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The Toughness of Old Timers Tested by Winter Weather

Despite the normal rigors of late February in Tucson, the Tucson Old Timers hitched up their shorts and divided into two teams, as they almost always do three times a week, and played baseball.

They had to look tough.  A potential recruit showed up, and asked about joining the team, but he had to be told that he was too young.  "Come back in two or three years!", he was told, "when you reach sixty.  This is a game for grown men!"

                                     
Conditions were February brutal.  It had rained mercilessly the day before--almost half and inch--and there were places on the infield where the ground was almost damp.  Players were cautioned to control their blinding speed rounding third, lest they lose control.  No one lost control, although some muttering about the strike zone was noticed.

 Purists will notice that the bases have been extended to make it less likely that there be collisions.  The Boys of Summer are more brittle than they used to be, before they reached their majority, and while hip replacement is no deterrent to a determined Old Timer, everyone knows that replacing a titanium hip is a costly business, no matter what one's opinion of The Affordable Care Act might be.











The Tucson Old Timers are, in fact, encouraging interested players to consider trying out for the team, although the rule about having to be at least sixty years of age is a condition.  The team is able to play three times a week because there are enough members to form ad hoc teams from the membership alone.  While most games are games in which the team plays with itself, so to speak, occasional games, in official team uniforms, are arranged with other old timer teams in town.














Comments

  1. EllieFebruary 27, 2015 at 11:00 AM

    Great photos! There was just a NPR show on all the ways exercise actually keeps one young.

    ReplyDelete

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