Hall of Fame
Subscribe to our NewsletterPerkiomen Valley Twilight League Hall of Fame
2002-
Art Bustard - Entered the league as an outfielder for Skippack in 1946 and played until 1952 when an eye injury ended his paying days. He went on to be a pioneer in the reorganization of the Perkiomen Valley League into the current Perkiomen Valley Twilight League. Bustard owned and managed the Skippack franchise from 1953-75.He was the overseer of the franchise, frequently using his own funds to keep things afloat. He also was the driving force behind eliminating the five-mile rule for players to compete for a team and the forming of a franchise in Norristown.
George Hoffman – Played for Lansdale & Floyd Cash in the 1960’s. He then took ove the Ambler Franchise and moved it to North Wales.He was the long time overseer and also managed and owned the North Wales (now Nor-Gwyn) franchise from 1967-1990. After being out of action for years‚ at the age of 53‚ Hoffman pinch hit in a playoff game against Collegeville and delivered the game-winning hit. He died shortly after his North Wales defeated Norristown in the finals in 1990.
Vic Alderfer - Owned and operated Harleysville for 39 years‚ until 1993. He also worked behind the scenes as the league vice president and is currently the league treasurer and a former league VP.He is synonymous with the Harleysville franchise. After Franconia became Harleysville, Alderfer became overseer, owner and GM of the Hornets and guided their fortunes from 1955-1993, even managing the club from 1955-60. A devoted Perky man, Alderfer has seen Harleysville win league titles in 1957, 1959 and 1975.
Carl Wismer – he was a fabulous athlete at Souderon High School and had two try-outs with the Pittsburgh Pirates. Was a fixture in the league for 40 years. Affectionately known as “Wiz‚” Carl played for Souderton, Lansdale and Harleysville from 1960-1972 and managed Harleysville from 1968-1972. He was always known as the nicest guy in the league. After his playing days‚ he umpired in the Perky League for almost 30 years until his death in 2001.
Bob Arner - Played for Souderton from 1962-80. He won the pitching title in 1975 and led Souderton to three league championships. He started umpiring in 1982 and retired in 2006. Arner also pitched in the College World Series for PennStateUniversity. He also coached Pennridge High School Baseball from1965-80.
Floyd Cash - Is known as “Mr. Baseball” in Lansdale. Cash managed the Lansdale Tigers from 1947 until his death in 1975. During that time‚ the Tigers won seven Perky playoff championships. He started out as a player in the 1920’s as a left-handed catcher. He took over the Lansdale franchise from his brother Tom. He was considered by many to be the greatest manager in Perky history.
Charlie Romanoski – Founded the Souderton Warriors shortly after WWII (1946) and played for the team from 1946-1957. He also managed the team from 1946-1980‚ winning three Perky League playoff championships. Romanoski continues to be involved in with the franchise today. Their home field is named after him – Romanowski Field.
Bob Strimel - Owned and managed Lower Gwynedd (now Ambler) for 20 years. He served as a volunteer in Lower Gwynedd baseball‚ including the youth leagues‚ and was Perky League president from 1995-1997. He was a table tennis champ and president of the Philadelphia Tennis Association even though he was born without a right hand.
2003-
Wils Kulp - Player (1948-73) and manager (1974-75) for 27 years with Collegeville. Was widely considered the greatest hitter to ever play in this league.He won four batting titles, several HR titles and in 1966, he captured the triple crown batting .494 with 9 HRs and 33 RBIs. He also was the MVP of the All-Star game that year. He took over the managerial reigns in 1974 and led Collegeville to the championship as they defeated North Wales in the finals in four games. Kulp retired suddenly and unceremoniously the following season. He finished out the year as manager. Kulp turned in his uniform that season, but his baseball career didn't end. He was the Collegeville team owner, head groundskeeper, financier and general manager well into the decade of the 80s. Talk about a guy who did it all, Wils would come to the park early, drag and line the field and then leave checks for the umpires. Everything was taken care of. He was always around to pick up the tab when we celebrated what became an annual rite of August - another championship party. He died in 2006 at the age of of 73. he had seasons with these incredible stats during his hey day in the 1960’s. 1962- .389 (1st);1963- .430 (2nd);1964- .398, 8 HRs (1st), 24 RBIs (1st);1965- .333, 4 HRs (1st), 20 RBIs (1st);1966- .494 (1st), 9 HRs (1st), 33 RBIs (1st);1967-2 HRs (1st); 1970 – .369 (2nd), 4 HRs (2nd).
Art Landis – Played for Franconia in 1948 and 1949 before they moved to Harleysville and then stayed with the Hornets pitching until 1978 (at the age of 48). He stayed with the team for three more pitching batting practice before finally retiring in 1981. During his stint in the Perky League, he won six pitching of the year trophies, turning in an 8-1 record in 1952, an 8-0 record in 1955, a 9-3 mark in 1957, a 14-2 record in 1961, an 8-1 season in 1966 and a 6-1 mark in 1968. He also finished second one year with a 13-2 record. He threw four no-hitters and accumulated 143 wins. He managed Harleysville to the Perky League Championship in 1975 as they defeated North Wales in the finals. He only took over managing because no one else would do it.
Tony Cianciulli -Owner of the Norristown A’s franchise (1980-2007) that has won seven straight titles. He brought back Norristown as a league franchise in 1981 after many years of not having a team. He was a great GM and he went out and got the best players to help his team win. This was evident in the fact that in the 29 years has been the owner, the A’s have been to the finals 22 of those years winning 15, including a league record 7 in a row from 1996-2002 in which the team had a 215-36-5 record including playoffs.
Jesse Hodges – Was one of the most imposing physical specimens and feared slugger for Lower Gwynded (now Ambler) in the 1970s and 1980s. He spent two tours of duty in Viet-Nam and was Green Beret. He led the league in home runs in 1986 for Lower-Gywnded belting out 13 homers along with 31 RBIs and also had a .375 average.
2004-
Dave Kurtz – Was called the “Babe Ruth” of the Perky League. He played in the Perky League from 1972-99 with Collegeville and then came out of retirement to lead the Norristown A’s to two straight titles in 2001-02 before retiring for good. He racked up 18 championships and two batting titles in his career. Playing for both the Collegeville and Norristown (’01-’02) organizations‚ Kurtz was a four-time playoff MVP and a 13-time All-Star.
