Byars leads TOTS super seniors in November

Tucson Old Timers (TOTS)

60-and-over baseball

David Byars turns 77 on December 11 and, in a few weeks, will complete his ninth season with the 60-and-over Tucson Old Timers. In November, Byars led the TOTS super seniors (players over 75) with 14 hits in 34 at-bats, a .412 batting average. He also finished second in RBI with 14.

In 2017, Byars, then 68, ran into TOTS regular Danny "Pigpen" Price, 70, at a coffee shop (Dunkin' Donuts, to be exact). The conversation between the two baseball aficionados eventually led to Byars becoming a TOT.

Fast-forward to December 2024, and Byars and Price, now 79, are still teammates and swing the lumber at Udall Park every Monday, Wednesday, and Friday.

"I was initially reluctant at first (meeting with Price)," said Byars. "But the more I thought about playing again, the more I wanted to join the TOTS.  I'm glad I did. It's such a great organization and a great group of guys."

Byars, a star high school baseball player at Marana High School and Tucson High School in the mid-1960s, has settled in as a regular and a super senior with the TOTS. Jokingly, Byars adds, "I can't quit now. As long as Pigpen continues to play, I'll hang in there too."

Heading into the final few games of his ninth season, Byars has collected 682 hits and has knocked in close to 400 runs. 

As for the 'younger dudes' in November, Tim Tolson, 72, and Jon Beady, 63, were the top hitters. Tolson went 19 for 34 and led in RBI with 16, while Beady went 18 for 29, with one homer and a hefty .621 batting average.

Reed Palmer, 68, led the TOTS pitching staff with a 3-0 record. Mike Dawson was the workhorse on the mound for the month with 37 innings, while Randy Livingston was the strikeout king with 13 K's.

Way to go, TOTS!

Photos: Byars, now a nine-year veteran of the TOTS

 

 

A painful ending at Arizona Stadium

 Arizona Wildcats Football

A painful loss at Arizona Stadium Saturday afternoon.

Most of the 40,000 or so Wildcat fans were gone before the final seconds ticked away, leaving the Arizona State fans to celebrate their team's 49-7 win.

I felt sorry for the Arizona players, especially the many Wildcats, who didn't even suit up due to season-ending injuries that occurred weeks ago.

A 4-8 season! My goodness!

I'm so tired of hearing the word "Portal." I'm frustrated with the school's administration, the head coach, the coaching staff, and college sports in general.

It all comes down to money. Forget the following season, the season after, and the season after. This will not be a quick fix for Arizona; everyone knows it!

I'm sorry, Wildcats!

I love my Arizona Wildcats. I've supported the team and the school for over 75 years. I remember the games we won and the games we lost.

And I'll remember what happened on Saturday when the Sun Devil player stuck a pitchfork into Block A at Arizona Stadium.

Wildcats drop 2 of 3 in the Bahamas, included OT loss to West Virginia today

 Arizona Wildcats Basketball

Arizona returns home with a 3-4 record after losing 2 of 3 in the Bahamas. The Wildcats' latest loss came today in the battle for third place at the Battle 4 Atlantis against West Virginia, as the Mountaineers prevailed in overtime, 83-76.

The team's failure to haul in critical offensive rebounds down the stretch and its inability to knock down the three-point shots (7 of 21 attempts) while committing 14 turnovers to just seven for West Virginia (5-2) added to the misery and made their three-day stay on the Island not a happy one.

A lopsided win over Davidson (104-71), a loss in the semi-final to Oklahoma (82-77), and today's tough defeat at the hands of the Mountaineers left Coach Tommy Lloyd with plenty of work ahead as he prepares his Wildcats for their next game at home, at McKale,  against Southern Utah on Dec. 7.

Today, Caleb Love scored 24 points, and Trey Townsend was a force around the bucket with 19, but Tucker DeVries hit eight 3-pointers and scored 26 to lead West Virginia.

