10 Players I Miss Most...
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There's so many players that have come and gone in the past five years in this league. It's something that constantly weighs on my mind. As we constantly rise and fall with team numbers it's hard to not think about how many teams we'd have now if we could retain what we gain each year. But year after year we lose several players and whole teams and if we're lucky we bounce back with an equal amount of players to outweigh what we lost. It makes me sad, so very sad. Like, listening to Boys II Men on repeat sad.
Greg Sowards, Mikie Saxton, Jeremy Litton, Zach Daniels, and myself are the only players to have played in every season. That's a sad fact that I did not even realize until discussing it with Greg a few weeks ago. Like I said, we've had dozens of players come and go and it's hard to keep track of them all. But I wanted to make a list of the ones I miss the most. Luckily, some of them have returned this year (3 out of the 4 members of the 2013 Maroon Squad have returned this year) but there are still some that I would love to see return.
1. Thelmer Damron
What's not to love about this guy? He's probably the only Thelmer on the planet. Such an odd name. He reached out to me early in 2013 and was the first team outside of our social circle to join the league. His Pink Penguins impressed us all year long with their tenacity and capacity to keep the game civil and fun while competing. They were a great bunch of guys and I miss each of them. Thelmer was an interesting guy. He would have a different haircut or facial hair style each week of the regular season, something no one else has ever done (or ever thought of doing). He was a phenomenal medium-pitch pitcher (winning Cy Wiffle that year). He had a wicked curveball and drop pitch that made everyone stand still time and time again. His team got eliminated in the semifinals that year and fell short of winning a title. The last time I saw him was a week later after the championship when I gave him his Cy Wiffle trophy. I think Thelmer (and the Pink Penguins) would thrive in this new format and I'd love to see them back but I fear that is unlikely to ever to happen.
2. Ronnie Canterbury
Ronnie is a good guy. But he falls into the "Can't Be There Because of Work" category, which is understandable. I quit the Green Bears (which turned into Wifflin' Dixie) in 2014 to throw in with a team he was creating, Chicken & Wiffles, in 2015. The team was a paper tiger that failed to meet expectations on the field and we finished in the middle of the pack after being eliminated by Sit On My Base in the playoffs. Ronnie was the captain of the team and it was the first time I was on a team that I wasn't running (which is why we had ugly jerseys....hey-o!) and for that I was thankful. Ronnie had a lot of ideas and had a lot of knowledge about baseball and had experience helping run a local chapter of little league. He was there every week helping set up fields but seemed distracted near the end of the season and then he moved up at his job and started working more hours. Now he works on Saturdays, making it impossible for him to participate in our current format. For that reason, I see it as unlikely for him to make a return unless circumstances change. Ronnie was a fun guy to play with and I miss playing with him.
3. Ryan Pritt
I started this league in 2012 in my senior year of college and when I graduated in December, I moved to South Charleston. I was blown away that no one had tried to start a league in Charleston and since things were moving kind of slow in the post-season of 2013 in Huntington, I decided to see if I could get something going in Charleston. So I got a squad together and tried to get some interest stirred up. Only one other team ever showed up, a team then known as 3 Guys and a Lefty (later the Breaking Balls) that was captained by Ryan Pritt. I was excited to hear from Pritt, especially when I found out he and other players on his team wrote for the Charleston Gazette. They killed us in those fall games and although the league in Charleston didn't work out, they loved playing and came to Huntington the following year. Pritt is one of the players that I feel I had a lot in common with. He's around the same age as me and listens to grunge and alternative/metal music. The team has since fallen apart and I hope to see Ryan and the team again, but job responsibilities are hard to fight - especially on a Saturday.
4. Brian Ball
In 2013 we had our first (and only successful) fall ball season. We had four brand new teams show up for 5 straight weeks and our potential for growth looked inevitable (we went from 6 teams in 2013 to eight teams in 2014). Brandon Woolum had played on Beaver Fever in 2013 and wanted to start his own team so we assembled 4 other players that he convinced from his kickball league to join up. The team, BagTag, came out swinging and won the fall ball season and there was one player I noticed was particularly impressive - Brian Ball. Ball would go on to surprise me more and more in the following two seasons as a power hitter, genius base-runner, and probably the best outfielder the league has ever seen (2014 and 2015 NWLA South Fielder of the Year). Brian bailed us out several times at the 2014 NWLA Tournament with his fielding capabilities. In 2015 he was an offensive monster going .679, 20 HRs, and 46 RBIs. Brian was great at analyzing the rule book and seeing the need for tweaks to existing rules or the need for a new rule altogether without being a douche about it. Brian was a cool dude who was never too critical, something I wish I could say about his teammates. I'd love to see Brian back because there's no doubt he'd dominate at bat and wow us every five minutes in the outfield.
5. My old Terrorhawk/Green Bears teammates (Julie Meadows, Daryl Pullin, Mike McCoy and Andrew Hankins)
In 2013, Jeremy Litton and Troy Twisdale left my team to create his expansion team that would later be known as the Welfare Warriors. While their leaving was good news for the league as we entered a growing phase, it left me in a difficult place with my own franchise. I briefly considered joining up with another team and not bothering to continue. But I decided to put the work in and I got an old friend, Andrew Hankins, from our former league to join me. Players don't come any more casual than him, he's carefree and a natural talent - so I was excited to have him back again. 2013 was a year of massive expansion and the year we had the most free agents (five) and I took two of them. One of them was a woman with some softball experience named Julie Meadows and the other was a retired men's softball player by the name of Daryl Pullin. Together we were a ragtag team of players that kept people guessing all year. We finished the year at 7-17 and lost in the first round of the playoffs but we had a great time. Daryl would take a bow at the end of the year and remain one of the coolest dudes I've ever had the pleasure of playing with. He always tried hard and kept his head when he was struggling to hit. Julie and Andrew stuck it out with me through 2014 as we combined with Beaver Fever to form the Green Bears. Andrew proved to be a reliable 2nd pitcher and clutch hitter. However, his attendance became spotty due to school and his music career picking up. Julie showed up to nearly all the games and was always a wild card. You never knew what was going to happen with her and that always made her exciting to watch. She was supposed to be joining an all female team, captained by Stephanie Sadler, called Wine and Wiffles but the team never materialized. Mike McCoy was a fun player to hang with as well. He slew the giant (Drew McClanahan) in the second half of the 2014 regular season becoming the first player to earn a run off of him. We called him "Big Mike" and he hit home runs. What else could you ever ask for in a teammate?