Randy Kurtz - Began his prosperous Perky League career with Dave in 1972‚ will now enter the Hall Of Fame alongside his younger brother. After spending his opening year (1972) with the old Perkiomen Township‚ Randy moved on to Collegeville in 1973‚ where he won 12 championships – nine of which were as a player/manager. Randy collected two batting titles and was an 11-time All-Star. He batted .509 in 1985.
Ed Seiple - Was a teammate of the Kurtzes‚ playing for Collegeville from 1975-1989. The team went to the finals 14 of the 15 years that Seiple played. Seiple’s continual production and exceptional defense at the short stop position landed him in several All-Star games. He was a lifetime .346 hitter with an on base percentage of .426.
Ron Moorehead - Entered the league as a member of the Collegeville team‚ but switched over to Skippack during that season to get more playing time. It proved to be a great move for Moorehead‚ who became a five-time all star and the 1980 league MVP during his tenure. With Moorehead as their leadoff hitter and centerfielder‚ Skippack went to the finals four times‚ and won the championship in 1982. he was named to the all-league team 5 times.
2005-
Alex DiNolfi - Played his entire 17 year career with the Norristown A's from 1981-1997. Known for his excellent speed and defensive instincts as the premier centerfielder in the league; he was a natural Doubles Hitter and recurrent number two hitter. He never won a batting title. But was always on the top-10, coming in second in 1990 (.462). He batted over .400 four times and led Norristown to 10 league championship series, winning 4 of them.
Vince Elsier – He started out as a crafty pitcher for Skippack before heading over to be a player/manager for Harleysvlle up until 1988. He was named to replace Bill Leggieri asManager of the Norristown A's in 1989, a position he heldfrom 1989-2005, except the 1995 when the A’s merged with the Lansdale Tigers and Bob Altieri took over the managerial reigns for the transition year before Elsier came back in 1997 When he retired as Manager of the A's after the 2005 championship win, he was the winningest coach in Perky League History with 579 wins. Led A's to record seven straight Perky League Championships.
Gregg Vermeesch - Played 14 seasons and won 11 championships from 1977-1990 with the Collegeville Colonels (Collegians). A consummate number three hitter who combined high batting averages with run-producing power. He led the league in home runs half a dozen times, was named an All-Star more times than he can remember and won the league batting title in 1981 (.492). He also set the league HR record in in 1985 with 13 that stood well into the 1990’s. In 1978, had 11 RBIs in a single game (3 HRs, 2 of them grand Slams).
2006-
Alan Frick – Played for Charlie Romaonwski atSouderton from 1971 to 1988, His rookie year (1971) with the Warriors was his finest, hitting .418 at the plate, leading the league in batting in addition to being named as the Perky League MVP. He never hit below .300 at the plate, winning playoff championships with the Warriors in 1972 and 1976. he became a player/coach towards the end of his career. He is now an umpire forboth the Suburban One and Pioneer Athletic Conference leagues. Al is also a member of the Tri-County Baseball Hall of Fame where he won two batting titles and had a .405 career average playing for Perkasie (1991 inductee).
Paul Dewey Goetter – He was a player/manager for Lansdale for 19 years. Was an outstanding defensive third-basemen and also a great pitcher. Lansdale won six titles (1960, 62, 65, 67, 68, 69) during his playing days. He was third in the league in batting in 1967 (.375) and then went on to win the league MVP award in 1970 going 9-3 as a pitcher and then won the Pitcher of the year award the following year in 1971 with an 8-1 record. He took over the managerial reigns in 1976 after Floyd Cash died and managed up to and including the 1978 season before retiring.
2007-
Ed Butch Denczi – Was one of the original Norristown A's that played in their first season (1980). Started out as the shortstop and then moved to catcher. He played for the A’s from 1980-84, then signed a contract with the Pittsburgh Pirates right before the Perky season and played minor league ball in 1984-85. He re-joined the A’s in 1986 becoming one of the premier power hitters in the league. He won the league’s triple crown in 1987 (.475, 11 HRs, 41 RBIs). After sitting out the 1989 season with severe back problems, he came back in 1990 to lead the league in home runs with 11 (he also batted .409 and drove in 40 runs). He stayed with the A’s and finished up his career in 1996 as a first basemen.
Charlie Prediger – Pitched for theLansdale Tigers right out of North High School in 1965 (4-0 record) and 1966 (5-0 record). Then signed a contract with the Boston Red Sox and played in their farm system up until 1972. He came back to the Perky League and played with Harleysville up until 1983 and then joined the Collegeville franchise and became part of their 1980’s championship dynasty pitching up until his early 40’s.
2008-
The Lansdale Reporter Newspaper- The Reporter has given exceptional coverage for the Perky League, and it's been a huge asset for the community and local sports in general. When the paper first started in 1870, the very first edition had a baseball box score in it, so that shows the commitment to baseball has always been there from Day One. Coverage of the league goes back to the early days in the 1920's and '30's, and again in the '50's following a short hiatus for the league due to World War II. But it was in the 60's and '70's that coverage of the league, and other local sports, changed for the better, thanks in large part to Dick Shearer, Charley Myers
and Willard Krieble, the three honorees who worked for the Lansdale Reporter. These three men never played an inning of baseball for the Perkiomen Valley Twilight League, but all three men and the newspaper that employed them, The Reporter, were an integral part of the local league. Publisher Dena Fritz accepted the award on behalf of The Reporter.
Dick Shearer, Lansdale Reporter - Started part-time at The Reporter during his college days, would continue to modernize the sports section during his years as sports editor, and he would go on to follow Charley Myers and become sports editor and then managing editor of the paper. He is now a valuable asset of The Lansdale Historical Society, located just a few blocks from The Reporter. He worked for the paper for 37 years.
Charley Myers, Lansdale Reporter - Was the longtime sports editor who was really instrumental in changing the layout of the sports page, modernizing the look of the sports section and expanding its local coverage, making it more dynamic, allowing for different sizes of photographs, so Willard Krieble could really deliver some great photos for the readers. He was noted not only for his layouts, but for selecting various all-star teams that honored the standouts from each area league. Myers established the Bux-Mont Sports Writer Association, was instrumental in modernizing the look of the sports section and expanding its local coverage.
Willard Krieble, Lansdale Reporter - Received dozens of awards for his photography, told the story with his pictures. His photos, combined with the write-ups made the readers feel as they were really at the game. Willard was really the creative genius from the standpoint of photography in this area. He worked for the paper for 35 years, received more than 200 awards for his photography over the years and twice was named the Pennsylvania Press Photographer of the Year.
