The fastpitch pyramid
YUCAIPA, CALIF - Back in the mid 1970s, Dennis Johnson of St. James,
Minnesota told me about the importance of the fastpitch pyramid. I've
never forgot what he said.
"Fastpitch softball is like a pyramid," said Johnson in so many
words, "At the bottom (base), it brings new players into the game.
Once they're in the game, their talent will take them as far up as
they can go. The best players will eventually rise to the top to form
the best teams."
A healthy, vibrant fastpitch pyramid is constantly evolving and
replenishing itself. New players come in, they progress and become
better. Eventually, they rise up to the utmost level of their talent
and fill all the divisions of fastpitch softball that comprise the
pyramid.
The most important part of the pyramid? The base.
Because the base is the open door that welcomes young, inexperienced
players into fastpitch. Our raw talent, our new blood.
And without a vibrant continual flow of young players into the base,
the mechanics of the pyramid begin to break down. And the talent at
the top - comprising the best players, who make up the best teams
that men's fastpitch has to offer, starts depleting as veteran
players retire, and teams call it quits.
And we're seeing that today. Just recently, announcements were made
that the legendary Rod Peterson was folding his Farm Tavern team. A
team that for decades resided at the top of the pyramid. And shortly
after, the Grey Sox of Vancouver, BC, pulled the plug on their
franchise.
Years ago in the heyday of men's fastpitch - the 1950s through about
the early '80s - this wouldn't have been a problem. For a healthy
pyramid would have replaced the loss of such teams such as the Farm
and Grey Sox.
In 1982, Darryl Craft and I formed a team called the Yucaipa
Athletics. We stuck around for about 14 years. We ran an announcement
in the San Bernardino County SUN that we were having open tryouts and
welcomed young players to audition.
About 45 players showed up for our first tryout. We were amazed. We
had all these guys from age 19 to about mid-30s eager to be a part of
this brand new team. We definitely started at the base. But through
time, practice, and patience we rose to about the "A and B" divisions
in the pyramid.
Many of our players had little or no fastpitch experience. But they
soon loved the game, worked hard and developed their skills.
But over time we made a grievous error. We abandoned the pyramid.
Instead of replenishing our team with young players, we started
recruiting older, talented veterans. We became like many of the teams
today, who operate by this philosophy:
"It's much easier to recruit veteran players than to develop raw
talent."
That philosophy proved fatal for the Athletics. When the guys got
older and decided to retire, we had no one to replace them. And the
Athletics folded.
In some areas of the country, there are committed fastpitch leaders
working the pyramid. In Santa Barbara, Clyde Bennett, formed an age
23-Under team several years ago. He recruits young talent and offers
them an opportunity to "enter through the pyramid's base into the
sport."
And in Lake Crystal and Vernon Center, Minnesota staunch fastpitch
supporters such as Jack Norman, Steve Roth, Wayne Hohenstein, Tom
Looft, and many others, have recruited and developed young boys,
bringing them into and progressing them upwards through the pyramid.
And the same can be said of Al Hartman of the South Dakota Hartford
Explosion. Or Eric Lewis of the Northwest Missouri Royals age 10-
Under team. And Lynn and Barb Sheevel, who help run a boys and girls
fastpitch league in southeastern Minnesota.
The International Softball Congress has had an alarming drop in teams
participating in the World Tournament in recent years. From a
tournament bracket filled with 48 teams, year after year, that
bracket dropped to 24 teams this year.
Of course this bothers anyone concerned about the future of men's
fastpitch. But I'm not as concerned about the loss at the top of the
pyramid. It's the base I'm worried about.
Because if we don't make an effort to begin funneling young players
in at the base of the pyramid, the top won't be around much longer to
even worry about.
Bob Otto
botto3@verizon.net
www.ottoinfocus.com
