November 2006 News Archive
 November 10th - Semper Fi! Happy birthday to the United States Marine Corps and all the Marine veterans.
Quite a few ball players are beginning to attend the games. A total of 49 were on hand for the four team, two field contests. We're almost to the point where there will be five teams. The game was very one sided on Field E with the visiting team winning by the score of 23-9. Dick Wilhelm recorded the victory against pitcher Dick Sessink. Several players had excellent hitting 
days for the teams. Elmer Black was able to achieve an inside-the-park homer on a ball hit down the leftfield line.
On Fred White Field, pitcher Jim Kahn was the winning pitcher against Jerry Witter in the 12-10 contest. Early in the game, Larry Powell connected for an inside-the-park homerun. The three run shot was a gapper hit between leftfielder Ed Neumyer & left centerfielder Cal Leigh. Jim Kahn drove the ball deep over leftfielder John Fulton. The ball hit on the warning track. John relayed the ball in to shortstop Bill Ravo to hold Jim to a triple. Bill Ravo was perfect at the plate with his 4 for 4 performance. Of the four hits, two were hit towards right centerfielder Richard Moots & rightfielder Jack Donnelly for doubles. Jack Valliere went 3 for 4 today. Other players who hit well on Fred White Field were John Fulton, Wayne Mundy, Reg Barnes, Richard Moots, & Ed Neumyer. One around-the-horn double play was turned on Fred White Field. Sam Harrell fielded a grounder near his 3rd base position, threw to rover Reg Barnes covering 2nd base, & Reg threw to 1st baseman Rusty Landahl to complete the play. Some other nice defensive plays were made, too. In the infield, Bill Walker, playing the unfamiliar position of 2nd base, nabbed a hard liner to his right that was from the bat of Wayne Mundy. That ball appeared 
to be a sure hit. Nice catch Bill.
In the same inning, 3rd baseman Doug Chamlee made a great stop on a grounder that was hit down the line by Cal Leigh. Doug stepped on 3rd base for the force third out of the inning. In the outfield, right centerfielder Fred Dampier made a nice catch on a hard hit line drive to the deep part of the outfield. Fred raced to his left to make the catch and rob Jim Kahn of an extra base hit. Left centerfielder Cal Leigh tracked down a deep fly ball hit by Bill Walker. The ball seemed to be out of reach and over his head, but Cal made a nice over-the-head catch. Way to go Cal. Since the website was last updated, several players returned to Winter Haven. On October 31st, Ted Taylor returned from Markham, Ontario, Canada & Art Zakrowski returned from Granger, Indiana. Elmer Black returned from Howick, Quebec, Canada & Gene Morey returned from Howard, Michigan on November 3rd. On November 7th, Bill Rutan returned from Columbus, Indiana & Dick Wilhelm returned from Windsor, Ontario, Canada. Welcome back, Ted, Art, Elmer, Gene, Bill, and Dick. Two players joined the Winter Haven Senior Softball Club. Richard Moots joined on November 3rd & Jim Kahn joined today. Welcome aboard, Richard and Jim.  November 14th - With 42 players signed in today, the games were played on two fields. The weather was perfect for the ball games as the temperature hovered around 65° F, with the high today predicted to reach about 79° F. There was only a trace of wind so that wasn't a factor.
The game went into one extra inning 
on Field "E" with the visiting team winning 19-16 in ten frames. Pitcher Richard Palmer chalked up the win against opposing pitcher Ted Granoski.
The home team was victorious on Fred White Field. The winning pitcher was Jerry Witter. Dick Sessink began the game for the visiting team and was relieved by Cal Leigh. Jack Valliere did very well at the plate as he went 4 for 5. One of his hits was a deep fly ball triple over the head of right centerfielder Jim McPartlan. Jack also connected for a double. Cal Leigh blasted a three run homer between left centerfielder Chuck Duff & right centerfielder Marshall Bloom. A new player in his first game today, Cecil Vasquez, hit a two run opposite field homer down the rightfield line that had to be retrieved by Jack Valliere. Players who hit well in the game on Fred White Field were Richard Moots, Chuck Duff, Ed Neumyer, Cal Leigh, Bill Rutan, & Cecil Vasquez. In the infield on defense, a double play was recorded on a grounder hit to 3rd baseman Sam Harrell. Sam threw to fill-in rover Bill Rutan, & Bill completed the play with a throw to 1st baseman Hank Gomez. A nice double play was turned on Field E. Rover Vassurl Bess stopped a grounder up the middle, stepped on 2nd base, & then threw to 1st baseman Gene Morey for the second out. Two hard line drives were caught for outs in the same inning. Sam Harrell, playing 3rd base, grabbed a 
potential hit by Hank Gomez & 2nd baseman Richard Moots robbed Erv Szewczuga of a sure hit when he gloved a line drive to his right.
Pitcher Cal Leigh displayed quick reflexes as he caught a hard liner hit by Chuck Duff. Nice catch Cal. In the outfield, fill-in rightfielder Fred Dampier turned a base hit into a fielder's choice as he threw to fill-in rover Bill Rutan, who covered 2nd base for the force out. Jim Margolin is permanently returning to New Jersey to be closer to his children & grandchildren. Jim has been a member of the Winter Haven Senior Softball Club for a number of years & has served as a manager in recent years. He is well liked by everyone & will be missed. Take care Jim. One player returned from the north to begin playing today. Denny Shaffer returned from Akron, Ohio. Welcome back, Denny. As stated earlier, Cecil Vasquez joined the Winter Haven Senior Softball Club today. He is retired & lives in Winter Haven year round. Welcome aboard, Cecil. November 17th - A bit of a cool front blew in last night so it was a little chilly this morning. The high today is predicted to reach 70° F. There was about a 5 MPH wind blowing during the games.
