There's that great quote from Rogers Hornsby: "People ask me what I do in winter when there's no baseball. I'll tell you what I do. I stare out the window and wait for spring."
I'm really glad to have played this year, after some time away. The baseball part was great, but the people were better. Really nice to see many of those faces again, and to make a few new friends in the process.
I'm always grateful to John Reel for starting up this league long ago, the countless (and thankless) hours put in over the years to provide us all with this incredible league. We are lucky. And every player in this league owes a tip of the cap to John & his crazyass beard. Dick Stark once told me about the 10-80-10 rule. He stressed that it applies to all walks of life. Essentially, 10% of the people do all the work, 80% just want to go along for the ride, and the other 10% only complain about the first 10%. I think the reality is that it's a 5-90-5 Rule. So my thanks to that 5%; I can't begin to name you all, but you know who you are.
Also: I thought the umpires were great this year. In the 55's, we play with only one umpire, which is an almost impossible situation. There's no way that single umpire can see certain plays on the bases, no one to consult with after a tricky or confusing play. But I always saw great effort and total integrity every game.
All that said, there are parts of me that won't miss baseball this winter. My sore hamstrings, my right knee . . .
