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Adam2 wrote: ↑17 Feb 2026 07:04 am I agree with you, so many great players who never sniffed the big leagues. And it sets them back in life to be honest. Most of them grind as long as they can in the minors, by the time they give it up they are a 29 year old father of 2, with no job, no work experience and usually nothing to fall back on. They end up having to start a career at the age of 30 when most people are already 5 years into their careers by then if not more.

That's probably why there are so many ex minor leaguers coaching in high school and college. Because that is really the only type of job that their work experience as a baseball player can be valuable toward

Couple guys 2 years older than me at my high school made it as far as AA - one in the cubs org and the other with Twins.
They were both strongly built and had serious power in school. One was a catcher and the other OF. One ended up with a career as a fireman, the other worked at an oil refinery.

bigger ball.

The only time I ever hit with a loaded bat was in a softball tournament. We were a team just thrown together, and one of the (older) guys had brought a bat that I grabbed for my first time up. The bat had a little "rattle" to it, and in my very early 20s naivety, I said something about it being broken. The owner said, "That bat's not broken."

The light bulb then illuminated above my head, and I proceeded to hit the ball with some authority using the "broken" bat.

tgharris wrote: ↑17 Feb 2026 10:08 am The only time I ever hit with a loaded bat was in a softball tournament. We were a team just thrown together, and one of the (older) guys had brought a bat that I grabbed for my first time up. The bat had a little "rattle" to it, and in my very early 20s naivety, I said something about it being broken. The owner said, "That bat's not broken."

The light bulb then illuminated above my head, and I proceeded to hit the ball with some authority using the "broken" bat.

Did you ever see a bat with a crook in the handle? Supposed to help with something (don't what now). We had a couple of guys who swore by it. I tried it once and about broke my wrist.

HorseTrader wrote: ↑17 Feb 2026 14:42 pm

tgharris wrote: ↑17 Feb 2026 10:08 am The only time I ever hit with a loaded bat was in a softball tournament. We were a team just thrown together, and one of the (older) guys had brought a bat that I grabbed for my first time up. The bat had a little "rattle" to it, and in my very early 20s naivety, I said something about it being broken. The owner said, "That bat's not broken."

The light bulb then illuminated above my head, and I proceeded to hit the ball with some authority using the "broken" bat.

Did you ever see a bat with a crook in the handle? Supposed to help with something (don't what now). We had a couple of guys who swore by it. I tried it once and about broke my wrist.

Not that I recall.

tgharris wrote: ↑17 Feb 2026 14:49 pm

HorseTrader wrote: ↑17 Feb 2026 14:42 pm

tgharris wrote: ↑17 Feb 2026 10:08 am The only time I ever hit with a loaded bat was in a softball tournament. We were a team just thrown together, and one of the (older) guys had brought a bat that I grabbed for my first time up. The bat had a little "rattle" to it, and in my very early 20s naivety, I said something about it being broken. The owner said, "That bat's not broken."

The light bulb then illuminated above my head, and I proceeded to hit the ball with some authority using the "broken" bat.

Did you ever see a bat with a crook in the handle? Supposed to help with something (don't what now). We had a couple of guys who swore by it. I tried it once and about broke my wrist.

Not that I recall.

Here's one for sale on EBay https://www.ebay.com/itm/267144824445?c ... =view_item

bakker wrote: ↑17 Feb 2026 10:07 am bigger ball.

Harder ball too, and a pitcher that’s 14’ closer to the guy trying to rip his head off with the ball.

Stryper wrote: ↑17 Feb 2026 18:11 pm

bakker wrote: ↑17 Feb 2026 10:07 am bigger ball.

Harder ball too, and a pitcher that’s 14’ closer to the guy trying to rip his head off with the ball.

did you ever play unlimited arc from the pitcher with the green mat behind the plate? i remember pitchers who threw so high it came down wet and by the time it came over the plate they were backed up almost to the 2b bag...

sikeston bulldog2 wrote: ↑17 Feb 2026 06:11 am

butsir01 wrote: ↑17 Feb 2026 06:09 am Sorry, BD. It is early for me, too.

