Remembering Chico Bigham and his days at the MSBL World Series.
Chico's teammates called him "Rubber Arm" due to the fact he'd take the ball time and time again.
A high school umpire who traveled around the state of Arizona taking control behind the plate at prep games from Hayden, to Safford, to Morenci, to Bisbee...well you name it, he'd strap on the gear, battle the hostile crowds at times and get the job done.
We called him Mr. Blue when he set up shop behind the plate for the 60-and-over Tucson Old Timers.
Chico loved the game and played it the right way.
The amateur senior baseball tourney continues this week. As usual, age divisions from 18 and over all the way through 75 and over, plus a father-son division, will enter the field of play -- all playing for the love of the game.
Every year, I made a resolution, in my mind anyway, to cut down on the burgers while in Phoenix, but there I was on multiple occasions, sitting inside a Whataburger with Chico after a game.
I'll take the jacket to the 37th Men's Senior Baseball League World Series. I would like to wear it to warm up at all the spring training facilities I play at.
This year is the 36th MSBL/MABL World Series. Another 3,000 players and 330 teams converge on the Valley of the Sun and play the game of baseball at many of the Major League spring training facilities -- including the likes of the Salt River Complex at Talking Stick, where the Colorado Rockies and Arizona Diamondbacks hold their workouts every spring in preparation for their professional seasons.
Bigham, who passed away in 2017 at the age of 79, is in the 60-and-over Tucson Old Timers' Baseball Hall of Fame. He spent 19 seasons with the amateur ball club and made that yearly journey north to Phoenix to play alongside many of his TOTS teammates at the senior World Series.
Chico and I were roommates at the MSBL World Series, and I can say for a fact that he loved Whataburgers! Our hotel was always close to a Whataburger, although we did venture out to other restaurants with our World Series teammates from Tucson.
Chico was all business on and off the playing field. And boy, could he log the innings as a pitcher at the senior World Series.
Bigham, born in Monroe, South Carolina, in 1938, left us in October of 2017. Chico wore many hats: umpire, baseball player -- infielder, outfielder, catcher, pitcher, field maintenance coordinator...he did it all.
Photos: Are all of our man Chico, and of course, the top image is the highly-traveled jacket. The last photo is of yours truly in the dugout at a recent ball game.
From the desk of Chico's teammate, Dan "Pigpen" Price
I'm sure an MSBL WS player will stop me and ask: 'That's quite a jacket...a lot of history there. Did you play in all those?'
I'll say: "Played in 14 of them, but this is Chico Bigham's jacket. He played in 18 of them."
The ball player will think briefly and say: 'Chico Bigham. I remember him. He was a workhorse.'
That he was. I'll say. That he was.
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