Tucson Old Timers (TOTS)
60-and-over baseball
Corona Games
It's a dog day afternoon at Udall Park as the Tucson Old Timers let all the animals in free for the Corona Games. Today's contest pits the 60-and-over players against the 70-and-over players.
On paper, it looks like a runaway game for the 60s team. The starting lineup for the 60s Blue includes: Roger Beebe leading off and handling the catching duties, with shortstop Mike Dawson batting second and the hard-hitting Reed Palmer, 63, will toe the rubber and bat third. Tim Tolson, the first baseman, is batting cleanup today, while Big John Mathews gets the assignment at third and bats fifth.
If that's not enough fire power, Tim Boyd, the centerfielder, bats sixth and the hot-hitting Ron Ryan bats seventh and handles left field today. The rest of the lineup includes Jesse Ochoa at second base, with Ken Nebesny batting ninth and playing left field, while 62-year-old Steve Foster, the TOTS' rookie, bats 10th and plays short field.
The 60s Blue lineup should give the Team White starter a headache, but Doc Thompson, 77, the only active player still on the TOTS with former professional experience (albeit it was close to 60 years ago when he pitched for a Minnesota Twins affiliate), gets the call today for the old guys.
So the battery looks like this: Palmer and Beebe for the 60s; Thompson and Steele for the 70s.
Mike Steele will set up shop behind the plate and bat second for 70s White today, while lefty Dennis Crowley will bat in front of him and hold down the spot in centerfield. Bob Daliege will bat third and play left field, Joe Opocensky will bat fourth and play third base and Pistol Pete Peters will bat fifth and play shortstop. Thompson will take care of the sixth spot in the lineup, while lefty Ron Petersen will bat seventh and play right field. The rest of the lineup includes Pigpen Price at second base, Dave Byars at first base and Bill Mishler will play short field and bats 10th.
Bob Royer, 82, will be the head umpire behind the plate, while Jerry Hamelin, 79, and Bobby Stofft, 81, will handle the bases (of course, the organization is provided glasses for all three umpires today).
It may not help. Heck, many of the players on the field today need some kind of eye wear.
Let's play ball!
Thompson came out firing. He was taking no prisoners. He fanned Beebe on three pitches, coaxed Dawson into a lazy fly ball to center and Palmer sent Crowley to the gap in right-center, but the fleet-footed kid from Boston snagged the ball on the run for the final out in the top of the first.
Of course, Palmer was not to be outdone as he struck out Crowley, Steele and Bobby Daliege to end the first frame. It looked like the makings of a real barnburner as both pitchers rolled untouched through the second, third, fourth and fifth innings.
Thompson toed the rubber again in the sixth, but Dawson got things going with a shot up the middle for a single. That brought up the "Big Three" -- Palmer, Tolson and Mathews, and they all connected. Palmer doubled to right, Tolson drilled an opposite field double down the left field line and Mathews tripled over the head of Daliege in left field.
Boyd and Ryan hit back to back shots to Opocensky, but in both cases the "Big O" held Mathews at third and threw to Mishler at first base for the first two outs. That brought up Ochoa, who singled on the first pitch to bring in Mathews. Nebesny grounded out to short for the final out of the inning, but the damage was done and Team White headed for the dugout, trailing 4-0.
Team White cut the lead in half in the bottom of the sixth as Petersen and Price picked up back to back singles and ended up at second and third on an errant throw from the outfield. That brought up Bill Mishler and Ron Carlson. Mishler doubled over the head of Tolson at first base for Team White's first run of the game and Carlson hit a shot by Ochoa at second for the second run of the inning.
Palmer gave way to reliever Pete Maldonado and the man from Da Bronx got out of the inning by getting Crowley to pop up to second, Steele followed with a single up the middle, but Daliege hit a rope to Ochoa at second. Ochoa grabbed the ball on one hop, fired to Dawson, who relayed the ball to first for a double play to end the inning.
In the seventh, Team Blue picked up an insurance run on a single from Dawson and a triple to the right field corner by Palmer. Team White came off the field, needing three runs to tie the game and four runs for a walk-off win.
In the bottom of the seventh, Opocensky sent a high fly ball to the warning track in right field, but Nebesny tracked the ball down and made a running catch for the first out of the inning. Peters and Thompson followed with singles and Petersen took a Maldonado fastball deep to right field. The ball hit the fence on one hop and both runs scored to pull Team White to within one run, at 5-4.
Back to back singles from Price and Mishler loaded the bases and suddenly the winning run stood on second base. Team White had one player left in the dugout. The pinch hitter grabbed his bat, took a couple of practice swings and headed for the batter's box.
Floyd Lance, 94, a TOT since 1999 with over 1,400 career hits, stepped into the box and took the first pitch from Maldonado. Royer raised his right arm and yelled. "Strike one!"
The next pitch curled over the plate and Lance sent a sizzler to right field, both runs scored and 70s White upset the 60s Blue, 6-5.
Both teams made sure they stayed six feet apart as they headed back to the dugout. Within minutes the parking lot was empty and all the players, their friends and those old dogs, too, returned home to catch the afternoon news.
The coronavirus continues.
As for the game, too bad it wasn't an official one. Hopefully the TOTS will be back in action soon.
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