Arizona falls to Oklahoma 82-77

 Arizona Basketball

Arizona lost to Oklahoma 82-77 in the Battle 4 Atlantis semi-final on Thursday in the Bahamas. The Wildcats play West Virginia at 1 p.m. today for third place in the tournament.

Cold shooting in the first half led to Arizona's downfall. Caleb Love scored 17 points for the Wildcats but missed 11 shots from the field, and Arizona dropped to 3-3 on the season.

An awakening in the Bahamas: Arizona 104 Davidson 71

Arizona Basketball

Fun in the Bahamas

Anthony Dell'Orso had a career-high 21 points off the bench, and Caleb Love bounced back from a two-game funk with 20 points to lead the 24th-ranked Arizona Wildcats to a 104-71 win over Davidson (4-1) in the first-round game of the Battle 4 Atlantis tonight in the Bahamas.

Trey Townsend scored 17 points and added four rebounds, while Tobe Awaka was a force under the bucket with 13 points and 10 rebounds for the Wildcats (3-2). Mo Krivas was 4 for 4 from the field, finishing with 10 points and four rebounds. Despite a leg injury early on, KJ Lewis hauled in 10 boards.

Arizona shot 56.5 percent from the field, canning 39 of 69 shots and 11 of 22 three-pointers, with Dell'Orso making 5 of 7 long-range shots. Love made 3 of 7 three-pointers on 7 of 13 shooting from the field and added five rebounds and four assists.

Arizona faces Oklahoma on Thanksgiving Day at 3 p.m.

Way to go, Wildcats! 

Old-timers baseball in 2025

 What will 2025 bring to the table? Will my body hang in there and allow me to play another year of baseball? I'll start my 18th season as a Tucson Old Timers (TOTS) Baseball Club member and probably my 74th season overall. I was six years old when I first started playing organized baseball. I'll be 80 in July, but my New Year's resolution is to play smart. Less diving...less running, and, more importantly, I'll try to remember I'm an old guy. That's hard to do sometimes.

Once you take the field, step over the white line, and head for your position, we oldtimers forget about age and have one common purpose: make the play.

Yes, it is more of an adventure now. Those high-fly balls off an aluminum bat become harder and harder to camp under. Getting in front of a sizzling one-hopper becomes a 50-50 proposition. Throwing to a target more than sixty feet away seems futile at times. But there we are week after week, month after month, doing our best to make the play.

Hats off to the TOTS, the MSBL (Men's Senior Baseball League), and all the organizations that promote baseball for guys and gals in their senior years.

Let's play ball!

The photos below were taken at our home field at Udall Park. There's a happening going on there every morning on Monday, Wednesday, and Friday. Photo #1 of a little one (name unknown) diving across home plate at Udall. In 60 years, he'll be able to join the TOTS. The second and third photos of a great-grandchild receiving a gift after Grandpa hit a homer. Next, a TOTS baseball is hiding in the cactus. The following image of the first-ever TOTS team from 1968...and the last photo in more current times, is of Big John Mathews blasting the ball to center on a Monday morning at Udall. Mike Steele is the catcher.

Where is Caleb Love?

 Arizona Wildcats Basketball

Where is Caleb Love?

Arizona lost 69-55 at McKale tonight in front of 14,500 fans. Except for an early lead, it was Duke the rest of the way as Cooper Flagg scored a game-high 24 points to lead the Blue Devils.

Love was missing in action for the second game in a row, as he scored just two points in the first half and eight for the game on a 3-for-13 shooting performance. Jaden Bradley led the Wildcats with 18, while KJ Lewis added 12.

The Wildcats fall to 2-2 on the season.

The Arizona basketball season actually begins Friday night at McKale

 Arizona Men's basketball

The 17th-ranked Arizona men's basketball season begins Friday night at McKale Center as the 2-1 Wildcats show off their talented crew and take down the 12th-ranked Duke Blue Devils (3-1).