2009-
Chris Loschiavo- Played the majority of his career with the Norristown A's starting in 1981, Then, after several years away, a return with Upper Merion and another comeback at Plymouth. He played for Plymouth-Whitemarsh High School, Montgomery County Community College and then for St. Joe's University. In 1986, after baseball had taken him to the point where he signed a contract to play for the New York Yankees and reached Class AA, Loschiavo became the youngest Division-I baseball coach in NCAA history when, at 23, he took over the reins for St. Joseph’s University. He still holds the career record for wins by a St. Joe's coach with 184 in his 10-year stint. In 1999, was inducted into the St. Joseph's Baseball Hall of Fame. His attachment to the Perky League spanned three decades. Loschiavo was a perennial all-star at second base for the A’s, and hit over .400 every season in the '80s, including such numbers as 1982-(.442); 1983-(.455); and even into the 90's (1991-.473)
Jim Bergey– Began his Perky League career as a 16-year old pitcher for the then Franconia AA and promptly led the league in pitching (5-1). After Franconia became the Harleysville Hornets, he helped the Hornets win regular season titles in 1953 and 1954 before realizing his ultimate dream by signing with the Brooklyn Dodgers in 1955. Bergey would pitch in the minors for almost two years before returning to the Perky League to play and later manage the Hornets for several more years.
Bob Pellechio – Was a member of the Norristown A’s from their first game in 1980 to the day he retired in 2004. He was a jack-of-all-trades as he earned all-star honors at five (5) different positions: second base, short stop, third base, left field and designated hitter and was the All-Star game MVP in 1986. He was also a member of the Norristown squad that won a league record seven straight playoff titles from 1996 to 2002.
2010-
Nobody inducted
2011-
Jim Randolph- Signed by the St. Louis Browns in 1953, he would spend five years under contract. He would play at Thetford Mines in Quebec, Canada; York, Pennsylvania; Aberdeen, South Dakota and Vancouver, Washington. And so became a long journey of getting his college degree and then a Master's degree from West Chester State Teachers College (now West Chester University). Working the laborious jobs at Allenwood Steel and Goodrich Tire. And in that decade from the mid-1950's to the mid-1960's playing baseball for the Norristown franchise in the Perkiomen Valley Twilight League . . .And he made the Norristown franchise great. In 1957 the Norristown All-Stars as they were known then had been last in the standings. In 1958 this inductee joined the team and Norristown finished first but lost in the Playoff Finals. The next year the Armitage Hotel would sponsor Norristown who accordingly changed the Team name to Armitage. They finished second in the standings and lost in the Playoff Finals. In 1960 they would finish first in the regular season, but get knocked out in the semi-finals. In 1961 they would get a new sponsor and change the name again - this time to the Norristown Sportsmen Club. Three times the charm as Norristown won the Playoff Championship. They would win the Championship again in 1963 and, in 1964, win both the regular season and the Playoff Championship. All totaled, Randolph played 8 seasons for Norristown. Three Team name changes. Five different Managers. One constant presence behind the plate. His Teams appeared in six Playoff Finals series winning three of them. Additionally they won the regular season title three times. And while our records are incomplete, for the years we do know about . . . In 1960 he finished third in the League in hitting with a .385 average while knocking in a co-league-leading total of 5 home runs. In 1963 he finished third in the league in hitting again with .356 average and hit .369 in 1964. In his final year of 1965 he batted an even .300. But Jim Randolph wanted to coach and when he had earned his degrees he went back to his Alma Mater and was an assistant baseball coach to Jim Lytle at Shaw University.In 1971, he moved back to this area and started the baseball program at Montgomery County Community College. His Teams won back to back Community College State titles in 1980 and 1981 and Montgomery County Community College has placed a lot of baseball players into the Perky League. By the count of current MontCo Coach Lou Lombardo there are 38 former or current Mustangs on Perky League rosters in this 2011 season. And there are at least four former ballplayers who played under this inductee at Montgomery County Community College that are already in the Perky League Hall of Fame and, to a man, they all have said that Mr. Randolph improved their abilities on the baseball field. A coach he wanted to be - a successful coach he has become. A member of the Shaw University Hall of Fame and a winner of the Lifetime Achievement Award from the Montgomery County Coaches Association.
Roy Gaugler- His love affair with baseball began in 1936 when he was nine years old. As a 17 year-old senior at Schwenksville High School in 1944 he pitched his team to the Montgomery County League Championship. A telegram at the end of the school year from his beloved Philadelphia A's signed by none other than Connie Mack asking him to a tryout. He rode the train down to 21st St & Lehigh Ave in Philadelphia to Shibe Park and threw pitches to long time A's catcher turned Assistant Coach Earle Brucker . . . after the session had ended Earle Mack showed up and said, "Dad wants to see you upstairs." And so up to Connie Mack's office he went. And there Connie Mack rendered his verdict . . . "I need you to come back and throw to our hitters next week," he said. "I want to see you pitch against live hitting." And that was that. Because what Roy Gaugler already knew was that he couldn't come back the next week. This had been his one chance. He managed and played for the Graterford Team that played in both the Pottstown Suburban League and the Tri-County League at the same time. He would become an officer and eventually President of both of those Leagues. And, more importantly to us here tonight, he signed on to also play for the Schwenksville Team in the newly formed Perkiomen Valley Twilight League in 1946. And that is how he found himself on the mound throwing out the first pitch for Schwenksville on opening day against Souderton - a contest he would win by a score of 5 to 4. His Schwenksville Team would go on to win the regular season crown in that first season of 1946 only to miss out on Playoff glory by losing to that same Souderton Team in the semi-finals who in turn would lose out to Playoff Champion Skippack. And that is how this inductee's Perky League career came to be. And a long career it would be . . . by 1949 he was both a Player and the Manager of the Schwenksville Team. In 1953, the Schwenksville Team was merged with his other Graterford Team when he took over the Ownership of the franchise. 15 years as a Player; 24 years as a Manager; 3 years as a Coach; 21 years as an Owner adds up to a boatload of commitment to the Perky League. In 1959, fifty-two years ago, and already fourteen years into his 31 year Perky League career, Roy Gaugler unexpectantly came off the bench for his then cellar-dwelling Perky Townshippers to pitch against first place Collegeville. He threw a four hitter and won the game. The following day the newspaper write-up described him as a Perky League legend.
