Sharpe throws out first pitch at softball opener
A lot has changed since Peterborough and District Sports Hall of Fame inductee Dan Sharpe last patrolled the outfield grass of George (Red) Sullivan East City Bowl.
Back then, there were no Toronto Blue Jays to boost interest in the game – but that was just fine, because the Peterborough Men’s Softball Association city league certainly didn’t need any help drawing crowds on weeknights.
“This is where you wanted to go,” Sharpe recalled after throwing out the ceremonial first pitch for opening night of the 97th season of the newly-expanded four team league that plays regular double headers on Tuesdays and Thursdays starting at 6:45 p.m.
Curve Lake’s Terry’s Gas and Variety, with players from the folded Ricarts team, took on defending 2016 Taylor Trophy champion Marshalls in the first game before two new teams – Leahy Electrical and Kangas Equipment Repair – squared off in the second.
Terry’s won the first game 6-3, while Leahy’s won the second 8-1.
Returning to four teams after scratching by with just three last year, its future uncertain, is a good sign for the future of the league, Sharpe agreed.
He made some of his best friends playing softball as he took the field with the same teammates year after year. Like so many of his buddies, he was drawn by the intense competition and camaraderie – even when he reached his 40s.
“If it ever rained, I was so upset in case I wasn’t going to get to play ... I just loved it,” he said.
Sharpe came to Peterborough from Toronto to play for the Petes and enjoyed a successful junior career before playing as a professional for several years.
But he was also a great ball player, local softball historian and league executive Clair Leahy pointed out as he introduced Sharpe over the ballpark speakers.
The all-star, who was winning home run derbies in Peterborough long before current baseball stars like Giancarlo Stanton was born, was a part of 10 league championships, he said. “He was not only a great hitter but one of the best outfielders to ever play in the league.”
Tuesday’s pre-game ceremonies also included a moment of silence for Ken Withers, who died earlier this month.
The Second World War veteran played in the league in the 1950s and coached in it in the 1960s, former league president and longtime supporter Doug Delaney said. Withers also played in the senior men’s slo-pitch league – he was a charter member – until he was in his late 80s and umpired both the men’s and women’s leagues until he was 90.
Leahy welcomed those in the bleachers to the oldest league of its kind in Canada after thanking long-time sponsors. “You don’t get to last 97 years by luck.”
The league will play a 15-game schedule through to July 11 with playoffs to start after any rainout dates are made up. The playoffs will consist of best-of-seven semifinal and final series.