Greenville, MS
by Mike Canan (Scripps Howard News Service)
July 16, 2001

Adults Play On As Boys of Summer
By day they are lawyers, doctors and teachers, but once work ends they have different jobs--pitcher, catcher, outfielder.   They are weeknight and weekend warriors flocking in increasing numbers to real baseball diamonds--with bases 90 feet away and a pitcher's mound 60 feet six inches from home plate. Tom Giffen owner of Akron, Ohio-based Roy Hobbs Baseball, the smallest of three national adult baseball organizations, said when he took over Roy Hobbs in 1993 there were 54 teams. There are now 200 teams.
 

The National Adult Baseball Association, based in Denver, also has experienced growth. NABA President and National Director Shane Fugita said the organization is growing by 10 to 12 percent a year. The 1,250-team NABA normally adds eight to 12 new leagues each year.  Fugita said the increasing popularity of Major League Baseball following the 1994 players' strike has fueled adult baseball growth, but satisfied customers have helped even more. “Once one guy gets playing he tells all his buddies he's playing baseball and what a kick it is, and it spreads,” Fugita said.
 

The Men's Senior Baseball League/Men's Adult Baseball League is the oldest and largest national organization. It started in 1986 with four teams and now the Long Island-based organization has more than 3,200 teams.  “More and more adults are coming back,” said 53-year-old Virginia
Senators pitcher Frank Stetson, the first player to arrive for a Saturday game in DC Metro MSBL's 50 and older division. “It's grown by leaps and bounds.” Stetson said adult baseball is growing for the same reason senior golf and senior tennis is popular. “It's that whole mentality that as you get old you don't have to just sit in a chair,” Stetson said as his teammates and players for today's opponent, the D.C. Nationals, meandered onto the Fairfax (Va.) High School baseball field. The Nationals also play in the DC Metro MSBL's five-team 50 and older division.

Nationals manager Matt Cary said the DC Metro MSBL, like the national organizations, has experienced growth. The DC league started in 1989 with eight teams. There are now 82 teams in four age divisions.  The growth makes finding a place to play even more challenging, especially in the spring, Cary said.
“We could continue to grow,” he said. “We just need fields or facilities to accommodate the growth.” Finding a place to play is a problem nationwide. Ventura (Calif.) NABA Vice President Brad Milner, who also manages the Ventura Dodgers, said locating enough fields can be a nightmare.  “In our area there are few regulation baseball fields,” he said. “There are so few fields that you get in logistical difficulty.”  To alleviate the problem in the Washington area the DC Metro MSBL is trying to build its own baseball complex, Cary said. But that's a long-term plan. For now they have to make do with fields such as Fairfax H.S.  ”It sure is a beautiful field,” said 52-year-old second baseman Joe Foley as he greeted his Senators teammates.

Nearby, recent arrival Terry Carter was popping a few anti-inflammatory pills. The 52-year-old shortstop and pitcher chipped a bone in his thumb two weeks earlier. “In this league, we measure manhood by the size of your anti-inflammatory pills,” said Carter, who has gone through five major surgeries since he started playing adult baseball nine years ago.  Carter and his teammates stretch before games to avoid injuries, but sometimes it doesn't matter.  Major injuries are only half the problem, however. Players also must deal with nagging aches and pains, which are intensified by playing in as many as five games in one weekend.

Nationals skipper Cary--who moonlights as a shortstop and pitcher--said he used to play 75 games in a year. He's now down to about 50. The challenge increases in regional and national tournaments. All three national organizations sponsor tournaments, which require multiple games in a few short days.
The MSBL national tournament in Arizona required the Washington contingent to play 10 games in four days, but it was worth it because the team won the 50 and older championship, Carter said.  “They gave us a big old ring, just like the pros get,” he said, while puffing a cigar at the end of the first inning, his team trailing 1-0.

But this Saturday afternoon game wasn't nearly that serious. The Senators even borrowed a right fielder-- 60-year-old Dick Clark--from the Nationals. Both teams were still playing to win, however, Foley said. “I asked (Carter) one time why we play so hard when this game doesn't mean anything, and he said, ‘Bragging rights’,” Foley said. “Bragging rights? I'm not going to see anyone else until next Saturday, who am I going to brag to?” In adult leagues taking home bragging rights often hinges on strategy. Hit-and-runs, bunts and stolen bases are frequent weapons. “The three-run homer may never come for us,” said Bob Hawkins, who plays for the Cincinnati Colts in the Southwest Ohio Roy Hobbs League. “It's not part of the game that wins it for us. We move the runner over and bunt. We do the little things.” Pitching in adult baseball is also more strategy based. Carter, who took the mound in the fifth for the Senators, said most pitchers rely on off-speed pitches and location. “There's not a lot of guys who can overpower anybody with a fastball, but if you throw the slow stuff a so-so fastball will get by them,” he said.

The mental aspect of the game is what woos players from softball to baseball, Hawkins said. “Baseball has a whole lot more strategy,” he said. “It's not a game you play in an hour to see how many home runs you can hit (like softball).” MSBL president and founder Steve Sigler said baseball will not be able to overtake softball in terms of popularity because some players do not have the ability to play the more challenging sport. Those who can play baseball have to adjust to their declining skills. Cary said most players first lose their ability to run. “Most guys legs can still go 90 feet, but its when you go all the way around that you notice a difference,” he said. “What used to be a triple now would be a double.”
 

Foley found out just how difficult taking two bases at once can be in the top of the sixth. “I've got to do that more often to get used to it,” Foley said, gasping for breath after scoring from second--part of a big inning in which the Senators took a 6-5 lead.  Just two and a half innings later the Senators defense fell apart. Four errors led to six Nationals runs and a 12-6 loss. “Sometimes it's like that,” said Carter, who committed one of the costly errors.

Carter, who plays in all four age divisions in the DC Metro MSBL, said the level of play in the 50 and older division can be weak. “It's not great,” he said. “There are a few good players, but there's a lot of spotty stuff. The 40 and older division is pretty good. The 30 and older is better. A lot of the skill divisions are like good high school ball. “Our league motto is ‘we make the routine look spectacular.’”

But Foley said despite the spotty play he enjoys competing, even on days when his team doesn't fare well. “Looks like they get bragging rights today,” he said, but his grin showed it didn't upset him much.  The rest of the Senators left smiling also. They gathered their gear and headed for their cars still chatting about the game. “People go home with a smile on their face,” Giffen said. “They're happy and not stressed out. They're ready to face the real world on Monday.”