2012-
Paul Lepre - Lepre played a total of 16 seasons in the Perky League, spanning from 1980 to 1996. He played first for Norristown, then Trooper and finally with Collegeville. Lepre won five crowns, four with Collegeville and one with the A’s. Lepre Won the league MVP in 1992. he batted .427 and had a 7-3 pitching record. Lepre has the rare distinction of playing in the championship series for three different franchises: Norristown, Trooper and Collegeville. He was there nine times in all. A pitcher, first baseman and outfielder, Lepre was the league MVP in 1992 when he hit .427 with seven homer and 37 RBIs. He also won seven games on the mound that summer. He spent his first seven seasons with Norristown before moving over to Trooper in 1987, where he began as just a player and became the player-manager in 1989 when the team reached the championship series. Back in the day he was playing in 2-to-3 different leagues," said Lepre, who was the Perky Pitcher-of-the-Year runnerup in 1986 (8-3), 1992 (7-3) and 1993 (5-1) while double-shifting as one of the most feared sluggers in the circuit from his first-base slot. “I wouldn’t have done that if I didn’t love the game.” After sitting out the 1990 and 1991 seasons to manage the J.P. Mascaro American Legion team and umpire in the Perky League, the love resurfaced when Lepre returned to the field as a player with Collegeville in 1992. Long-time friend Mike Creciun had taken over the managerial duties from Randy Kurtz, and it was an easy sell. All Lepre did was help the White Sox run off four more championships.
Todd Moyer - Moyer played in 14 seasons, his Perky career also beginning in 1980 and ending in 1995. He never wore any uniform other than Collegeville’s. Moyer was one of the many Perky League players who came through the Boyertown baseball program, migrating to Collegeville for Perky games. After three seasons in the league, Moyer was signed to a minor league contract by the Pittsburgh Pirates, spending 1983 and part of 1984 in the Pirates farm system. He would return at the end of the ’84 season, in time to help Collegeville beat Lepre’s Norristown team in the finals. Moyer also missed the 1986 season when he spent a year helping coach the Boyertown Legion program. His first MVP season came in 1982 when he hit .468 with 8 homers and 35 RBIs. In 1989 he would win the triple crown, hitting .459 with 12 homeruns and 41 RBIs, capturing his second MVP. He also won four games as a pitcher. The following year, he once again won the league MVP Award, again leading the circuit in hitting with a .476 average, 31 RBIs and winning three games on the mound. Moyer won 10 total championships with Collegeville. The big guy from Boyertown could do it all on the playing field, as evidenced by the fact that he played all nine positions on the field with equal proficiency. The league actually created a special utility player position on its all-league team to accommodate the versatile Moyer. As he began showing in 1981, Moyer could also pitch, winning two games and saving the other on the mound as Collegeville swept Norristown for the title.
2013-
Dave Webb - He was a self-taught batter who patterned his left-handed swing off former Phillie Johnny Callison. A student of the game he listened to innumerable broadcasts as a kid and imagined how he would position himself on the field or how he would write a lineup if he were a manager of a big league team. Because of a late birthday he was always a little younger than the rest of the guys around him and as he recalls he got his start playing baseball in a sandlot with much older kids from his West Norriton neighborhood. By the time he got to American Legion he knew exactly what to do with his bat and led the League in hitting with a .488 average even though he had started the season as a 15 year old. His second year he again won the batting title and in his third season of American Legion he finished second. And by that time in 1967 he had graduated high school and was in the Perky League as well at age 17 manning left field. Now let's be clear, he was manning left field at Hallman's Grove. And that is a whole different thing altogether. For those of us who remember playing at the Grove, left field was a bit . . . shall we say, "submerged." If you fielded a ball by the fence in the left field corner chances are that your infielders would be lucky to see you at all. All they would see was a thrown ball coming back at them. But the kid knew the game and turned out to be a very smart defensive player. In 1969 he challenged for the League batting title hitting .420 but fell back to fourth place in the last week. Always with a keen eye for a walk he was among the league leaders in on-base-percentage his entire career. In 1977 the Skippack Team had a number of injuries and finished the season dead last with a record of 3-19-6. And it was during this abysmal season that founding Manager and Perky League Hall of Famer Art Bustard turned over the reins of the Skippers to this inductee and he took on the unheralded tasks of field maintenance, fundraising, and recruiting players. The very next year he would manage a Team that would complete the last to first regular season finish with a 20-8 record and make it all the way to the Playoff Finals Series. A best of five contest between Skippack and Collegeville. Now Collegeville had won the Championship the year before but in the words, of this inductee they were not yet great. Skippack jumped out to a two games to nothing lead in the series. Collegeville came back and won the next two games and then the fireworks began. Game Five. Now this current post season saw a new version of Skippack play an eleven-inning nothing-nothing tie against Pottstown which the Times Herald called the "Greatest Game Never Played." In 1978, game Five of the Playoff Finals should have been titled "The Greatest Game Never Finished." Back and forth over four innings each Team took the lead. In the top of the fifth inning with the light fading Skippack took the lead 12 to 11 and had the bases loaded. A few more runs for safety; get Collegeville out in the bottom of the inning and they would own the Championship. Unfortunately for Skippack time was not on their side and the game was called on account of darkness. The next game started but was rained out. Finally the seventh game of the best of five series began and Skippack went up early with a Grand Slam by Phil Leggieri. And Skippack held that lead even though Collegeville battled back to a 4-3 score. Then late in the game with bases loaded for Collegeville and two strikes on Perky League Hall of Famer Eddie Seiple it happened. Pitch after pitch. Foul Ball after Foul ball. A Twelve pitch at bat . . . and then the ball sailed over the left field fence. Skippack visibly sagged and thus began the torment from the other side of the field, "You Can't Beat Us!" It was as painful a baseball moment for this inductee as there ever was. While he may not look it, he is a very emotional competitor. A man who once emptied the entire Skippack bat rack and equipment onto the field in protest of what he perceived to be a bad call. A man who when his first son was born swore he'd hit a home run his first time up and did it. A man who will admit that the day he had to take his uniform off for the last time he cried. He would guide his Skippers back to the Playoff Finals the next two seasons where they would face Collegeville again and again, but the
