Sunday, March 23, 2008
Sports

Endless Summer

Amateur baseball leagues keep love of the game alive

By Scott Sergent

Atlanta’s growth has exploded in the past two decades, and in the process, so has the city’s love affair with the national pastime. And while the Braves have experienced an enduring resurgence since those sorry Atlanta teams of the ’70s and ’80s, the city’s baseball-loving inhabitants have truly shown their hardball passion carries them beyond the bleachers and onto the diamond.

The Braves are set to begin their 2008 season this Sunday night, March 30 in Washington. Earlier in the day, though, Atlanta’s Men’s Senior Baseball League (MSBL)/ Men’s Adult Baseball League (MABL) will toss out their first pitches on high school and college fields across the metropolitan area. Yet another season of adult baseball is underway in the city, and the good news is that if you miss and want to experience again that joyful feeling of youth that comes from playing the timeless game, it’s not too late.

“We still have guys pushing 40 who live for this,” says Rob Ochotnicky, who manages the Aztecs of the MSBL’s 28+ (28 years and older) Sunday League. “My guys are not ready to hang up their competitive edge and go drink beers in the dugout during a softball game. In fact, they would go play golf before they would play softball.”

The league is filled with serious amateur athletes of various skill levels who play in weekend and mid-week leagues featuring different age levels (18+, 28+, 38+ and 48+). The MSBL/MABL has given die-hard baseball players a league where they can still play the game they love. Where once they had no choice but to hang up their spikes, today players can find a league of comparable competition well into their 40s and beyond.

Steady growth from humble beginnings

It was 1988 when a handful of local players and teams first began playing organized adult baseball here. A year later, Steve Rosenburg stepped in to serve as commissioner of the MSBL. Rosenburg was highly instrumental in developing (the MABL was formed locally in 1997) and growing Atlanta’s adult baseball league into one of the most thriving and successful MSBL leagues in the country. Rosenburg served the Atlanta leagues until his passing less than two years ago—many local teams sport a patch to remember “Rosie,’’ and there’s an annual holiday tournament that bears his name. Rosenburg helped make Atlanta a hotbed for the MSBL, which today, along with the MABL, boasts 325 local affiliates, 3,200 teams and more than 45,000 members nationally.

Twenty years later, Atlanta’s leagues go to all lengths to operate in a first-class manner. Matching uniforms are a requirement, playing fields are safely maintained and umpiring, while not always liked, is graded to a high standard. There are tournaments at the end of the year to crown champions, and it’s not hard to understand that these guys cherish their titles every bit as much as Major Leaguers do theirs.

“In the last five years, we have won the championship twice and been runner-up twice, so we must be doing something right,” says Dale Lebder, manager of the 18+ Saturday League Giants.

Lebder (University of Pittsburgh) is like a lot of guys in the league in that he has some college ball experience. Others have never played beyond high school, and some are former pros whose careers fizzled out in the minors. But Lebder, a practicing chiropractor (like several of his teammates), is also a business professional who shudders at the idea of playing softball. The league is filled with lawyers, doctors and average working men who all share a passion for baseball.
 
“My guys all have careers, but they still slide head-first,’’ he says. “They know they can hurt themselves, but they still give 100 percent every game.”

Added Ochotnicky, “There is a high level of play and camaraderie with your teammates, but also for the others in the league,” since you play against the same players every year,” adds Ochotnicky, who played baseball for Ripon College in Wisconsin. “A lot of the guys establish business contacts and travel to tournaments together. It’s a bond through baseball that everyone in the league does not want to let go.”

The right fit in the dugout

 
Of course, skill levels vary. Pitchers in the 28+ leagues are known to throw from the mid 50s to the mid 70s ,while some hurlers in the 18+ leagues can reach into the upper 80s. Some players are better hitters than fielders, and vice versa. But both Lebder and Ochotnicky agree that having the right player is better than having the best player. Both will look at the talent of the players available, then interview players off the field to see if the chemistry is there.

“I get guys from all over who want to play for us,’’ Lebder says. “I pick the guys with talent, but they will have to mesh with the rest of the team.”

And there’s still time to play. While some leagues are already underway, others have yet to start, with tryouts for the Saturday League 18/28+ on April 12, the Midweek League 18+ on April 19 and the Midweek or Saturday League 45+ ongoing. League fees range from $200-$250 and most all teams are looking to add players during the season, especially if the fit is right.

So what determines that perfect fit? It seems the main requirement is a genuine love of the game: the crack of the bat, the smell of the grass, the smack of ball against leather and the camaraderie of the dugout. And judging by the number of players currently filling that criteria, it’s obvious that no matter how the Braves do this year, baseball is very much alive and well in the ATL.

For more information go to www.atlantamsbl.com.