Yea. I wasn’t paying attention. Have you ever played league softball? Your thoughts.

Hi, Dog. Never was good enuff or string enough to play in the A leagues. Mostly enjoyed the lowest level. Played 1B and almost got kilt by a former OSU CB, Mike Pulaski, teaching into him for an errant throw. Good guy for not killing me.

moose-and-squirrel wrote: ↑17 Feb 2026 08:03 am anyone ever played fast pitch softball?

completely different animal

yes and yes it is. I really enjoyed fast pitch sofball. Long, long ago my grade school conference schools all played fast pitch instead of baseball. I started playing in 5th grade, ended up in a 45 and over league. Play a lot of fast pitch over the years.

The biggest difference I noticed was the beer. Only remember beer in baseball dugout when I was about 30.

sikeston bulldog2 wrote: ↑17 Feb 2026 06:11 am

butsir01 wrote: ↑17 Feb 2026 06:09 am Sorry, BD. It is early for me, too.

Yea. I wasn’t paying attention. Have you ever played league softball? Your thoughts.

I still do. Two guys in my league are 82&83, respectively.
A lot of the guys on my team (senior league) like me played in high school, college or low level rookie or A ball.
Injuries are common. I was third guy on my team to blow out his Achilles five years ago. But.
You get the bug you play as long as you can.

ScotchMIrish wrote: ↑17 Feb 2026 07:54 am I've seen more people injured in softball because they tend to be out of shape.

Or they are old as dirt.
Or both.
Guilty.

In HS, I was a big fish in a puddle. I went on to play semi-pro ball. I have never figured that out. At best, it was a bunch of guys who liked the title, but no one was semi-pro. Heck, there was a mix of good, average, and terrible talent in the league. At the same time, at age 17, I was asked by a guy to play slow pitch. I was also playing fast-pitch. I had to make some choices, and I was not going to be a pro ball player after that puddle got bigger. While playing fastpitch and slowpitch, a guy came along and told me he would pay for my food and travel if I played for his slowpitch team. I was on the state Class B championship team, and I made the jump to the better team. Many might remember when ASA had Class B, Class A, and Class AA. Teams like Jerry's Catering were on the scene and became Majors. A lot of good AA teams played both. Then, you had NSA and USSSA come on the scene. I was asked by my brother to play in a tournament in my hometown, and when I showed up, the tournament director, whom I grew up with, said that I was not allowed to play. Really? I was just a good glove guy who could hit for average. I didn't have the power of those other players. From there, this average Joe was banned from a lot of tournaments. LOL I eventually got "requalified" and could play everywhere. I played on a team that was nationally ranked for 12 years. While I was never a star, I was really steady. I moved from SS to 3B to LC and had a blast. Again, as another poster stated, I don't know what semi-pro means. I played it for four years. Slowpitch became my game.

greyhawk wrote: ↑17 Feb 2026 18:34 pm

Stryper wrote: ↑17 Feb 2026 18:11 pm

bakker wrote: ↑17 Feb 2026 10:07 am bigger ball.

Harder ball too, and a pitcher that’s 14’ closer to the guy trying to rip his head off with the ball.

did you ever play unlimited arc from the pitcher with the green mat behind the plate? i remember pitchers who threw so high it came down wet and by the time it came over the plate they were backed up almost to the 2b bag...

I did

Good morning. I’d like to thank you all on a nice easy conversation.
Mad baseball fanatics, I figured most of you play or played softball. After baseball most likely.

And I’m betting some of you got into it. Bats, gloves, bags, etc.

The intent was to show a like sport with just a couple deviations, and then the physical exertion to play a slow pitch game.

Then finally, many of us saw greatness on these back field games, over the years, and when ndered how they didn’t make it. Not even close. Probably not even a thought.

This proving how great 760 players are.

Thanx to all.