Glenn Webb - Hitting home runs was all he thought of when he stepped into the batter's box. And he hit a bunch. He came out of Methacton High School in 1971. A three sport letterman in football, basketball and baseball who was a first Team Suburban 1 All Star Catcher. He helped lead his Lower Providence-Worcester American Legion Team (then sponsored by Neilson's Real Estate) to a championship and then quickly established himself as a Perky League all star behind the plate with the Skippack Skippers. All was good in his baseball world except for one small dilemma - this man hated to catch. His father wanted him to catch and so he did, but he really just wanted to play the outfield. But for four plus seasons there he was toiling behind the plate and taking his frustration out on baseballs with his bat. Three times over the course of his career he led the League in RBIs. Twice he led the League in Home Runs. He was a Perky League All-Star at three different positions - Catcher, Right Field and Designated Hitter. This inductee along with teammates Sonny Seibert, Paul Gadziki, Phil Leggieri, Perky League Hall of Famer Ron Moorehead, Joe Matteo brother Dave Webb constituted a potent lineup that could unleash runs in a hurry and home runs in bunches. For six or seven years their combined homerun totals over the course of a season averaged out to at least one per game. Three or four times there were back to back to back home runs as well as a couple Grand Slam/Home Run combinations. As a consequence Skippack became known as "Skip Jack" for all the balls that were jacked out of the yard. Sometime in the late 1970's Major League Baseball began its ad campaign - "Baseball Fever - Catch It!" At Skippack, they had T-shirts printed up that said, "We Caught It at The Grove!" And this was very apt. As for most of its history, "The Grove" did not have a fence. You hit the ball as far as you could and ran as fast as you could. This inductee remembers a game in the early 70's when he was catching and Collegeville's Wils Kulp smacked a ball that hit about three quarters of the way up the trunk of a tree in dead center field about 400 feet from home plate. Ronny Weikel the centerfielder hurdled into the bushes and was lost from sight. Out flies the ball and two or three relays later this inductee tagged Wils out at the plate. "I felt like dropping the ball," he remembers, "I mean how far do you have to hit a ball to get a homerun." As for his own home run totals . . . he credits the rest of the lineup. "They had to pitch to me," he explains. Look who was behind me. In 1985 with a youth movement afoot at Skippack this inductee decided to retire. Pat Mascaro who had been a teammate of his in American Legion called up one night to see if he would be willing to manage the young franchise at Trooper. To this our inductee said, "No." The next night Pat called again and asked if he wanted to coach. And again he said, "No." The third night Pat called again and asked if he would play. The lure is strong. And so this inductee suited up one last season and finished out his career at Trooper adding at least one home run to his record - a Grand Slam. Like his brother before him, this inductee appeared in six Perky League Finals Series. Unlike his brother this inductee Won the Playoff Championship with Skippack against Collegeville in 1982.
John King - A Member of the Upper Merion high School Hall of Fame and also Brown University Hall of fame. He played football, basketball and baseball at Upper Merion High School and was Team Captain in all three sports. All League in Football and Baseball. He was two times the batting champion of the Suburban One League. All State in baseball, he was selected to play in the Pennsylvania American Legion All-Star game when he played for Upper Merion Legion. He was a phenomenal athlete. After graduating High School in 1975 he started his Perky League career with a bang. His very first at bat he hit a home run and he just kept right on going. He had played third base, first base and catcher in High School but in the Perky League he was a catcher . . . much to the relief of his teammate Glenn Webb who then finally got to just play in the outfield. And this inductee was a Great catcher. Strong arm, great defensive skills and a presence behind the plate that made runners think twice about scoring from second on a single. He attended Brown University in the Ivy League where he was a four year starter. He was three time All Ivy League playing second base, third base and catcher. In his senior year in 1979 in his final at bat he hit a home run. Unfortunately the game was called on account of darkness and the home run extinguished from the records. The loss of that home run cost him the batting title. And no, not the Brown University batting title or even the Ivy league batting title - it cost him the national Division One College Baseball batting title. As it finished in 1979 he led the nation in slugging and home runs per game average while finishing second in the nation with a batting average of .495 When he graduated he held 19 school records one of which still remains today. That of highest slugging percentage in a season with a mark of .699 He owned the career record for homeruns in the Ivy league for 32 years before it was broken. The man could hit. So you can imagine his surprise when he was not drafted into Major League Baseball. He was sure that he belonging at a higher level and wondered what the scouts saw that he didn't. But with his usual good-natured aplomb he handled this defeat like he always does by just moving forward. He married his high school sweetheart. They settled down in Emmaus, PA and he took a job at Proctor & Gamble and made the trek to Skippack for Perky League games. And it is a good thing he did. A scout did take notice of him and recommended that he go to an open tryout for the Yankees in Florida. So in March of 1980 he paid his own fare, boarded a plane, set off for Florida and found 159 other guys wanting the same chance he did. After one day of practice a list went up and cut the 160 guys down to 80 guys. He made the cut. The second night another list went up with only nine names. He had made the cut. The nine were whittled to four and this inductee was told to report to the Yankees Regular Minor Spring Training Camp. All he had wanted to know if he had been good enough and the answer came in the form of a minor league contract. He went from Ft. Lauderdale Class A to Class AA (double-A) at Greensboro, North Carolina where his roommate was Don Mattingly. When the Yankees decided to freeze all minor league players instead of moving him to Triple A as he had thought, he took stock of his life and decided to stop chasing the big league dream and return home. And the Yankees' loss is the Perky League's gain. In 1978 this inductee won the Perky League batting title with an average of .407, led the League in Home Runs with 8 and was the Most Valuable Player. In 1982 when he and his teammates finally threw the Collegeville monkey off their backs he again hit .407 and led the League with 9 home runs. In 1983 he again had the most home runs with 12. In all he led the League in home runs three different times. In 1985 after deciding that it was time to retire from playing he came up one last time at the end of the season and just to make a point jacked his last homerun out of the park. Modest, unassuming he likes to keep things all in perspective. He is justly proud of his accomplishments and played by a code which was very simple, "Never show anybody up." Everyone who remembers him from his playing days recalls him as a gentleman on and off the field and rightfully so. With his playing days behind him he still wanted to be a part of the Perky League and was unanimously voted in as President of League. An office he held for a decade.