6. Stephanie Sadler
Stephanie is hands down the best female wiffleball player I have ever seen. Sadly, I haven't seen many but of the female players I've seen - she is the fiercest. She's on the quiet side and lets her bat do the talking. Stephanie impressed me as a player with her debut during the 2013 fall ball season but then she impressed me even more in 2014 when she captained a team. She led the Wiffleballers through the 2014 season with some mixed results (9-11 record) but they were always contenders. When she missed games, it definitely had an impact on the team. She had intended on bringing an all female team in 2015 called Wine and Wiffles but it never happened and that's the last we've heard from her. She was a pretty good hitter in fast pitch and she'd probably crush in the current format but will she ever come back and show up the boys? We can always hope.
7. Brent Thompson
Brett brought a team in for the 2013 season as an outsider. The first question I asked him was "what is the name of your team?" He said "Holy Balls." And I knew we were going to get along just fine. They were the best dressed team that year with green ringer baseball tees with the angelic logo on the front. They finished runner up that year despite just messing around all year long. They had an interested blend of teammates of varying talent but Brent's ability stood out above the rest. He was a dynamite hitter (.818, 21 HR, and 47 RBIs). He only struck out twice all season and he missed 7 season games. Had he not missed that many games he probably would hold many of the records that are in James Clagg's possession. He was in his upper 40s but you wouldn't know it by watching him play. He rounded the bases like someone in their 20s and put all other hitters to shame with an average that will surely never be touched by anyone in this league. He was also a great pitcher with speed and movement but never displayed it much to let his teammates do their share while he hit bombs. Brent was a humble player who said little off the field. He was there to hang out with his friends and get some exercise. After the championship game in 2013 he and his team never returned and that fact still makes me sad.
8. Nick Kappra
We've had some great pitchers come through this league: Josh Berletich, Jeremy Ray, Drew McClanahan, and Jacob Fischer just to name a few. But where some of them had college pitching experience, Nick Kappra did not. Kappra was a pure talent who blew away hitters all throughout the 2014 season and if his team had hit the ball any better his name would have been the one on the tips of everyone's tongues, not McClanahan. Kappra cold throw the fast ball but he didn't necessarily rely upon it. He had change-ups, drop pitches, and a riser. His stance on the mound was intense, borderline MLB concentration in his posture, which no doubt intimidated opponents. His lanky stature and tact served him well during his career. He went to law school in Maryland not long into the 2015 season so he didn't get the chance to shine in his final season but in 2014 he was a treat to watch. He was a less celebrated hitter but was talented in that regard, nonetheless. He famously hit a walk-off home run against MNWA during the 2014 national tournament that I'll never forget. I don't know what Kappra would think about our slow-pitch format but I'm sure he'd find some way to find an edge from the mound, he's that smart of a player.
9. Paul Hesson
I met Paul during the 2013 fall ball season when Josh and Arielle Berletich were rebuilding their 2012 team. Berletich told me he had a guy who could hit and field pretty well, which is all they really ever needed to win games since they struggled with that aspect so much. But what we all soon found out was that he could throw really hard as well. During the fall out of the team in 2014 Hesson took over the team and brought in two players and balanced the team out to not only finish the year but win the championship. Watching him do this is one of the most impressive things I've ever seen a team captain do. I regard him as one of the best because of this feat. Hesson returned in 2014 with a very good Asthmatics squad that competed all season and was eliminated in the semifinals. Hesson competed with us in the 2014 national tournament and did well in the outfield and hitting. He came with us again to the 2016 regionals and had some mixed results. Paul has always been a fun player to watch and cool guy to hang out with. I hope he can find a way to be a more consistent presence in the league.
10. Drew McClanahan
It's rare for a player in a league to be more famous outside of the league than the commissioner. I'm not embarrassed to admit this. Drew was wiffle royalty in 2014 and it hit it's peak when we attended the national tournament that summer. His performance did not match the fanfare that preceded his appearance but people still talk about him. His stats are legendary. He pitched 3 no-hitters and 5 perfect games (only gave up 5 runs in 96 Innings Pitched) in 2014 alone! He was the Huntington Wiffleball League as far as the national scene was concerned. His college pitching experience at Concord University served him well and helped him stay cool under pressure. His arm wasn't enough to get them to the championship that year as he gave up a solo shot to David Dillon (Honey Badgers) in a heartbreaking loss that haunted Drew for the rest of the year. McClanahan would be humbled at nationals as he struggled to find the strikezone due to the difference in pitching distance. He returned in 2015 with one mission: win what was lost in 2015...a championship. We had entered the rotation era by this point so he was not the Zeus of the league any longer but he went 8-1 and got the job done. He powered through opponents and bested Sit On My Base in the championship to win a much deserved trophy. McClanahan is one of the players who I feel may never return. He simply has too much going on with his career at the moment. The only reason I believe he returned in 2015 was to finish what he started in 2014.
