Big League WIFFLE Ball News

It breaks your heart. It is designed to break your heart. The game begins in the spring, when everything else begins again, and it blossoms in the summer, filling the afternoons and evenings, and then as soon as the chill rains come, it stops and leaves you to face the fall alone. You count on it, you rely on it to buffer the passage of time, to keep the memory of sunshine and high skies alive, and then, just when the days are all twilight, when you need it most, it stops.

_ A. Bartlett Giamatti

Greg Swindell facing Jim Balian.

Check Adam Greenberg’s Bio

Adam on ESPN’s Outside The Lines

1.
Venue: Fenway Park
Location: Boston, Massachusetts
Event: Jimmy Fund Fantasy Day
Host Organization: Big League Wiffle Ball
Sexiness Factor: Ambrosial

2.
Venue: Las Vegas
Location: Las Vegas, Nevada
Event: National Championship & Ultimate Wiffler
Host Organization: Golden Stick Wiffleball
Sexiness Factor: “I mean, what do you do in Las Vegas?” “You gamble – and you go to strip clubs.” -Scott Caan


 
3.
Venue: Strawberry Field
Location: Encino, California
Event: Full Season Play
Host Organization: Commissioner Rick Messina
Sexiness Factor: A “Genovese Drug Store” Banner (a defunct brand as of 1998)…stadium seating and a press-box.

4.
Venue: The Mansion
Location: Danvers, Massachusetts
Event: Special Golden Stick Wiffleball Events & GSWL Banquets
Host Organization: Golden Stick Wiffleball
Sexiness Factor: A Top Secret Venue

5.

Venue: Rookies Regulation WIFFLE Ball Field
Location: Mazomanie, Wisconsin
Event: Base running wiffs
Host Organization: Rookies Food & Spirits
Sexiness Factor: A pub with a stadium, enough said!

6.

Venue: Little Ebbets Field
Location: Amesbury, Massachusetts
Event: Leagues & Tournaments
Host Organization: Tom Hannon & Backyard Ball
Sexiness Factor: A party in the front yard

7.

Venue: Beehive Field (Former Home to the New Britain Red Sox AA team)
Location: New Britain, Connecticut
Event: Connecticut State Nutmeg Games
Host Organization: Big League Wiffle Ball
Sexiness Factor: Retro bleachers and a nice warning track

8.

Venue: Little Fenway
Location: Jericho, Vermont
Event: Travis Roy Tournament
Host Organization: Travis Roy Foundation
Sexiness Factor: Tomato plants in the bullpen

9.

Venue: Mason Sports Park
Location: Mason, Ohio
Event: Reds Community Fund Summer WIFFLE Classic
Host Organization: Brian Blinn and the Cincinnati Reds
Sexiness Factor: Cincy Reds endorse it!

10.

Venue: Potomac Wiffle Ball
Location: Potomac River
Event: Potomac Wiffle Ball League
Host Organization: Commissioner Chris Gallaway
Sexiness Factor: Washington Monument in the backdrop

The 11th Spot Goes to Mark Cuban

Venue: Inside of Mark Cuban’s Home
Location: Texas
Event: Pick-up
Host Organization: Mark Cuban
Sexiness Factor: Empty room with hanging Chandelier

In The World!

Big League Wiffle Ball is proud to be the gate keeper of the World’s largest database of WIFFLE BALL Players and their respective teams. Japan, Canada, Mexico, Greece, Italy, UK and US. We have so many people signing up, it’s hard for us to stay on top of sending out certificates in a timely manner. We are trying to crank as fast a possible.

As for the newsletter…we ask that you remain patient as we strive to provide great content and ask permission of other tournament and league directors to provide any upcoming events or information. We also encourage equipment manufacturers, lifestyle brands, food and beverage companies to reach out as well. (Sponsor@BigLeagueWiffleBall.Com)

Big League plans on publishing The Professional WIFFLE Ball Players Association to the BLWB website, Fall of 2011! You will be able to view a player’s team name, home town or whether or not he or she bats/throws left or right. Just like the Baseball Encyclopedia…you will be able to view whoever played the game on a professional level.