Denny Ames - Graduated from Lansdale Catholic in 1974 whose baseball team won three straight Suburban Athletic Conference Championships in a row. He was first team All-League and, at the time, his High School Coach, Rich Fertig stated that, "[He] has a million dollar arm. he has as much velocity on his fastball as any high schooler I've seen." And he saw success in American Legion as well. Because of where he went to high school he found himself on the Hatfield Legion Team. When the other teams saw what they were facing they were left with no choice but to act. You see, this inductee was didn't live in the Hatfield area. And when the other teams figured that out he lived in Cedars he was forced out to the JP Mascaro American Legion. But now the kid with the rocket arm who had known nothing but success took his arm up the street to Montgomery County Community College where Perky League Hall of Famer and Montgomery County Community College baseball coach Jim Randolph brought him back to earth by proclaiming that pitchers are "non-athletes." Reasonable minds may differ, but the truth is this inductee discovered that his fastball / curveball combination would only take him so far. Recruited by Manager Art Bustard to come play at Skippack in the Perky League this inductee turned out to be reliable and dependable for four or five wins a season. And combined with a potent offense behind him his fastball was still enough. But if you truly want to be a pitcher it takes more than just some heat. He knew that and worked on his off speed stuff. And the point could not have been made more clear to him than a time early in his career in a game at Harleysville. While on the mound he found himself shaking off the catcher several times. Perky League Hall of Famer Carl Wismer who was umping behind the plate, noticed the extra shake-offs and yelled out to the mound, "Hey, you don't have that many pitches." But over the years the curve ball improved and then along came the slider. This inductee credits his teammate Walt Gadziki with teaching him how to throw it. The slider proved to be the pitch that would complete him as a Pitcher. And as a pitcher this inductee had fun in the Perky League. He finds it amusing that he got to pitch against both Jamie Moyer and John Smiley. And on a Skippack Team that produced any number of homerun hitters he is proud to say that he jacked one out at Harleysville to bring his career total to one. This inductee had a number of memorable games against Collegeville as well. Most notably in the 1978 finals series when Skippack went out to a 2-0 lead one of those games saw this inductee pitch a 7-0 shutout that included 10 strikeouts. In another year he pitched 11 innings to secure a no-decision. As such he was invited to go with Collegeville on their journeys to the York Invitational Tournament. But it was in 1982 that he helped secure for Skippack what they had long wanted. A Championship. In 1982, Perky League Hall of Famer Dave Webb was replaced as Manager by Ron Moorehead. Some new faces were brought in including another young Montgomery County Community College pitcher who is on the field tonight in the Norristown Dugout Perky League Hall of Famer Vince Elsier. A little bit older and uncertain of where they were going as a Team, Skippack lost an early season game to their dreaded rival Collegeville. After the game, the Skippack players lingered after the game and decided amongst themselves that they were tired of losing to Collegeville. This year was going to be theirs. And just like that they began to believe. And a big part of that belief came from this man on the hill. He posted a record of 7-2 in the regular season and was named Pitcher of the Year. In the post season he was unbeatable and when Skippack and Collegeville finally met in the Playoff Finals he helped stake them to a two games to none lead in the best of five series. Of course four years earlier they were in that same situation and by the time seven games had come and gone they had come up short. And when game three started out as bad as any nightmare can be they needed to call upon that new found belief in themselves. In game three, Collegeville jumped out quickly to a nine run lead and it wasn't until the sixth inning that Skippack got going. Doug Slotter singled, three walks got in a run, Tony Tornetta and Perky League Hall of Famer Glenn Webb singled in a runs and then Ron Moorehead followed with a Grand Slam. Skippack was back. In the top of the seventh Skippack went ahead by two and in the bottom of the seventh they brought in this man to save them. The light was fading and you could see the headlights on the street, but the home plate Umpire declared, "We're gonna play it till it's done." Three outs later it was and Skippack had climbed the mountain.
Willard Reiff - Old newspaper articles, photographs and individual memories have helped us induct a number of Hall of Famers. But in the case of tonight's final inductee it was the unassuming paper schedule. For decades the Perky League printed a paper schedule that was handed out to fans at games early in the season. Not only were regular season games listed on these paper schedules but also the names of the Teams, the names of the Managers and the names of the Officers of the League. To those of us who are trying to recover the League's past, these paper schedules are golden. Over time, we have collected roughly 30 seasons worth of schedules. They are not in order. We do not have 30 consecutive years of schedules. In fact most of the schedules we have are from the last 25 years. But in looking over the schedules one thing stands out perfectly clear. One name. Year after year. Decade after decade there is the same name listed as Treasurer of the League. And it is here that we are going to break a little tradition. Usually we do not announce the inductee's name until the very end, but in this case there seems to be no reason to prolong the mystery. For nearly 40 years Willard Reiff was an officer of the Perky League. Mostly as Treasurer, but in 1953 we know that he was the Vice-President of the League as well. And so Willard Reiff is inducted tonight as the longest serving officer in League history. And nobody in today's Perky League knew that. In fact very few have a clear memory of who Willard was other than to say he was one of those older guys who sat in the lawn chairs at the Skippack games back when they played at the Grove. Willard Reiff was born and raised in Skippack Pennsylvania. His father Irvin owned the Skippack Mill and Machine Shop on Main Street (now Skippack Pike) in the heart of Skippack. They sold feed for horses and fixed the automobiles and farm machinery that supplanted them. Willard graduated from Collegeville-Trappe High School. He went on to graduate from West Chester State Teacher's College in 1931 with a Bachelor's Degree in Education. As far as we can tell Willard never played organized baseball. He played football in High School and in College as a lineman before a knee injury sidelined him and relegated him to his love of golf. He taught High School in Warwick Township, Bucks County. He married Ruth who was a teacher in where else? - Skippack. He and Ruth started a family and had two children Tom and Sue. Willard decided he needed to make more money now that he had family and went to work at Harleysville Insurance Company as a Claims Manager. And to fatten the coffers a bit more, he sold insurance out of an office in his home. Willard and his family lived right off of Skippack Pike on Collegeville Road just beyond the little stone bridge - half a block down from Hallman Road and just a short walk with his lawn chair to Hallman's Grove - home of the Skippack Skippers where he attended games for decades even taking his family along to watch. Additionally, Willard went to quote - unquote "big" Skippack away games and attended playoff games no matter who was playing. The Man was a HUGE Fan of the Perky League. Willard was active in the Lions Club, The Masons, and the Skippack Community Organization Committee which organized Easter egg hunts, Christmas parties, Mother and Daughter and Father and Son banquets. And somewhere along the line Willard decided he wanted to get involved in the Perky League. Now I can assure you that being Treasurer of the Perky League is not like running Fort Knox. But you have to best honest and trustworthy, buy baseballs and help figure out the League's annual budget. And that is what Willard did - for almost FORTY years! If you have ever been to one off-season Perky League meeting - that is cause enough for a plaque commemorating your service to the League. Willard attended nearly forty years of off-season meetings. Why did he do this? No one knows. And, unfortunately for us, we cannot ask Willard this question directly as Willard passed away in 1991 leaving behind his children and grand-children. A life well lived.
