Mal the Scorekeeper -- Alone in the Dugout

 Tucson Old Timers (TOTS)

60-and-over baseball

Mal leaves his house every Monday, Wednesday, and Friday. His journey isn't far -- just a little over a mile from Udall Park and then a 100-yard walk from the parking lot to the dugout and the home field of the 60-and-over Tucson Old Timers.

"I'd rather be playing," said the 83-year-old Mal Zwolinski, a former star player and a legendary hitter for the amateur baseball organization, which is just five games away from completing its 53rd season. "Back issues have kept me from the game."

Over 250 players have worn the blue and white TOTS jerseys since 1968, the first year of the old-timers club, which played not at Udall but at Tucson Himmel Park.

Zwolinski, with the letters "Z" and "W" in his name, is used to being the last entry on a list for anything, especially a baseball roster. Mal is the last man listed on the TOTS' all-time roster, but there it is: Mal Zwolinski, uniform #7, birthdate 10/23/1937, hometown: Winchester, New Hampshire, and a proud TOT since 2006.

Mal took his last swings in 2013, but in 2009, at 71, he played in 62 games, batted 188 times, scored 44 runs, collected 99 hits, and knocked in 64 runs, which calculates to a hefty .527 batting average.

Now, due to COVID-19 precautions, Mal sits alone in the dugout. His teammates have already dragged the field, inserted the bases, and placed his four-legged table (canasta type, good enough usually for four card players to play comfortably) at the north end of the dugout bench.

He's ready for work with a mask on and a couple of trusty pencils in his hand. Now, some of the guys joke with him: "Mal, I'll  give you a dollar for a hit today." Mal has yet to go home with any extra change in his pocket.

It's been a tough time for the world...the country...As the world's citizens and...an old-timers baseball club, Arizona and Tucson battle through adversity.

There have been times during the last few months when the TOTS have been short of players. If that happens, all the equipment, including Mal's scoring table, is put away, and all the players, including Mal Zwolinski, head home.

Mal may be the last name on the roster, but he is the first on the list as a TOTS legend and the club's No. 1 scorekeeper.

Photo: Mal at work