It's time for Caleb Love to showcase his stuff, and it is time for the Wildcats' seven-footers to get untracked and show in front of a packed house at McKale that Arizona belongs -- belongs amongst the elite college teams of 2024.

It is time for the Arizona fans to stand and show their approval as the Wildcats take command of the court at McKale, roll to their third win...and hand the Blue Devils their second loss.

It is time!

Go, Wildcats!

And it is time for this scribe to follow the Arizona Wildcats to the Big Dance again.

Looking for a great season!

Game time: 8:30 pm on ESPN2

Dawson leads the TOTS' pitching staff 2020-2024

 Tucson Old Timers (TOTS)

 60-and-over baseball

So many Tucson Old Timers pitching statistics from the 1960s, 1970s, 1980s, 1990s, and even the first 19 years of the 21st Century are lost, probably blowing in the wind at some Tucson landfill. The TOTS' shed, better known as Chico's Place, was cleaned out, and all the archive books from the past disappeared to make room for more tools and equipment to maintain our beautiful home field at Udall Park.

As the TOTS club historian, I was able to save the modern-day era, so to speak, from 2020 to 2024—five years of individual games pitched, innings pitched, strikeouts, and won-loss records, which I condensed into readable form with the help of our TOTS statistician Mike Steele.

That will have to suffice for now.

In the last five years, the majority of the pitchers who have toed the rubber at Udall Park include 11 right-handers -- Mike Dawson, Joe Opocensky, Randy Livingston, Reed Palmer, Ernesto Escala, Jon Beady, Bob Daliege, Pete Maldonado, Martin Pelger, Mark Rupert, and Glen Vann and one lefty Dennis Crowley.

Those 'dirty dozen' have one thing in common: they throw strikes, a must for a TOTS' seven-inning game, known to last upwards of two-and-a-half hours...maybe three hours at times.

Here are the stats for our top hurlers. And we thank them for their service. After all, without them and our hard-working catchers, we wouldn't have a game.

As an added little gem, I would like to make it a baker's dozen and add Gary Cuttler, 69, who is out of action with complications from a back operation and is back in New Jersey, or better yet, traveling the countryside and enjoying life.

Cuttler, one of the TOTS' most promising, hard-throwing right-handers, played in just 10 games but turned in an impressive 47 innings, posting a 4-3 record with 28 strikeouts.

Mike Dawson has been the 'workhorse' on the mound at Udall for the past five years. 

Actually, he ran the table in games played (189), innings pitched (1,108), and strikeouts earned (331) while maintaining an 89-64 won-loss record.

Dawson is a local boy. He went to Santa Rita High School, just a few miles south of Udall. It was a long time ago, but at 69, he's doing just what he did in high school: play baseball.

Opocensky, at 74, is a few years older than Dawson, but he's one of the TOTS' most consistent pitchers.

Often referred to as "Opie," Opocensky has pitched in 142 games and logged 902 innings in the past five years. Joe has struck out 195 batters and held a won-loss record of 52-62.

Third in innings pitched is Bob Daliege, 76, with 128 games and 753 innings pitched. He has struck out 177 and maintained a 48-57 record.

Next in line in innings pitched is Pete Maldonado,72, who has played in 121 games, pitched 708 innings, and struck out 142 batters while winning 56 games and losing  41. The hard-throwing Reed Palmer, 68, is next with 105 games, 666 innings pitched, 289 K's, and an impressive 56-31 record.

Next up is the curveball expert, 67-year-old Randy Livingston, with 85 games in the books, 528 innings, 211 strikeouts, and a won-loss record of 33-31.

The balance of the 'dirty dozen' include Ernesto Escala, 72 (93 games, 455 innings, 155 K's, and a record of 27-38),  Jon Beady, 63 (41 games, 206 innings, 141 strikeouts, and a 19-13 record), Glen Vann, 71, (41 games, 169 innings, 95 strikeouts, and a 12-9 record), Mark Rupert, 72, (48 games, 240 innings, 51 strikeouts, and 13-24 record, Martin Pelger (16 games, 81 innings, 22 strikeouts, and a 7-4 record)) and, of course, our 75-year-old lefty Dennis Crowley (29 games, 146 innings, 37 strikeouts, and a 14-10 record).