2014-
Bob Altieri - Credits his father for teaching him the fundamentals of baseball and the right way to play the game. He spent many a night in the back yard fielding and hitting with his father, but he is also quick to credit his coaches in Conshohocken Little league for their instruction of the game by teaching him how to play all the positions on the field. A standout pitcher and shortstop he made his presence felt in the Conshohocken Base Ruth and American Legion programs, hitting his way to notoriety and leading his teams into tournament play year after year. In one American Legion game, he hit 3 triples. He won an American Legion batting title at the age of 16. At Plymouth Whitemarsh High, Bob garnered MVP honors in his junior year and in his senior year was chosen to play in the prestigious Carpenter Cup played at the old Veterans Stadium. Moving onto Delaware Valley College, he was named Most Valuable Player of the baseball team in every one of his four years and selected as 1st team All-Conference in every season as well. During his senior year at Delaware Valley College, he received the Ned A. Linta award for his contributions off the field to the athletic department where he ran intra-mural football and basketball programs. Honing the organizational skills he knew he would need when coaching. He became an assistant coach under the legendary Hank Demito at his alma mater Plymouth Whitemarsh High School helping to secure the State title in 1994. He then became the assistant baseball coach at Delaware Valley College from 1995 to 1999 and then became the head coach in 2000 at the age of 32 where he remains today. Recruited out of American Legion by Perky League Hall of fame manager Vince Elsier to play at Harleysville, Bob began his Perky League career in 1987. Splitting time between the two leagues he appeared in 11 games as pitcher and shortstop with a batting average of .474. He Played all nine positions during his perky league career and was selected as a league All-Star at 6 different positions and Played a total of 22 seasons with five different teams: Harleysville Hornets 1987-1989, Upper Merion Vikings 1990-1992, Lansdale Tigers 1993-1995, Norristown A’s 1996-2005 and 2007 and Collegeville Black Sox 2012-2013. He was also the Player/Manager of Lansdale 1994-1995 and Player/Manager of Norristown 1996.Won a league batting champion in 1995 with a .529 average, was a 2-time league MVP runner-Up: 1995 and 1997, 3-time batting title runner up. Winner of 11 Perky League Playoff Championships, (including a league record 7 straight) and 3-time Playoff championship runner ups. He played on teams that won the Harrisburg Memorial Day Tournament 3 times, Harrisburg Firecracker tournament 4 times and York Colonial tournament 3 times. I want to give credit to Bobby Altieri for writing much of the information on the 2014 Hall of Fame Inductees on the Norristown A's Web Site-Thank You Bob.
Mark Brockell - Brockell was an All-State player at Elkton High School in Maryland who was a four-year starter and four-time All-County selection. He was drafted by the Baltimore Orioles twice, but never signed. He played against the Norristown A's a number of times in Area Tournaments. At one of the Firecracker Tournaments, Vince Elsier, Norristown A's manager asked Mark if he would come up and play in Norristown with them, but Brockell lived in Delaware. And one day, he called Manager Vince Elsier up and said he wanted to make the trip up from Delaware and play with the A's. What he did in his career may never happen again in the history of this league. He won the League Triple Crown winner 3 times. He won 5 batting titles, including a record that may never be broken, in 1999, he batted .610. he had 61 hits in 100 at bats, including 10 Doubles, 15 Homers, 51 RBIs and scored 41 Runs. And the most amazing thing is he struck out only once. He was walked 22 times and finished with an on-base percentage of close to .700. His slugging percentage was .800. Brockell also won the league's HR title 5 times and the RBI crown 7 times. He was part of 9 Perky League Championship teams with the A's and was selected to the leagues all league every year he played in the league - 11 straight times (1997-2007). When the league mandated the use of wooden bats in 2005, it was thought that all the offense would go out of the league, but Brockell won the Batting Crown in both 2005 and 2006, including the triple crown in 2006. Aluminum or Wood. He is remembered as one of the greatest players in league history. A power hitting third baseman with strong defensive skills Played his entire 11 year career with the Norristown A’s from 1997-2007. He is the only player in league history to win five batting titles, Including 3 triple crown and 3 league MVP awards When he won Triple Crowns, he didn't just win them, he exploded his way to them as evident by the numbers of his triple crown seasons. To put it into perspective, the triple crown has only been achieved 10 times in Perky League history, Nobody has ever won it more then once. Mark won it three times. 1998, .515 average, 11 HRs, 41 RBIs. 1999, .610 average, 15 HRs, 61 RBIs and to prove the aluminum bat wasn't the reason he could hit, when the league mandated the use of wooden bats only in 2005, Brockell went out in 2006 and won the triple crown for the third time; .447 avg, 4 HRs and 35 RBIs. He made the All-Star team every single year he was in the league. He also was the Player/Manager of the Norristown A’s in 2007. Winner of 9 Perky League Playoff Championships, (including a league record 7 straight) and 1 runner-up. If you were to look at Marc Brockell's Stats over the ten year period he played full time with the A's (annual stats bottom of page), you would see that he finished his career with 60 home runs, close to 350 RBIs and 300 Runs scored, including close to 70 Doubles. He was walked close to 160 times. His ten year average would be MVP States for ANY year. Average (42-90, .465 average with 35 RBIs, 30 Runs Scored, 6 HRs, 7 Doubles and 16 Walks. His On Base Percentage would be over 0.550. Not many in the History of this league can claim numbers like that. Maybe the Legendary Wils Kulp or Dave Kurtz or ..... the list is very, very small.
Eric Fisher- Eris Fisher starred at Plymouth Whitemarsh and was one of the stars of the 1994 PW team that shocked even themselves by claiming the Pennsylvania State PIAA High School Championship. Fisher was the winning pitcher and drove in the game-winning run in the state-final game. He later went on to star at Eckerd College in Florida and spent two seasons in independent ball with franchises in both Sioux Falls, S.D. and Allentown, where he played against the likes of future Detroit Tigers catcher Matt Nokes, the infamous J.D. Drew and current San Francisco Giants pitcher Ryan Vogelsong. He was a gifted and athletic shortstop with a cannon arm, who could hit for power and average And was also an outstanding pitcher. Began his career out of high school in 1994 where he played 2 seasons with the Lansdale Tigers, Before moving to Norristown A’s in 1996. He Played a total of 15 seasons: 1994-97; 2000-08,10 and 12. Led league in batting in 2002 (.493) and his 13 doubles were tops too. Became Player/Manager of the Norristown A’s 2006-07. He was a Perennial Perky All-Star. He won 8 League Championships in his career, including 7 in a row with the Norristown A's. He was great athlete who could pitch and hit and the higher the stakes, the better he played. This is evident by the fact that of the 8 titles he won, 4 of those times, he was the Final Series MVP. He also played on 4 Championship series runner-ups.
