NAFA 50+ Masters World Series – Carson City, NV – Sept 18-20
September 14th, 2009S.F. Crab Outfielder Makes MLB Highlight Reel
September 14th, 2009Cap tip to our friend in the Bay area, Dirk McCall (San Francisco Crabs):
“(San Francisco) Crabs outfielder Sean Mullins catches a MLB foul ball in Dodger/Giants game and makes their highlight reel”
Nice grab, Sean. He makes the catch and gets the girl. Just for a minute, I thought that blue cap was a Dodger cap….
ASA 45+ Nationals – Fresno, CA
September 11th, 2009Diamond Dirt No. 9 – Final Issue for 2009 Sr. Canadians
September 11th, 2009
(click logo to visit official site)
From Diamond Dirt Editor, John Thompson:
Click here to view Issue Number 9 for the Sr. Canadians (PDF)
Other “Diamond Dirt” news at Fastpitchwest.
Full text version after the jump. Read the rest of this entry »
ISC PRAWN Rule Revision for 2010
September 10th, 2009
PRAWN RESTRICTIONS
(click link for official ISC posting)
A PRAWN (Player Rep All World Name) list will be maintained by the ISC containing each name of the two all-world teams for the most recent 3 years, including MV Player and Outstanding Pitcher. The PRAWN list will be released on Al’s list by mid-September each year and posted on the ISC web site as soon as possible.
Each team will be limited to 6 players (combination of 1 pitcher and position players), plus exceptions (see below) that have been named All World in the last 3 years – only one of which may be a PRAWN pitcher. Teams are still limited to 2 OOR pitchers for the season. All teams must name their PRAWNs to the Executive Director by May 1 each year. If a player who is also a pitcher is selected to either one of the All World teams at a position other than pitcher, he will NOT be considered as a pitcher for PRAWN status but rather as a player.
Current hardship rule will be allowed given the following: the team replacing the player is still required to abide by the PRAWN limits for both players and pitchers. E.g. if the player being replaced is a pitcher with PRAWN status and he was the only pitcher with PRAWN status on the team then that team may replace that pitcher with another PRAWN pitcher.
No team may add a PRAWN to their roster until their total PRAWN count falls below 6 except when a team loses its only PRAWN pitcher they may add a replacement PRAWN pitcher regardless of their total PRAWN count.
EXCEPTION FOR A TEAM THAT HAS 6 CURRENT PRAWNs:
If a non-PRAWN player or players make an All World team in the current year, that team will be allowed to carry that player or players until such time that a PRAWN player leaves the team or drops out of the 3 year criterion. If a player makes All World while with Team A and they have 6 current PRAWN players, then Team A would be allowed to carry 7 until one of the 7 leaves the team (or they fall outside of the 3 year boundary), then they will only be allowed 6 for the following year.
This also applies for the one pitcher All World status restriction. If a pitcher is selected to an All World team in the current season and that team already has one or two pitchers on their team with PRAWN status, that team will be allowed to carry 3 (or however many) prawn pitchers until such time as one of the prawn pitcher(s) leaves the team or falls outside of the PRAWN status.
AGE EXCEPTION FOR PRAWN PLAYERS
If a non PRAWN player makes an All World team in the calendar year of or after their 45th birthday, that player will only be considered a PRAWN player for one year. PRAWN players who have made or make an All World team in the calendar year of their 43rd or 44th birthday can request to be excluded from the PRAWN list in the calendar year of their 46th birthday by providing proof of age to the Executive Director by May 1st of each year.
PRAWN INPLEMENTATION CHART 2010 – 2012 & BEYOND
Year PRAWN Team limit PRAWN Pitcher Team Limit Duration of PRAWN Status
2010 6 per team 1 3-years
2011 5 per team 1 3 years
2012 & 4 per team 1 3-years
Beyond
Revised September 10, 2009
Saga of a super southpaw
September 10th, 2009Cap tip to Dave Blackburn for this one:
King of the hill – North Van’s Buster Moberg was B.C.’s premier fastpitch pitcher from 1958 to 1971. -Len Corben photo
By Len Corben – North Shore Outlook
Batters were like putty in Buster Moberg’s hands… his left hand in particular.
The southpaw-throwing Buster – the eldest of four softball-playing brothers from North Vancouver that included Vern, Ted and Don, all outstanding in their own right – is arguably the greatest pitcher in the history of the sport in B.C.
His impressive records in the South Hill Major Men’s League, accumulated from 1958-71 during the league’s heyday as B.C.’s top senior “A†circuit, show just how dominant he was.
Check this out: Most career wins (111), most innings pitched (l,099), most strikeouts (1,598; an average of almost 1.5 per inning), most no-hitters (11), most one-hitters (14) and most shutouts (33).
The burly southpaw (6’2â€, 215 pounds) once struck out 10 straight, the first 10 batters in the game. Another time he threw 16 1/3 consecutive hitless innings. At one point over four seasons, he won 28 league games in a row.
He held the league record for most strikeouts in a game, first at 20 in 1963, then 21 in a 10-inning game in 1964 and finally at 22 in a 13-inning contest in 1965. (Brother Don eclipsed that mark when he struck out 30 in a 24-inning game in 1981.)
Maddy’s Quad Cities Photos
September 8th, 2009
Arriving early to Quad Cities to shoot opening ceremonies for the ISC Media Guide, as she has the past several years, Maddy was precluded from doing so when the official WT photog raised a stink with the ISC.