The men on the mound for the TOTS...

Mike Dawson

Joe Opocensky

Randy Livingston

Reed Palmer

Ernesto Escala

Jon Beady

Bob Daliege

Pete Maldonado

Martin Pelger

Mark Rupert

Glen Vann

Dennis Crowley

And the baker's dozen...

Gary Cuttler

Way to go, TOTS' pitchers. We need you!

Thunder Tim Tolson leads the TOTS 21st century career hit club

Tucson Old Timers (TOTS)

60-and-over baseball

Thunder Tim Tolson is well out in front in total hits accumulated over the past two decades at Udall Park. Tolson, now 72, leads all 60-and-over modern-day Tucson Old Timers with a career hit total of 2,355.

That's 221 hits above the late Chico Bigham, who passed away in 2017 but remains in second place ahead of Pete Peters, 75, who sits alone in third with 1,626 hits.

Lefty Dennis Crowley, 75, is currently in fourth place with 1,606, while 79-year-old Danny "Pigpen" Price holds on to fifth with 1,541 hits. 

Bob Daliege is sixth with 1,506 hits. Rounding out the top 10 are Reed Palmer (1,102), Joe Opocensky (1,099), Jesse Ochoa (1,092), and Mike Steele at 937, who is set to join the 1,000-club at the end of the 2024 season.

Pigpen Price is within four hits of 1,600. He needs to close out the year with a flurry.

"The hits are hard to come by these days," Price said. "When you are practically an Octogenarian, and you stare out at the defense and see a bunch of 60-somethings waiting to catch your blooper. It's tough!"

Catcher Mike Steele, 76, is in the same boat and is just a hit or two away in 2024 to climb above that 1,000 mark. Price is a pull hitter and has trouble finding a hole to squeeze a hit through. Steele is a spray hitter and can hit to all fields.

Note: The above batting statistics are through the 2023 season. So, there are more hits to be added in about six weeks when the 2024 season comes to a close.

The hitters:

Tim Tolson

Pete Peters

Dennis Crowley

Danny Pigpen Price

Bob Daliege

Reed Palmer

Joe Opocensky

Jesse Ochoa

Mike Steele

Pigpen back on the ballfield after a severe bout with dehydration

 Ok! Back among the living after a four-week bout (which seems longer) with severe dehydration. Has it finally clicked in my old brain to drink water?

Back on the ballfield this week with my teammates on the Tucson Old Timers. I still need to gain a few pounds back. Lost 17! As I say: Drink water. In my case, keep the electrolytes flowing.

And keep swinging!

from the desk of Pigpen Price

Bulawin, Tolson top the TOTS hitting charts in October

Tucson Old Timers

60-and-over baseball

The Tucson Old Timers played just seven official games in October because many of the TOTS were out of town competing in the 2024 Men's Senior Baseball League World Series in Phoenix.

J.B. Bulawin picked up the slack while the "big boys" were away.

Bulawin finished second in hits, going 10 for 17 in five games for a .588 batting average.

Only Thunder Tim Tolson finished ahead of Bulawin in hits with 11. Before Tolson headed out of town to play in the MSBL World Series, he managed a stat line of 11 for 18 in six games, a .611 average.

Marty Pelger, Mike Dawson, Joe Opocensky, Reed Palmer, and Randy Livingston tied for third in hits with nine. Pelger, who played in just three games, swung the hottest bat, going 9 for 12, a .750 average.

Other notables included David Byars (8 for 23), Mike Steele (8 for 24), Ernesto Escala (8 for 17), and Big Jon Beady, who went 8 for 11 in four games, a .727 average. Sam Dean (7 for 16) and Ken Nebesny (7 for 21) also hit well in October.