Two ball fields were used. On Fred White Field, pitcher Don Witmer hurled his team to victory against opposing pitcher Cal Leigh. The final score in that game was 17-9. The game on Field E pitted 
pitcher Jerry Witter against Rich Palmer. Jerry's team came out ahead by the score of 22-20.
Cecil Vasquez drove the ball well today & connected for an inside-the-park homer with an opposite field shot. The hit went down the rightfield line away from Erv Szewczuga. Two players on Fred White Field were hitting bombs consistently for extra base hits today. Bill Rutan drove a ball over defending right centerfielder Ron Thompson for a triple & got a double to left centerfield. Don Witmer was on target for some long hits, too. He drove the ball mostly to rightfield while Ken Wilson 
patrolled that part of the park. Nice hitting Bill & Don.
Other players who hit well on Fred White Field were Wayne Mundy, Doug Chamlee, & Elmer Black. One of Doug's hits was a long double. Two pitchers turned a double play with hard line shots hit right back at them. Late in the game, Don Witmer jumped high in the air to nab a liner by Hank Gomez. Don then threw to 1st baseman Dick Sessink to complete the twin killing. On Field E, pitcher Jerry Witter caught a liner hit about waist high & reacted with a quick flip to 1st baseman Gene Morey to get the runner who had taken a few steps off the base after the hit. Hank Gomez, playing 1st base today, can still cover some ground in the infield. He gloved a grounder to his right on a ball hit by Marshall Bloom. Hank had a choice of throwing for outs either to 1st base or 2nd base. He chose to toss to rover Larry Powell, covering 2nd base, for the force out. Nice play Hank. One baserunner was cut down at 3rd base trying to advance two bases on a base hit. Left centerfielder John Fulton fielded the ball & threw to rover Ron Thompson. Ron threw to 3rd baseman Sam Harrell in time to get the runner out. Jerry Noble came back from Sullivan, Maine last week & played his first game since his return. Welcome back, Jerry. November 28th - There were enough players to constitute a two-team, 10 player game on Field E & a three-team, 10 player game on Fred White Field. The entire games were played under overcast skies. The weather threatened twice with a soft mist for about 15 minutes each. The steady rain finally caused the games to be cancelled as the infields began holding water in several areas.
On Fred White Field, pitcher Jerry Witter recorded the victory in the three-team contest. The other two pitchers were Dick Sessink & Ron Thompson. The final score was 7-3-10 after 4 innings. Pitcher Ted Granoski was victorious over opposing pitcher Rich Palmer on Field E. The score of that 6 inning game was 8-2. One player has been hitting the ball consistantly and 
with authority. Ed Schmiedeke had a stellar offensive day as he single-handedly defeated his opponents by driving in five of his team's eight runs. Ed cleared the bases when he blasted a bases loaded double over the head of leftfielder Art Zakrowski. Later in the game, Ed drove in the runners on 2nd & 3rd bases with a single. Great hitting, Ed.
Cecil Vasquez hit an inside-the-park grand slam homer with a shot between rightfielder Erv Szewczuga & right centerfielder Mike Stepp. Ron Augenstein legged out a triple over the head of right centerfielder Mike Stepp. Lead-off 
batter Al Andrews began his team's offense with a long triple over the head of left centerfielder Jerry Noble.
On defense, shortstop Ron Augenstein made a nice stop on a grounder hit to his left. He scooped up the ball & flipped to 2nd baseman Gene Morey for the force out. Another shortstop made a good play too. Jim Laffoon displayed quick reactions when he snared a line drive from the bat of Gene Morey. In the outfield, leftfielder Ed Neumyer made an over-the-head catch on a long opposite field drive by Dick Sessink. Fred Dampier, playing leftfield, also made an over-the-head catch. He had to run back & to his left to catch up to a deep hit by Al Andrews. After several months of rest from the playing field, Joel Freedman removed the umpiring gear and returned to play 1st base today. Four players returned from the north. Hugh Lessard returned from St. Thomas, Ontario, Canada, Ron Augenstein returned from Marysville, Ohio, Ray Petrie returned from Picton, Ontario, Canada, & Jerry Remington also returned from Canada. Welcome back Hugh, Ron, Ray, and Jerry. There is one other note to mention dating back to November 25. Two players returned to the old ballpark & both players travelled all the way from Canada. Ron Carrothers returned from Thedford, Ontario, Canada & Ken King returned from Keswick, Ontario, Canada. Welcome back, Ron and Ken. Three players joined the Winter Haven Senior Softball Club. William Cox lives in Copley, Ohio during the summer months. Lloyd Hopper plays regularly in the Lakeland Senior Softball program & will also play on a regular basis here, too. Lloyd is retired from St. Thomas, Ontario, Canada. The third player to join the Club is Keith Linton. He spends his summers in Berry, Ontario, Canada. Welcome aboard, William, Lloyd, and Keith. |
October 2006