With several days to kill before the start of the ISC II ToC, Maddy set about to photograph the Quad Cities, away from the ball diamonds. The results are now posted in her final gallery, “Quad Cities”, as seen through the eyes of Maddy. Background information on the various locales included in the captions. Enjoy.
Click camera to view gallery.
Hallman Rivershark Twins win Canadian Fastball Title
September 8th, 2009From Al’s Fastball:
This Week in Fastball….
The Kitchener Rivershark Twins win the Canadian Championship
Kitchener Hallman Rivershark Twins won the 2009 Canadian Men’s Fastpitch Championships in St. Thomas on Sunday afternoon with a 3 – 2 extra inning nail biter in St. Thomas.
ASA Nationals – 2010
September 8th, 2009
2010 ASA Championships
Tournament Location Date
ASA Men’s East Class C Fast Pitch
Owensboro, Kentucky 9/3/2010 – 9/6/2010
ASA Men’s Major Fast Pitch
South Bend, Indiana 8/5/2010 – 8/8/2010
ASA Men’s Masters 40-Over Fast Pitch
Prescott, Arizona 9/10/2010 – 9/12/2010
ASA Men’s Masters (“Don’t Call Us Seniors”) 50-Over Fast Pitch
Prescott, Arizona 9/24/2010 – 9/26/2010
Argentine National Championships
September 8th, 2009Thanks for our friend Martin Jorge for providing this information on the Argentine Natinonal Championships.
(click banner to visit Martin’s site, en Espanol)
(Batting Champion Bruno Motroni)
Last Sunday finished in the city of Santiago del Estero, the Argentine Men’s and Women’s Softball National Championships, and as indicated by all odds Parana won the Men’s Tournament and Buenos Aires did it in the Women’s Tournament.
There was no surprise in the diamonds of Santiago, and both teams confirmed their favorite status with good game, crowned as winners of their championships. Fourteen teams from across the country took part of both events, which ran smoothly under the warm Santoago’s sun.
Paraná Men’s National Champion
Paraná met all odds, and was crowned Argentine Men’s National Champions, beating BahÃa Blanca in the final game by 6 to 0. Paraná took the championship undefeated, and repeated last year achievement in La Pampa. By his way, BahÃa Blanca came from below in the playoff, beating Tucumán and ASBA (Buenos Aires) to reach the final. However, in the decisive game could not handle the powerful team of Parana, which was consecrated as National Champion.
The big name of the game was the pitcher Max Montero, who not only won the game, but also took a “no hit no run”. In seven innings, he struck out 14 batters, and only gave 2 walks, and 1 hit by pitch.
The red team (Paraná) opened the score in the fourth, with a solo homer by Marcelo Malatesta. In the same inning Nicholas Bittor also scored. However, the insurance runs arrived in the last inning, when Paraná scored four times.
With the aluminum in the hand, the most prominent was Ricardo Biondi, who hit 3 singles in 4 at bats. Additionally, Malatesta was 1 to 2, with a homer and 2 walks.
Thus, Paraná confirmed his national monarch condition, and will be the Argentinian Men’s National Champion for another year.
In the individual awards, Matias Tessore was consecrated as the best pitcher of the tournament, Bruno Motroni was the best hitter, while Maximiliano Montero was named the MVP of the final. All of them are Paraná players.
Final standings:
1.- Paraná
2.- BahÃa Blanca
3.- ASBA (Buenos Aires)
4.- Tucumán
5.- Santaigo del Estero
6.- La Pampa
Buenos Aires Women’s Champion
(click photo to enlarge)
(Team Buenos Aires, Argentine Champs, 2009)
Players in photo: Front row, knee on the floor – Left to right: Magalà Frezzotti, Nair Ceschan, Lorena Feldman, Pamela Clark, Nadia Heis, Soledad Hidalgo and Melisa Clark.
Standing РLeft to right: Carla Villalva, Rocio Netto, Claudia Tazzioli, Virginia Murina, Milena Rendich, Florencia Caro, Melisa Echeveste, Ana Laura Grandes, Silvina Ca̱o (Coach).
Team Buenos Aires won on Sunday another Argentinian Women’s Softball Championship, to overcome in the final team of Paraná by 6 to 4, and thereby reaffirm their hegemony in the category. Carla Villalva was the winning pitcher, while Ivana Viva was defeat.
Buenos Aires scored 1 run in each of the first three episodes, when it seemed that the game was under way for the Capitol Team. However, Paraná showed he was going to sell pricely his defeat and began to pick up. In the top of the third, they scored 1 (Aldana Gomez), and although ASBA scored 1 in that inning, in the fifth Paraná tied the game.
However, in the bottom of the fifth Melisa Echeveste hit a line drive to right field, to bring to RocÃo Netto and Nair Ceschan (pinch runner for Villalva) to the plate, and gave his team the decisive advantage in the scoreboard.
In the last two periods, Paraná could not recover from both runs received and would never threaten the defense of ASBA.
The final standings of the tournament went out the following:
1 .- ASBA
2 .- Parana
3 .- Bahia Blanca
4 .- Olavarria
5 .- La Pampa
6 .- Tucumán
7 .- Santiago
8 .- Cordova
Individually, Virginia Murina was best pitcher, Nadia Heis was the best hitter and Melisa Echeveste was the MVP.