Palmer led the club in RBI with 10.

Livingston (2-1) and Palmer (2-0) posted the best pitching records in October. Livingston pitched 21 innings and was the strikeout king with seven.

The TOTS are back in full swing in November at Udall Park as they near the end of another season (1968-2024).

Go, TOTS!

Photo: Bulawin

TOTS keep its playoff hopes alive at MSBL World Series

Men's Senior Baseball League World Series

Phoenix, Arizona

Game 4

Thunder Tim Tolson provided two RBI doubles, and Joe Opocensky had three key hits as the TOTS came from behind to beat the Cal Vets 13-7 in fourth-round action today in Goodyear.

Crafty Pete Maldonado won in relief of TOTS' starter Bob Daliege.

The win evens the TOTS series record at 2-2 with one game remaining in the five-game round-robin.

The TOTS will play the SoCal Dodgers on Thursday at 1:30 p.m. in Maryvale, the Milwaukee Brewers' spring training home.

Photo: Thunder Tim

TOTS run-ruled in Game 3 at MSBL World Series

 Men’s Senior Baseball League World Series

Game 3

The TOTS were run-ruled by Canada Red Deer today at the Legacy ballpark in Mesa(there is no reason to mention the score) and fell to 1-2 in the series.

The TOTS take on the Cal Vets on Wednesday at 10 a.m. in Goodyear.

Opocensky tosses a pitching gem

2nd round action at the MSBL WORLD SERIES

The TOTS evened their record at the Men's Senior Baseball League World Series at 1-1 with a 13-2 win over a Bay Area team, the Sacramento Pirates, in Tempe yesterday, thanks to a pitching gem from Joe Opocensky. 

Opocensky pitched the TOTS' second consecutive complete game in the series, going all nine innings while keeping the Pirates at Bay for the better part of three hours.

It was a team effort at the plate as all the starters hit safely in this one.

The TOTS play a third game Tuesday at 9 a.m. at the Legacy in Mesa against Red Deer from Canada.

Photo: Opocensky

TOTS drop opener at MSBL World Series, 8-0

 70-and-over Cactus Division

First-round Sunday at Red Mountain Park in Mesa

Men's Senior Baseball League World Series.

Pete Maldonado, 72, pitched a complete nine innings, but the Tucson Old Timers were held scoreless and lost 8-0 to the California Bears today in the MSBL World Series opening round at Red Mountain Park in Mesa, Arizona.

Tucson could muster just three hits in the game. Joe Opocensky broke up the no-hitter with a single over the third baseman's head in the fourth inning.

The TOTS added two hits in the ninth inning—a single by Ernesto Escala and a double by Tim Tolson.

The TOTS play a second-round game on Monday at 9 a.m. at Tempe's Diablo Stadium, annex field 1, against another California team, the Pirates.

Photo: Pete Maldonado

Another tough loss in Provo

 Arizona Wildcats Football

A 41-19 loss in Provo, Utah today.

BYU moved to 6-0 by creating four turnovers. Many things went the Cougars' way, including the benefit of Arizona losing its top defender due to targeting in the first few minutes of the game.

It was downhill from there as the Wildcats failed to execute their offense at the crucial time.

Arizona quarterback Noah Fifita threw for 275 yards but had three interceptions and a fumble. Tetairoa McMillan caught the ball five times for 78 yards but was double-teamed most of the day.

Arizona is now 3-3. 

Beady dominates TOTS batting stats in September

Tucson Old Timers (TOTS)

60-and-over baseball

Jon Beady is a man among boys.

The term "boys" is used loosely here, as the Tucson Old Timers' players range in age from 62 to 79. Make that 86 with our player/scorekeeper/audio buff Ted Roberts on the roster with 45 old dudes who play for the love of the game.

Beady, though, owned the month of September. His stat line is impressive. Beady played in all 12 games with 24 hits in 33 at-bats. He walked seven times.

That calculates out to a .727 batting average.

