The Blue team won Saturday’s Columbus Indiana Slo-Pitch Softball Hall of Fame All-Star Game at Lincoln Park.
Ted Schultz | The Republic
After starting the Columbus Indiana Slo-Pitch Softball Hall of Fame in 2019, Jerry Cox had an idea to put together an All-Star Game with those Hall of Famers.
Last year, a collection of talent played in the Inaugural Columbus Indiana Slo-Pitch Softball Hall of Fame All-Star Game. Most of those players, along with a few new ones, were back at Lincoln Park on a steamy Saturday afternoon for the second All-Star encounter.
“Last year, it went great, and this year, I thought it went equally as good,” said Cox, who is the CISSHOF chairman of the board. “It’s amazing that a lot of these people can still come out and do a little bit. They do it because they enjoy the game, and it’s a lot of fun to watch them out there compete.”
That includes veteran players such as 74-year-old Lynn Montgomery, who knocked in three runs for the winning Blue team.
“I love playing,” Montgomery said. “I play every Tuesday in the old timers league. I had both knees replaced, so I don’t play with the young guys much anymore.”
But Montgomery wasn’t the oldest player on Saturday. That distinction belonged to his 82-year-old teammate, Dewey Whitis.
“I just love it,” Whitis said. “I work out every day, but for about six years, I didn’t get to play. I’m just now getting back into it.
“It’s just fun,” he added. “I’ve known all these guys. Of course, some of these guys are half our age. But it’s fun to be out here, and it’s well put-together.”
The Red team is introduced before Saturday’s Columbus Indiana Slo-Pitch Softball Hall of Fame All-Star Game at Lincoln Park.
Ted Schultz | The Republic
Saturday’s game featured 24 players and were split into Blue and Red teams. They played a five-inning game, with the Blue winning 17-14.
Some of the more notable stars for the Blue were Rob Roop, who went 3 for 3 with a home run and two RBIs, and Rich DeLay and Jim Norris, each of which went 3 for 3 with one RBI. Wayne Noble went 2 for 3 with two triples and three RBIs, Marlon Cox went 2 for 3 with a double and three RBIs, Randy Lawson went 2 for 3 with a double and two RBIs and Ron Turnbow went 2 for 3 with an RBI.
Steve Imlay went 3 for 3 with two doubles and three RBIs, and Brian Rice went 2 for 3 with a triple, a home run and five RBIs to lead the Red. JD Cox went 2 for 2, Fred Lawson and John DeJarnette each went 2 for 3 with a double and an RBI, Jimmy McMillan went 2 for 3 and Darren Rutan had a two-run triple.
Rice, 53, who is one of this year’s Hall of Fame inductees, won the Home Run Derby earlier in the afternoon.
“I love the game,” Rice said. “I love being around the people I’ve for years and years played against.”
Columbus mayor Mary Ferdon throws out the first pitch to catcher Diana Daeger before Saturday’s Columbus Indiana Slo-Pitch Softball Hall of Fame All-Star Game at Lincoln Park.
Ted Schultz | The Republic
Despite the heat, the Hall of Famers were happy to enjoy another day with their longtime friends and teammates.
“I’m a blessed man,” Randy Lawson said. “I’m 57 years old, and a lot of these older guys, I got to watch play when I was younger with my older brothers. I still get to play with my brothers, and the young guys still let me play with them, so it keeps me able to do what I do. It’s an honor to be able to step out on this field and be a part of the Hall of Fame.”
