacks.

Some of us live and still play for the love of the game.

Let's hope this is just an extending seventh inning...a lengthy timeout and this too shall pass.

The TOTS lose a legend

Tucson Old Timers (TOTS)

60-and-over baseball

The TOTS lost a legend today.

Jerry Smarik passed away at the age of 88. Jerry joined the TOTS in 1991 and is referred to as the 'iron man" on the club. After all, Jerry stepped to the plate more than 4,000 times with the organization and until 2015 rarely missed a game.

Smarik was born in Detroit and spent his childhood days playing baseball and taking in games at Briggs Stadium. He remembers cleaning seats and then getting in free to the games. He said, in an interview in 2009: "We'd get there early and management would let us clean off the seats. We'd get a nickel, dime and sometimes a quarter for dusting off the seats. It was a heck of a deal, back then."

A former Navy man and retired postal carrier, Smarik was known for lighting up a stogie in the parking lot at Udall Park after every game and taking a puff or two.

Jerry and his wife, Sharon, have had quite the journey together with 63 beautiful years together.

Rest in peace, Jerry. We will miss you.

Services pending.

Arizona moves on in Pac-12 tourney with win over Huskies

Arizona Wildcats Basketball


Arizona (21-11) got some payback today in Las Vegas with a 77-70 first-round win in the Pac-12 Tournament over the Washington Huskies (15-17).

After losing at McKale Center to Washington on Saturday, Arizona regained its shooting touch and knocked down 9 of 24 3-pointers and shot just a shade under 40 percent (23 of 58) from the field to get by the Huskies, despite a 29-point effort from Washington's Isaiah Stewart.

Four Wildcats finished in double figures with Josh Green leading the way with 19 points, while Zeke Nnaji grabbed nine rebounds and scored 11 points. Nico Mannion and Dylan Smith netted 14 points apiece.

Arizona led by as many as 15 and went into halftime with a 35-30 advantage.

The Wildcats tangle with the USC Trojans (22-9) on Thursday at 2:30 p.m in the quarterfinals.

Daliege tosses a 4-hit shutout

Tucson Old Timers (TOTS)

60-and-over baseball

It turned out to be another pitching duel at Udall Park this morning as Team Blue edged Team White 4-0 in a 60-and-over Tucson Old Timers game.

Bob Daliege took the mound today for Team Blue and Team White countered with Reed Palmer.

Daliege, a right-hander, has a new pitch in his repertoire.

"I'm not sure what you call it," said Daliege. "But when I have it working, it gives the guys (the batters) something extra to think about."

Today, it was working. Seven goose eggs on the scoreboard and the game flew by in one hour and 15 minutes -- a four-hitter for Daliege. Let's call the pitch the dips y-doodle, just for the fun of it. Daliege says he holds the ball similar to a curve ball, but adds a little extra snap to it on the release.

Call it "frustrating" to the TOTS' batters, if you will.

On the other hand, you pretty much know what's coming from Palmer, a towering right-hander. The 6-foot-5 gentle giant can bring it.

Team Blue's first baseman John Mathews said: "Reed has gotta be throwing around 70 miles an hour."

The Team Blue batters had their troubles getting around on Palmer, but Mathews drilled a two-run RBI single in the top of the third inning to help his team extend their lead to 4-0. No runs were scored the rest of the way.

Team Blue's second baseman Pigpen Price added: "If you try to sit on the fastball, Reed will break off a change up to keep you guessing."

"Yes, this is a 60-and-over baseball game," Price continued. "But, the TOTS' pitchers are out there doing their best to get you out, regardless of your age. And this is baseball, not slow pitch!"

The TOTS will return to action on Wednesday at Udall, weather permitting. Game time is set for 10 a.m.

And you can rest assured the TOTS' pitchers will toe the rubber once again, looking to throw the ball by the hitters.

Go, TOTS.

Photo: Bob Daliege, who threw a 4-hit shutout today in 1 hour and 15 minutes.

Wildcats capture series with Houston, improve to 10-5

Arizona Wildcats Baseball

Update 3/10/20: Game rescheduled for Tuesday, March 17, change due to bad weather expected in Phoenix area.


The Arizona Wildcats improve to 10-5 over the weekend, winning two of the three games with Houston, including a 10-6 win in the finale today at Hi Corbett Field.

Brandon Brossiere went 3 for 5 and drove in three runs, while reliever Preston Price (1-0) picked up the win. Chandler Murphy started and pitched five solid innings, allowing two earned runs.

After 15 games, Ryan Holgate leads the Wildcats with a .377 batting average (20 for 53) and Austin Wells is second in hitting with a .375 average (21 for 56).

Arizona's next scheduled game is slated for Tuesday in Tempe against the Arizona State Sun  Devils. It's an early-season match up and is considered a non-conference game. The game gets underway at 6:30 p.m.