Also, he led the team in runs scored with 21, tied for the most doubles (five, with Reed Palmer), hit two home runs, and tied (with Palmer) for the most RBI with 19.

Beady wasn't the only one that had a good September.

Joe Opocensky went 23 for 42, Randy Livingston 21 for 31, Tim Tolson 20 for 38, Bobby Long 19 for 38, and J.B. Bulawin picked up 18 hits in 40 at-bats. As for Palmer, he played in just eight games and batted .700 with 14 hits in just 20 at-bats.

On the mound, it was Palmer who sailed through September with a 3-0 record. Nine pitchers battled the hot temperatures, with Livingston logging the most innings with 31.

Way to go, TOTS!

My trip to Arizona Stadium

 I sat in the south-end zone last night next to the band. I quietly took it all in — the Wildcats on the field of play, the roar of the crowd, the college scene from tailgating to kickoff, and the final ticks of time on the giant scoreboard.

It all seemed similar to when I was a Jackrabbit Hernandez fan from the 195Os.

One thing was different: At 79, I was forced to hold onto the railings as I maneuvered up and down the steps. I was tired, and we lost—a double whammy!

And no Pac-12, but a new conference to boot. Everything seems out of touch and different, even the long walks to the snack bars and the restrooms.

It’s time to watch the college scene on the television screen while sitting in my comfy recliner at home.

Tough to admit. It’s time to watch my Wildcats from a distance. Win or lose, I’ll still cheer them on.

Go, Wildcats! Beat BYU!

70-and-over Cactus Division teams (Pool A) for the MSBL World Series

1  Cal Bears (A1)

        0

      0

0

0.000

2

Cal Vets (2) (A2)

0

0

0

0.000

3

Colorado Stars (A3)

0

0

0

0.000

4

Pacific Reds (A4)

0

0

0

0.000

5

Red Deer Legends (A5)

0

0

0

0.000

6

Sacramento Pirates (A6)

0

0

0

0.000

7

So Cal Dodgers (A7)

0

0

0

0.000 

                                8     Tucson Old Timers                        0.          0.         0.      0.0

Tucson Old Timers first five games...

Men's Senior Baseball League World Series

Phoenix, Arizona

Oct. 13 through Oct. 19

Game 1 on Oct. 13 at 9 a.m. at Red Mountain Park#2 in East Mesa against the California Bears

Game 2 on Oct. 14 at 9 a.m. at Tempe Diablo annex field #1 against the Sacramento Pirates

Game 3 on Oct. 15 at 9 a.m. at Legacy Park#1 in Mesa against Red Deer from Canada

Game 4 on Oct. 16 at  10 a.m. in Goodyear#6 (Reds) against Cal Vets#2

Game 5 on Oct. 17 at  1:30 p.m. at Maryvale Park #5 in Phoenix against the SoCal Dodgers

Playoffs set for Oct. 18

The championship game is set for Oct. 19

Can it get any closer?

Arizona Diamondbacks

Arizona is holding on by a thread for the final wild-card spot in the National League. Losers of five of their last six games, the Diamondbacks must beat the San Diego Padres at high noon at Chase today, or it's all over.

A week ago, things looked promising for a postseason berth. The Padres shut out the Diamondbacks 5-0 last night at Chase.

Forget the scenarios; let's clear our heads. Arizona must win and finish 89-73...and then hope the New York Mets and the Atlanta Braves cooperate.

It shouldn't have come to this!

Diamondbacks Update (9-30-24)

Arizona beat the Padres last night 11-2 to reach 89 wins. Now, they must wait and hope for a doubleheader sweep by either the Mets or the Braves today to grab the final NL Wild Card spot. 

Final update: a split of the doubleheader. Arizona out of the playoffs. Too bad!

Wildcats throw Utes for a Loop

 Arizona Wildcats Football

Kicker Tyler Loop kicked field goals of 53, 47, and 33 yards, and the Arizona defense kept 10th-ranked Utah out of the end zone for three quarters in Salt Lake City tonight.