Frank Monastero - After starring at Bishop Kenrick, Monastero was signed as a free agent by the Cleveland Indians and spent a year in the Indians organization where one of his friends was Jim Thome, and he played against future Braves Hall of Famer Chipper Jones. He was a pure hitter. Frank was the heart of the greatest Norristown A’s dynasty. He is remembered as an explosive run producer who could win a game with his bat or his speed. He was a loyal and generous teammate. Played a total of 19 seasons with four different teams: Harleysville Hornets 1988-89; Upper Merion Vikings 1990-92; Lansdale Tigers 1993-95 and Norristown A’s 1996-06. Was League MVP in 1995 with a .494 average and also led the League in hits (41), runs (34) and stolen bases (18). After Lansdale had been beaten beaten by Collegeville in the 1995 final series, he joined the Norristown A's the following year in 1996 and they proceeded to win 7 straight titles. He led them to two more for a total of 9 League Championships. He also was a 3-time Playoff championship runner up. Was league MVP Runner up and Second in batting title with .456 average in 1999. Won League batting champion in 1991 (.489). In 1996 was 3rd in batting with .402 average, 2001 again led the league in hits with 43, 2002 was 5th in batting with .446 average, 2003 was 4th in batting with .488 average and in 2005 was 5th in batting with .400 average. It seemed that every year when the league stats came out, Frank Monastero could be found in the list of Batting leaders. He was a League MVP Award recipient and three-time MVP Runner-up. He also played for teams that won 3 Harrisburg Memorial Day Tournaments, 4 Harrisburg Firecracker tournaments and 3 York Colonial tournaments. Frank had a rare combination of speed and power that may never be equaled again. He has been the Owner of the Norristown Diamonds Perky Franchise since 2012-present. Not surprisingly, he coaxed legendary Manager Vince Elsier to come out of retirement and Manage the Diamonds. Now he can be called a Championship Owner also as the Diamonds captured the league title in 2013, after losing in the final series in 2012.
Tom Christy - Tom Christy began his career with the North Wales Whalers in 1984. He had been a four year starter at West Chester University. He pitched a game against Jaime Moyer in American Legion and had won. He had compiled a 13-2 record at North Penn High School while striking out a school record 136 batters. And while a tryout with Pittsburgh didn’t pan out, he made a name for himself in the Perky league. He was one of the most dominating pitchers around. He will go down as one of the greatest pitchers in this league's history. Twice he flirted with perfect games taking them into the 7th inning only to have them turn into 1 hitters. He led the league in Strike Outs over 5 times. He accumulated the most strikeouts in league history. Played a total of 20 seasons with three different teams: North Wales Whalers/Nor-Gwyn Packers 1984-85, 1988-1997, Norristown A’s 1998-2000, Souderton Warriors 2001-2004 and finished his career where he started in 2005 with the Nor-Gwyn Packers In 1994, his 3 hit shutout and 12 strikeouts over Lansdale was followed by a one hitter and 15 strikeouts against Trooper. In 1995 he was named Perky league pitcher of the year with a record of 8-1. In 1998 struck out 16 batters in a 7 inning game against Lansdale, prompting his then head coach Perky League hall of famer George Hoffman to exclaim, “Why couldn’t he had gotten the other five”. Counting regular and post season games from 1998 into 2000, Was undefeated over the span of 22 games, including a perfect 8-0 season in both 1998 and 1999. Also in 1998 he helped the Norristown team to win the Colonial York tournament and was named outstanding pitcher of the tournament. He was a Two-time pitcher of the year in 1995 and 1999, while finishing runner-up in 1998. The only thing Tom Christy had to prove was whether he could be better on a team like Norristown. Yes, his Nor-Gwyn team had miraculously won the playoff championship over Norristown in 1990, but even he had to admit that too often he was pitching to get four or five out an inning. And so in 1998 he said yes to the idea perhaps he could still be even better, he then moved to Norristown. He was a Perennial Perky League All-Star. Winner of 4 Perky League Playoff Championships and 1 runnerup.
Dan Chieffalo - The "Chief", as he was often called, Dan Chieffalo was a standout in his hometown of Scranton, earning All-Region honors at Bishop Hannan High School and All-American honors at the University of Scranton. He won the 2000 league batting crown with a .541 average, he also hit 8 HRs and had 36 RBIs. He was runner-up MVP that year. He was always in the Top-10 in just about every offensive stat. And yes, he too, was part of the Norristown dynasty winning 9 Perky League Playoff Championships, including a league record 7 straight. He Played a total of 9 seasons with Norristown A’s: 1995-2006.
2015
Fred Faison - While the Perkiomen Valley Twilight League finals was far too short, at least it produced a memorable Hall of Fame induction. Fred Faison, all of 64 years young, who stopped playing for Collegeville just one season ago, went in by himself, a fitting tribute to a man who spent 38 years in the league - all as a player. “It feels pretty good, but I don’t know that it’s all sunk in yet,” said the living legend. “It was nice to be recognized that way, and it was nice getting texts from guys like Todd Moyer, who said, ‘Welcome to the club.’ Faison said he first heard of the induction back in March when Collegeville owner Carl Meixner called him with the news. “I’d been joking with (former league president) Ben Enters about when I was going in, and he’d always tell me that I had to stop playing first.” Faison finally did that this year, stepping aside when the preparation for the season became just too much to endure. “In recent years, the getting-in-shape part of playing was getting harder,” he said. “It got to be that chore wasn’t worth the effort to keep playing.” As for memorable Perky moments, Faison said championships like those in 1977 (his first of a record 22) were always memorable, but it was the players he played with and against over the years that made the run special. “What I remember best are the guys I shared the dugout with at Collegeville all those years,” he said. “Ninety-nine percent of the guys I played with were the best teammates you could ever ask for. “The guys I got to play with and got to know are more memorable than any game or championship we won.” As for his future, Faison said he’ll take things a day at a time. “It was a good run,” he said. “These days I’m just happy to be alive, and I can’t wait for the next day.” Faison added that he has an itch to become a coach, especially at the lower levels of baseball. “I’m going to try and coach Little League next year,” he said. “I thought I’d prefer coaching at the Junior Legion level, but I think I can help more at the Little League level, and I think that would be more gratifying.” And while some would like to see Faison suit up one more time, he said that prospect is remote. “I’m pretty sure there’ll be no comebacks,” he laughed. After winning 22 League Championships, a record that may never be beaten. He was human though, he lost in the finals four times.