Misery at McKale...again

Arizona Wildcats Basketball


It was another miserable night at McKale.

Arizona coughs up the ball ten times, makes just five field goals in 20 minutes, gives up another bucket to start the second half and finds themselves down 40-23 to the last place team in the Pac-12 Conference.

The Wildcats spend the next 19 minutes trying to fight their way back only to lose to the Washington Huskies, 69-63. The results of today's earlier games with Arizona State beating Washington State, Utah edging Colorado, USC beating UCLA and the Wildcats losing at McKale, left Arizona with the fifth seed for next week's Pac-12 Tournament in Las Vegas.

And guess who the Wildcats draw on Wednesday in the first round. You guessed it, the Washington Huskies.

Arizona gave the Wildcat fans some hope in the second half when Dylan Smith hit his first 3-pointer with 19:08 left in the game. Smith would follow with five more long range shots and finish the night with 19 points, but the Wildcats would get no closer than four points.

Nico Mannion scored 11 points, but made just 3 of 9 field goal attempts and Josh Green went 2 of 7 from the field and scored eight points. Zeke Nnaji battled for another double-double with 12 points and 11 rebounds.

Arizona falls to 20-11 and 10-8 in the Pac-12.

And now, it's on to Las Vegas.

A conversation with "Father Time"

Tucson Old Timers (TOTS)

60-and-over baseball

From the desk of an old-timer, Pigpen Price...

The 60-and-over Tucson Old Timers have fielded baseball teams since 1968 -- 52 seasons to be exact.  A member of the amateur old-time baseball club has one age requirement -- the player must be at least 60 years of age.

So just when is "the peak season" for a TOT.

The consensus is somewhere between the age of 62 and 63.

After that the baseball skills take a downward turn. Making a play at 75 is harder than making a play at 62. It just stands to reason. The muscles, the bones and of course the mental sharpness deteriorates.

But, the TOTS play on. The club's youngest TOT is 62. By the way, Happy Birthday to Steve Foster, who turned 62 earlier this week on Monday, March 2. Steve, you are now added to the club's birthday log: Happy Birthday, young man. Of course, hats off to our oldest player 94-year-old Floyd Lance (both players pictured above).

"I remember my first two seasons with the TOTS." Pigpen Price recalls." It was 2008 and 2009 and I was faster than a speeding bullet. Well, not really. Still, after 13 seasons, not one teammate has ever used the word speed and my club nickname in the same sentence."

When a TOT refers to the 60s as his best years, he's not referring to the 1960s, but to his time with the TOTS when hits came in bunches and spectacular fielding plays were the norm.

With an active roster of 45 players, the youngsters go about their position on the field, or their appearances at the plate, knowing full well "Father time" has an eye on them.

By the time a TOT reaches the mid 70s (and again, not the year, but the age), he now has a daily conversation with Father Time.

"How long can I keep going?" the TOT asks.  "I have a new pain, somewhere between my head and my feet, what is that all about, or why is first base so far away?"

To be honest, I've never met Father Time, but in my mind I imagine him as a dead ringer for Moses. His voice is pleasant and his lengthy white beard twirls in the breeze. Yet, you get the sense, in the middle of a conversation, that he knows what lies ahead and he knows exactly where your are going.

But for now, Father Time sits on his bench on Cloud Nine, and keeps tabs on the game below at Udall Park where a bunch of crazy old men play America's favorite pastime.

Father Time watches the game below. He takes time out of his busy schedule on Monday, Wednesday and Friday to keep an eye on his Triple-A team, the TOTS, as they complete yet another seven-inning game. At the same time, through a clearing in the fluffy white clouds, he can see an all-star team at play inside Heaven's gate. Among the heavenly all stars are catchers Clarence Fieber and Richard McAnally; pitcher Chico Bigham and shortstop Ed Rife -- all TOTS' hall-of-famers, making "the play of the day" and leading their team to victory -- all of them with bright smiles and each one of them not looking a day over thirty.

Over 250 old-timers have donned a TOTS' uniform over the years. All of them have left their mark and all of them will be remembered as time marches on.

On March 21, 2020 the TOTS will be part of the opening ceremonies of the Sabino Canyon Little League at Udall Park. It'll be a night game of sorts for the TOTS with the first pitch slated for 5:30 p.m. The Little Leaguers will play on the two fields adjacent to the TOTS' home field.

The young and the old will be there, together.

You gotta love baseball.

Steele off to a good start in 2020

Tucson Old Timers (TOTS)

60-and-over baseball

Mike Steele, who turned 72 in January, is off and running in 2020.

Steele, who entered the month of March with 25 hits in 51 at bats, came up with a RBI-single to left in the bottom of the seventh inning to give Team White a 10-9 walk-off win today over Team Blue at Udall Park in a 60-and-over Tucson Old Timers game.