If you haven’t gotten on the list, please do so NOW…it’s Free! PWBPA

Guest Post From Our Fans Over At maxfrankel.com

The Ten Most Intimidating Pitchers in Baseball

We’ve decided to compile a list of the ten most intimidating active pitchers in baseball (with one small exception). These are not necessarily the best pitchers in the league, just the ones we’d least like to step into the box against for whatever reason:

10. Carlos Zambrano, Chicago Cubs: Big Z is pretty scary because he’s crazy. You never know what he might do and I really get the feeling that he doesn’t either. I never want to face a pitcher that just got out of anger management.
9. Jonathan Papelbon, Boston Red Sox: Pap is definitely a scary guy on the mound but he tries too hard. You can’t think about being intimidating to be truly intimidating. He has potential though, a mid 90’s fastball and those crazy eyes certainly don’t hurt. Papelbon will never be a top 5 intimidating pitcher material until he just relaxes and lets the intimidation ooze.
8. Tim Lincecum, San Francisco Giants: The Freak is intimidating because he’s not. He stands 5’10” on the mound but has a crazy wind up and blazing fastball. His reputation makes him even more scary. He’s the type of guy I’d love to have a drink with but definitely not step in against.
7. Manny Ramirez: Ok, so he’s not a pitcher and he’s technically not active either but tell me you wouldn’t be shaking in your spikes if Manny was pitching to you.
6. Jon Rauch, Toronto Blue Jays: This guy is 6’10” and covered in tattoos. He is scary. He’s got flames on one arm and some interlocking stuff on the other. He’s got the letter “I” on the back of his neck. That’s terrifying. I’m not sure why but it is.
5. Josh Beckett, Boston Red Sox: Beckett is mostly scary because he used to be scary. Back when he threw in the upper 90’s, he wasn’t afraid to put in the ear hole of a guy’s helmet if he felt like it. He’s in the 5 spot out of respect for that, and because he still has that mentality even if he can only touch 93 now a days.
4. Aroldis Chapman, Cincinnati Reds: He throws 105 mph. You try to hit that, let alone try to not get hit by it. I don’t even think I could see something moving that fast. Intimidating. Also, he’s got “105.1 MPH” tattooed on his biceps so you know he’s the man.
3. Marino Rivera, New York Yankees: Tell me your not intimidated when the greatest closer of all time comes jogging into the game with “Enter Sandman” blaring in front of 50,000 raucous fans in the ninth inning of Game 6 of the World Series. Tell me.
2. Brian Wilson, San Francisco Giants: Fear the Beard! Wilson sports that ridiculously long, shoe polish black, “magical” beard that no one is allowed to touch, an “I don’t give a damn” attitude, and a 98 mph fastball with movement. He is absolutely the man. Don’t believe me? Check out the Jim Rome interview. Or the George Lopez interview. Or what he said about Tony La Russa last year after the Cards manager got him fined $1000 because his cleats were too bright. Or the fact that he showed up for the bus to the airport for to go to Philly for last year’s NLCS with nothing but the clothes on his back, his hat, and his glove.
1. Kyle Farnsworth, Tampa Bay Rays: Farnsworth is consistently voted the toughest guy in the Majors by other players. He doesn’t talk to his teammates, he just listens to his iPod and does what he wants. He’s gotten in more brawls than I can count, and won all of them. He is the baseball equivalent of Chuck Norris, in Rec-Specs. You know he would kill you and just keep walking, he’s that tough. You can only criticize him from the other side of the TV. I’d face every other guy on this list 100 times before I’d want to see Farnsworth once. Scary man.

Did we miss anybody? Overrate anyone? Let us know. If you want to see more stuff like this or even some that’s completely different, check us out. Off The Bench, a mostly baseball blog, is located at maxfrankel.com. Stop by to see what we’ve got and learn a little about us.

“Say this much for big league baseball-it is beyond question the greatest conversation piece ever invented in America.” -Bruce Catton, Writer

These two guys talk about a WIFFLE movie from Walla Walla, Washington.

Here is a retro glimpse of the original Little Fenway Park venue that was used for WIFFLE Ball.  At  Little Fenway is where they held the National Championship. Location: Waltham, Massachusetts. This photo was taken somewhere between 1989-93

Mini Fenway Park-Wiffleball Stadium

The National Championship tournament that evolved from a neighborhood tournament in Massachusetts, started in the early 1970′s, comprised of as little as 4 or 6 teams. By the late 1980′s it was a 20 team tournament with teams from around the country. The game back then was basically the same as it is today, except there was an umpire calling balls and strikes instead of throwing at a portable strike-zone.

“This is a picture of the green monster portion of the main field of the National Championship in Waltham, Mass. from 1989-1993. It was featured in Sports Illustrated in 1989 which started my career in Wiffle Ball. Came with its own citco sign.” -Fred Bastedo, New Jersey

It was still too early for the internet and that feature in Sports Illustrated helped pave the way for future WIFFLE Ball leagues, tournaments, little and mini back-yard stadiums across America.

Toronto has their own new source for everything WIFFLE Ball. Make sure to check out the Toronto WIFFLE Insider Blog. This site comes full with player profiles, dongs (Canadian home-runs), stats and videos. Toronto WIFFLE Insider