Softballers Might be Interested to Know...

[peeker643]

Bobby Andrews and Keith McCloskey inducted into the Greater Cleveland Softball Hall of Fame.

Congrats to both.

Two of the very best players, teammates and people I ever had the privilege of playing with.

[dem425]

Think they will bronze that toaster or drill or whatever the hell it was that Keith use to throw off the mound??????

[FUDU]

Bobby Andrews and Keith McCloskey inducted into the Greater Cleveland Softball Hall of Fame.

Congrats to both.

Two of the very best players, teammates and people I ever had the privilege of playing with.

Is Bobby Andrews a west sider?

[swerb]

I always played baseball my whole life ... made the transition over to softball at 18 or 19 after bagging on my buddies for playing it instead of baseball for the past half decade.

At some point in my first season playing, I remember batting against McCloskey and being horrified. He's allowed to do that? I thought this was softball?

[peeker643]

Bobby Andrews and Keith McCloskey inducted into the Greater Cleveland Softball Hall of Fame.

Congrats to both.

Two of the very best players, teammates and people I ever had the privilege of playing with.

Is Bobby Andrews a west sider?

@Fudu- Yes sir. He's a west sider and Ed's grad if I recall correctly.

One of the very best big-game hitters I ever played with and a better guy than ball player.

@swerb- Nobody better on the hill when you consider the number of free outs and innings Keith gave his teams. He horrified countless hitters and got guys caught up in his game. Even against the best competetion he'd get into heads and when guys would look to hammer the middle because of that he'd either make a play or have guys positioned properly right behind him to make plays.

Never a tremendous hitter you certainly ddn't want to face him in a big situation because he'd kill you then and tell you all about it as he rounded bases.

Tremendous player and tremendous leader. The Softball HoF is full of guys you wouldn't want to leave your girlfriend, wife, kids or wallet around. Keith and BA elevate the class of that joint all by themselves.

[bucknutz94]

Congrats to Keith. I played with him a handful of times. What a great pitcher and teammate. I think you'll start to see a lot of the guys he played with start to make it in.

peeker, I know you played with him quite a bit. How many guys did he strikeout to end an inning while running to the dugout? That shit cracked me up.

[peeker643]

Congrats to Keith. I played with him a handful of times. What a great pitcher and teammate. I think you'll start to see a lot of the guys he played with start to make it in.

peeker, I know you played with him quite a bit. How many guys did he strikeout to end an inning while running to the dugout? That shit cracked me up.

About as many as he did while delivering a pitch from 2b.

I remember him in a USSSA state championships pump faking to a hitter about 25 times. The guy was grinding the bat handle to aluminum dust. The bench is yelling, guys are out of the dugout and bitching at him. Then he threw about a 40mph pitch right above the head of a chirping coach who was screaming at him to throw the effing ball.

One more team we beat and tournament we won with far less talent than most of the clubs there.

Yeah, I hated him before I played with him.

I agree bucknutz. I think guys like Gary Lynce and maybe Ron Zarack will get in. Those were some really solid teams.

[Larvell Blanks]

Congrats to those two

B.A was a great teammate the year I played with him. As great a guy as he was between the lines, he was even better off.

Keith is one of a kind. Got to play ball with him a handful of times, mostly Sunday mornings and played against him in a ton of tournaments. It was always better to be on his side. Hated batting against him because it was always something different from him on the mound.

[Bayou Tribe]

Not familiar with the softball in NE Ohio, but I'm assuming these guys played USSSA? What level?

[peeker643]

Not familiar with the softball in NE Ohio, but I'm assuming these guys played USSSA? What level?

Keith won the ASA C Worlds in 1993 and was Worlds MVP of the tournament. Played ASA, NSA and USSSA. B & C mostly though he moved up and played A occasionally. Obviously his act played better in USSSA with the antics on the mound but he was excellent wherever he played.

Bobby also played all three of those associations and mostly B & C. He could hit a grape with a wet newspaper hard to some spot on the field.

[Bayou Tribe]

Not familiar with the softball in NE Ohio, but I'm assuming these guys played USSSA? What level?

Keith won the ASA C Worlds in 1993 and was Worlds MVP of the tournament. Played ASA, NSA and USSSA. B & C mostly though he moved up and played A occasionally. Obviously his act played better in USSSA with the antics on the mound but he was excellent wherever he played.

Bobby also played all three of those associations and mostly B & C. He could hit a grape with a wet newspaper hard to some spot on the field.

That's awesome. Once I got to college I played some ball, but mostly just intramurals and city rec league. Played USSSA (D) one season with my brother in law, but that was the extent of serious ball. Even at D, I was out of my league. I can't even imagine trying to play short or 3rd in B or C, I wouldn't stand a chance.

[leadpipe]

Congrats to Keith. I played with him a handful of times. What a great pitcher and teammate. I think you'll start to see a lot of the guys he played with start to make it in.

peeker, I know you played with him quite a bit. How many guys did he strikeout to end an inning while running to the dugout? That shit cracked me up.

The absolute best was when someone would hit one up the middle, and someone from the other team in classic loser softball mode would say "middles open" or something of that ilk, and Keith would walk up in front of their bench and say "Hitem' up the middle all day boys, I'm gettin' BORED.

[fundamentals]

Congrats to both guys on the honor. I am more familiar with Keith. I can remember watching that team Peeks talked about earlier as I had a cousin on that same team, went to see them play on more than one occasion and Keith was usually the difference maker.

USSSA is a different animal and with him on the mound, it was usually crazy. Saw him at Softball World one time yelling at every guy in the infield that they sucked (mostly expletives) and then you would see him just freeze a hitter doing something unusual. Saw him throw a ball overhand at the fence in the area of the opposing team's wives, saw him pump fake until he got within inches of a guy in the box, was a treat just to watch him. Facing him was priceless. Congrats.