Father and son

 

Tucson Old Timers (TOTS)

60-and-over baseball

Lefty Thunder Tim Tolson, 67, has been banging out hits with the TOTS for eight years.

Today was no different.

Tolson (photo above) went 4 for 4, scored a run and knocked in a run to lead Team Blue to a 7-4 win over Team White at Udall Park in a 60-and-over Tucson Old Timers game. Joe Opocensky picked up the pitching victory and Doc Thompson started for Team White and was saddled with the loss. Mike Steele led Team White with three hits in four trips to the plate.

Tim was strictly a pull hitter when he first arrived (officially) on the TOTS' scene in 2012. Alright,  he wasn't quite 60 years of age until late August of that year and a special waiver (so to speak) was issued, allowing him to play close to 100 games prior to his 60th birthday and play alongside Brad Tolson, Tim's dad, for three games in 2010 and another 60 games in 2011.

The younger Tolson did get a jump start with the TOTS and is the only player with the organization to have the opportunity to play with his father. Brad Tolson, who  joined the organization in 1991, handed over his jersey #3 to his son at the end of 2012.

Brad Tolson ended up playing in 75 games in 2012 and Tim ended up playing in 98 games, although his first official at bat with the organization wasn't until his 60th birthday on August 30.

The TOTS have been around since 1968 and a father-son combination on the field at the same time has happened only once. There is a slim chance it just might happen again in four years. Pigpen Price, 75, has been with the TOTS since 2008 and he turns 79 in 2024 and his son, Michael, who plays in the Tucson MSBL, turns 60 on November 30, 2024.

Of course, for that to happen, the senior Price would need to stay active with the TOTS for another 50 months and, by his own admission, that scenario may never happen.

"I'm already struggling to keep it going," says Price. "It's a nice goal to set and it would be great if it happens, but there's a long road ahead. It's tough to stay in shape and keep playing."

Brad Tolson (photo below) was 83 when his son, Tim, turned 60.

As for the Price duo (photo below), they played together in the Tucson MSBL in 2013.

"Mike and I played together with the Orioles seven years ago," Price said. I was 68 at the time and the oldest player in the 38-and-over Tucson MSBL.  I was pretty much out of my league with those guys. They made me feel old back then and I'm a relic now."

As for Tim Tolson, he continues to attack the baseball. He owns the record for the most hits in a single season with the TOTS at 259, set in 2017. The young Tolson turns 68 in three weeks.