The result: a stunning 23-10 win for the Wildcats, who improved to 3-1 on the season and handed the Utah Utes (4-1) their first loss.

Arizona quarterback Noah Fifita threw a 3-yard touchdown pass to Jeremiah Patterson in the second quarter and a thrilling 35-yard strike in the back of the end zone to Keyan Burnett with eight minutes remaining in the game.

Burnett ended up with five catches for 76 yards, while Tetairoa McMillan hauled in six passes from Fifita for 50 yards. Fifita threw for 197 yards and two touchdowns.

Kedrick Reescano and Quali Conley combined for 145 yards rushing.

Way to go, Wildcats!

Pigpen and Carl

 MSBL World Series practice at Udall yesterday...

Plus, acknowledging some Tucson MSBL Hall of Famers…

And a replay of the Carl and Pigpen story…

Today's post will be a little different. I'll entitle this offering: Carl and Pigpen, or should I call it: The Baseball Junkies? Carl is Carl Schwanbeck (photo below), and Pigpen (above) is yours truly.

This story begins in the 1960s when you could buy a Rawlings baseball mitt for less than twenty bucks.

And now, for the rest of the story...

Carl Schwanbeck, 77, and Danny "Pigpen" Price, 79, are baseball junkies. These two codgers have been around the game of baseball since both were knee-high to a grasshopper in height, and they had barely enough meat on their bones to keep from being blown away by a tumbling tumbleweed.

They both ended up in Arizona and quickly discovered the difference between a dust devil and a tumbleweed.

Let's start with Carl.

He bounced around as a young fella. Talk about baseball; Carl was born in Williamsport, Pa. -- the land of the Little League World Series. "I didn't even like baseball then," Carl recalls. "I was probably the worst player and always sat at the end of the bench."

Things changed for little Carl when he ended up in Marietta, Georgia, about 20 miles northwest of Atlanta. There, he started to pick up the game of baseball. When he moved to Monroeville, Ohio, Carl had become good enough to play high school ball.

Somewhere along the way, he picked up a first baseman's mitt. "I even hit a home run in a regional game," Carl said. "The opposing pitcher had struck out 15 of us, but we still won the game, and I got my homer."

Next stop: Kent State. He passed on playing baseball at Kent State but did get his degree. This was in 1968, and the starting battery for Kent State was Steve Stone and Thurman Munson. That alone convinced Carl that he wasn't quite ready for a college baseball career.

Fast-forward to Tucson. After many years of service at Raytheon, Carl retired from the workforce and joined the Tucson Men's Senior Baseball League.

By 2012, Carl was now a tall and experienced lefty first baseman in his mid-60s. He had made a name for himself and played on many Tucson MSBL teams—18-and-over, up to 38-and-over, and 45-and-over. In 2015, the league honored Carl by inducting him into the Tucson MSBL Hall of Fame.

At 77, Carl has become a "semi-rookie" on the 60-and-over Tucson Old Timers. He has not officially joined the club but has logged in a few games when needed.

When you're a Tucson MSBL Hall of Famer and can still play the game. Why not?

"My heart is still with the Tucson MSBL," Carl said. "It worked for me. I was the oldest in the league. My manager then was Rick Bitzer (now 69) and a member of the TOTS."

When you're a Tucson MSBL Hall of Famer and can still play the game. Why not?

"I have some eyesight issues and the normal aches and pains, but I can still play," says Schwanbeck.

As for yours truly, I was a career .250 hitter in college, and now, at 79, things haven't changed much in 60 years. I'm currently in a hitting slump. "I can't hit my way out of a paper bag right now,"

"But back in the day," Pigpen recalls. I wasn't too bad."

After "having trouble with the curve" in high school at Tucson Catalina (Class of 1963), I picked up a sports writing gig as the sports publicist at Eastern Arizona College in Thatcher.

