The pitchers of record for the Tucson Old Timers

Tucson Old Timers (TOTS)

60-and-over baseball

The pitchers

Corona Games


Due to the coronavirus, the 60-and-over Tucson Old Timers remain in quarantine.

No games at Udall Park.

The TOTS, of course, would rather be out on the playing field. It does give our over-extended pitchers a chance to rest their 60-and-over arms.

The following is our pitching rotation:

First to the mound is DeLon "Doc" Thompson, the organization's only hurler with some professional experience, albeit it was back in the early 1960s in the Minnesota Twins organization. Thompson, 77, throws an assortment of pitchers and prides himself on keeping the hitters guessing. Doc, who wears #42, is from Roland, Iowa and pitched for Iowa State, back in the day.

Reed Palmer wears #52 and hails from Portland, Oregon. Palmer, a TOT since 2016, is a talk drink of  water. At 6-5, Reed, 63, looks like a giant on the mound when he unleashes one of his fastballs, clocked at a sizzling 70 mph.  Unlike a major league pitcher, Palmer is also a home run hitter and established the club's single season home run record in 2018.

Ernesto Escala, 67, joined the TOTS in 2019 and is quickly becoming one of the club's top pitchers. A Tucson dentist, Escala can take a bite out of the TOTS' hitters at times.  Nicknamed Doc, Ernesto recently came over from the 60-and-over Tucson Old Pueblo team. We are certainly glad to have him on our side.

Mike Dawson, who turns 65 on April 15, 2020, is our second youngest pitcher. Mike is a control pitcher who throws nothing but strikes. Currently a co-manager of our organization (along with Palmer), Dawson played baseball at Tucson Santa Rita High School, back in the day. Mike is a busy man on game days as he has the job of setting up the lineups.

Pete Maldonado, 67, is one of our right-handers who hates to walk batters. Maldonado, who wears #45, is from Da Bronx and throws nothing but strikes. Pete turns 68 on April 14, 2020, and has been on the DL for a few months, but is now back throwing strikes.

Bob Daliege, 71, hails from Chicago and is one of our most improved pitchers. Lately, he's unleashed a  new pitch or two and is giving the TOTS' batters fits. Bob wears jersey #9 and has been with the organization since 2010. Like many of our pitchers, Bob also plays infield and gets the job done in the outfield as well.

Our rubber arm is the pesky Lloyd Barzell. Nicknamed the Baby Bull, Lloyd hails from New York and will answer the call on the mound over and over and over again. Barzell wears #40 and has been a member of the TOTS since 2010. Lloyd turns 70 in August.

And there's The Man from Virginia, the hard-throwing right-hander Joe Opocensky. The "Big O" turned 70 in February and is one of those strange dudes who throws right, hits from the left side (see photos below) and can help his own cause. Joe wears jersey #54 and has been a member of the organization since 2014.