Team Blue had taken an early lead in the first inning when hard-hitting lefty Reed Palmer blasted his second home run of the season over the right field fence to give his team an early 2-0 lead. Both teams battled through the middle innings and Team White came to bat in the bottom of the seventh down 9-8. Tim Tolson, who had three runs-batted-in for Team White, doubled in a run and reached third later in the inning. Steele followed with the game-winner off Team Blue's Mike Dawson.

Dawson was the hitting star for Team Blue with five hits in five trips to the plate. Dawson was saddled with the hard-luck loss, while Doc Thompson went the distance for Team White and picked up the win.

The TOTS will take the weekend off and return to action on Monday at Udall. Game time: 10 a.m.

Photo: Steele, who caught the entire game for Team White today and knocked in the game-winner in the bottom of the seventh inning.

Arizona runs away from Washington State, 83-62

Arizona Wildcats Basketball


Arizona went on a 26-0 run early in the second half and rolled to a 83-62 win at McKale Center tonight. Nico Mannion led the Wildcats with 23 points, while Zeke Nnaji finished with 21 points as Arizona moved to 20-10 overall and 10-7 in Pac-12 play.

Josh Green returned from his back injury and scored 12 points, connecting on 4 of 7 from the field -- including two 3-pointers. Mannion hit 4 of 7 from beyond the arc as the Wildcats connected on 9 of 18 3-pointers.

Arizona needs a win over Washington on Saturday, while a UCLA win over USC will give the Wildcats a fourth-place finish in the regular season and a first-round bye in next week's Pac-12 Tournament in Las Vegas.

Houston up next for 8-4 Wildcats

Arizona Wildcats Baseball


Fresh off an 8-6 win at Texas on Tuesday, the Arizona Wildcats (8-4) return home for a three-game series on Friday, Saturday and Sunday against Houston.

Matthew Dyer and Brandon Boissiere homered for the Wildcats in Austin.

Donta Williams leads the Wildcats with a .405 batting average. In 12 games, Williams has been hit by a pitch seven times and has walked 12 times. Williams leads the team in runs scored with 19.

Palmer, Tolson led TOTS in hits in February

Tucson Old Timers (TOTS)

60-and-over baseball

The usual suspects on the 60-and-over Tucson Old Timers -- Reed Palmer and Tim Tolson -- tied for the most hits in February with 15 apiece. Palmer went 15 for 24 in eight games, while Tolson played in seven games and went 15 for 23. Palmer hit the only home run in February and finished first in  RBI with 12.

Other top hitters for the month included Ken Nebesny, who finished with 13 hits in 27 at bats and scored the most runs for the month with 12, while Mike Dawson went 12 for 22 in six games and Ron Ryan collected 11 hits in 17 at bats.

Nine games were played during the month. The rainy weather caused a hand full of cancellations. Still, 36 players played in February, accumulating 537 at bats, scoring 107 runs, while banging out 173 hits.

Way to go, TOTS!

Nebesny leads Team White to 7-3 TOTS' win

Tucson Old Timers (TOTS)

60-and-over baseball

Ken Nebesny, 62, went 3 for 3 and scored two runs today at Udall Park as Team White beat Team Blue 7-3 in a 60-and-over Tucson Old Timers game.

Nesbesny, who batted leadoff today, went into today's game with a .455 batting average this season and the three hits today gives him 28 hits in 58 at bats.

Mike Dawson pitched all seven innings for Team White today and received the benefit of four double plays -- including a 1-4-3 twin killing in the last inning. Dawson struck out three and walked one. Team Blue's Reed Palmer, who struck out four and walked three, was saddled with the loss.

The TOTS have two more games scheduled at Udall on Wednesday and Friday. Starting time for both games: 10 a.m.

Photo: Nebesny

Arizona gives up 6 runs in 9th, lose to Rhode Island, 15-11

Arizona Wildcats Baseball


Arizona (7-4) split its four-game set with Central Michigan and Rhode Island this week at Hi Corbett Field. The Wildcats lost 4-2 to Central Michigan and won 5-1, while thumping Rhode Island 19-10 and then let the Rams score six runs in the top of the ninth today to escape town with a 15-11 win.

Arizona's loss today wasn't pretty. The Wildcats sent seven pitchers to the mound and the Rams plated runs in the first, second, fourth, sixth, eighth and ninth. Arizona was down 9-8 in the bottom of the eighth, but managed to score two runs -- including the go-ahead run when Jacob Bylas dove into first and beat out an infield hit, allowing Matthew Dyer to score from third.

The Wildcats needed just three outs to preserve the win, but instead the Arizona bullpen couldn't hold off the Rams in the ninth.