They know they are past their primes but the members of the 17-team North Oakland Senior Softball League still thirst for the competition, comradery and plain fun of sport.
‘It gives us an opportunity to experience and still participate in an activity that we’ve had success with in the past,? said LeRoy Decker,
Decker started playing in the NOSSL 15 years ago, for a member of the Basketball Coaches of Michigan, MHSAA and Greater Flint Area Hall of Fame, is loving his softball-laced salad days.
‘For a 73-year-old who’s still hitting between .500 and .600 it makes you feel pretty good,? said Decker.
The league is broken down into Red, White and Blue divisions. A player’s skill level determines what division he will play in, to facilitate spirited competition and safety on the field.
Some of the rules of softball have been adapted to further ensure safety. For example, the NOSSL plays with two first bases one for the runner and one for the firstbaseman to tag, to avoid collisions.
‘When the league started it was pretty much all Clarkston people, then it really opened up after that,? said John Thomas, who founded the NOSSL in 1982.
Today six teams are based in Clarkston. Teams from areas like Troy, Lake Orion, and even as far as Oak Park comprise the rest of the NOSSL’s squads.
Many of the players who helped Thomas set the league up, still participate today.
‘It keeps us old guys going. A lot of people are living out there childhoods out there. They had to work their whole life and now they get a chance to play again,? said Harold Krueger, whose Clarkston Tomcats? 19-0 record leads the upper division.
Krueger, now 73 has played fast pitch softball since he was 15. He is a member of the Michigan Softball Hall of Fame and helped the Detroit 50’s win the 58-and-over World Series of Softball crown the last four years in a row.
With the season winding down, the NOSSL will start playoffs in all division on Aug. 8.
For more information on the NOSSL contact the Independence Township Senior Center at 248-625-8231.