"In 1965, I made the college baseball team and played second base," Price said. "My only claim to fame: We played a doubleheader at home against Arizona State (freshmen) Sun Devils. We, of course, were called the Gila Monsters, but we won't go there. After all, Scottsdale Community College, one of our opponents, was called the Artichokes, for goodness sake.

"At any rate, I'm at second base in the second game of a doubleheader. There were two outs, and a young speed demon named Reggie Jackson was on first base for ASU. He runs. Our catcher, Cliff Martin, who went on to a long coaching career at a high school in Paradise Valley, just outside the downtown Phoenix area, made a beautiful throw on the money. Jackson, barely 19 years old at the time, begins his slide with spikes high in the air and, of course, spikes the heck out of me, and I drop the ball....end of the story," said Pigpen.

After a 30-year career in the airline industry, I became a sportswriter in the Phoenix area from 1990 to 2001. I played fast-pitch softball in Utah, Nebraska, Phoenix, and Tucson when I could get away from work.

In 1997, I hooked up with Carl Schwanbeck for the first time. We were members of the 1997 National Senior Olympics baseball team, which beat a Maryland team in the championship game at Hi Corbett Field. Carl was the first-sacker, I played second base, and the shortstop was Bud Warnke, another Tucson MSBL Hall of Famer and a former baseball coach at Tucson Amphitheater High School.

And here we are in 2024, and the baseball junkies are still at it.

The Tucson area is full of ball players who have played in the Tucson MSBL since 1989. Many are in the Hall of Fame and play for the 60-and-over Old Pueblo Club at Santa Rita Park. A few have played for the 60-and-over Arizona Rattlers at Mission Manor Park. At Udall Park, where the TOTS and the 60-and-over Tucson Aces play, Ernesto "Doc" Escala, now 72, pitches for the TOTS. He was inducted into the Tucson MSBL Hall of Fame in 2008.

In fact, it's easy to connect the dots with the best ball players of the past with the Tucson MSBL Hall of Famers. Men like Gary Williams, Jim "Cowboy" Grace, Joe Jimenez, Herb McReynolds, Mark Sewell, Mark Stevens, Jim Stone, Charlie Riesgo, Don Holp, Steve Badart, Robin Badart, Mike Gray, Vic Acuna and Ted Abel.

And the list goes on...

Jesus Felix, Arnold Mares, Jose Pico, Jim Baugher, Lou Russo, Gasper Limon and Dave Bies.

I'm sorry. I'm sure I still need to include a few names. But Schwanbeck and Pigpen Price (me) have likely played for or against many of the players above.

Take, for instance, Dave "Diamond" Bies, who played for 23 years in the Tucson MSBL and passed away in 2017 at the age of 53.

According to Schwanbeck, who had known Bies since the first day he joined the league. "Dave was well-liked. I enjoyed the traditional hand slap at the end of the game, and he always had something friendly to say," Carl added.

Many of the Hall of Famers are legends; some are still putting on their spikes, grabbing their gloves, and heading back on the field.

Which brings us back to those two baseball junkies again. Wouldn't you know it, but Carl and Pigpen met again in 2012. Price played, alongside his 48-year-old son, Michael, on Robin Badart's Blackbirds, while Carl was with the Phillies in the Tucson MSBL.

Until then, Carl was the oldest player in the league. Pigpen, in 2012, took over the role as the most senior, at least for a few months. "It wasn't too long, I recall. "I was taken out at second base at mid-season by a 40-year-old runner, much like the young Jackson speedster who did the same in 1965."

So where do the two baseball junkies go from here?

We both showed up at Udall Park yesterday morning. Carl sat in the dugout while the 65-and-over and 70-and-over MSBL World Series-bound players from Tucson held a practice game, preparing for the series in Phoenix, which is scheduled for October 13 through November 2.

I went 0-2 in the practice game, but I'm still chomping at the bit to head to Phoenix with the rest of the TOTS players and participate in my 17th MSBL World Series.