Palmer top dog at the plate, on the mound for the TOTS in November

Tucson Old Timers (TOTS)

60-and-over baseball

It's a young man's game over at Udall Park. Well, kinda. It's all relative.

Reed Palmer, 66, hit his 105th career home run for the 60-and-over Tucson Old Timers in November. But that wasn't all he did. In fact, Palmer led the TOTS in batting with 24 hits in 35 at-bats for a hefty .686 batting average while leading the club in doubles (6) and in RBI (20).

John Cooke, 65, finished second in hits (21) and went 21 for 42, for a .500 batting average, while scoring the most runs in November with 24.

John Mathews, 66, who played in just seven of the 12 games, made the most of his at-bats, knocking in 17 runs while collecting 15 hits in 28 official trips to the plate.

All in all, the players ranged in age from 61-year-old JB Bulawin, who, due to injuries, played in just six games and went 4 for 18 (.222), while two winter visitors -- 81-year-old Dick Ducklow and 81-year-old Arnie White -- saw limited action. Ducklow, the Madison, Wisconsin native, went 3 for 25, a .120 average, while White, from Red Lodge, Montana, played in four games in November and went 3 for 12, a .250 average.

Other top hitters for the month included Mark Rupert (17 for 45 in 12 games), Mike Dawson (14 for 35 in 11 games), Sam Dean (12 for 20 in six games), Tim Tolson (12 for 29 in eight games), Gary Cuttler (12 for 20 in six games) and Joe Opocensky (11 for 23 in seven games).

Two players, Brack Whitaker and Carl Schwanbeck, also finished the month with 10 hits apiece. Whitaker went 10 for 36 in 12 games, while Schwanbeck played in just five games but collected his 10 hits in just 21 at-bats.

Forty-one players saw action in November, and 10 pitchers took the mound. Once again, it was Palmer leading the way with a 3-2 record. Dawson pitched the most innings (35), and Palmer logged 34 innings. In addition, Palmer was the strike-out king for the month with 14.

The TOTS, an amateur baseball organization, will complete its 54th season on Friday, December 30.

Way to go, TOTS!

Reed Palmer (photo) led the TOTS in hitting and pitching during the month of November with a 3-2 record on the mound and at the plate went 24 for 35 with six doubles, one home run and 20 RBI.

Way to go, Reed!