This is a writeout written on 2 Jun 2017. First written by Dan Crosswell in 2000, it recounts and describes the formation and development of the Saturday Afternoon Recreational Softball (SARS) and makes references to it's growth in 2017 into a Coach's Classic Tournament held on an annual basis.

1. HISTORY OF THE GRANDE OLDE GAME (SATURDAYAFTERNOON SOFTBALL): 2 June 2017
The Coach’s Classic
In 2017, we’ll be hostingoursecondCoach’sClassicGame to celebrate the waythisgame hasgrown.
In orderto give everyone abrief historyof the game,we’re adaptingapiece whichCoachwrote in
2000 whichfeaturedinChris’blog. Hopefully,thisCoach’sClassictournament willbe anannual
affairand a celebrationof ourplace inthe sunand a day whenthe musicpromisesnevertofade
away.
Since itsbeginnings in1994, the game has since grownfromCoach’s ‘struggle fora place inthe sun’
to newgenerationof local Asiansoftball castwhocontinue togrow and sustain the grandoldgame.
From the oldSaturdayAfternoon Recreational Softball (SARS) crew,several generationsof ex-NUS
alumni andtheircolleaguesatworkcontinue topreach,proselytize andliveoutthe valuesof the
game.Cool Papa,Pat, Bert, Junkhai,Nat,Cao Yang,Nico,Anne,Neo anda whole castof theirown.
The game continuestobe a fieldof dreams, ‘ahome awayfromhome’for those wholive (whether
short term,longtermor permanently)onthe Rock. Some membershave kidsof andevengrandkids
to continue this longandproud tradition.
From withinthe Singapore school system, alumni,teacher,coachesand currentplayersfrom
Montfortand St Gabriels alsocontinue to support, grow and sustainthisgame.These schoolshave
beenparticularlysupportiveof ourgames,the oldest‘kids’receivingtheirbaptismbyfire atNUS but
some of themnow intheir30 withkidsof theirown,livingout the spiritof ’94.
In the meantime,we hope youenjoythispiece.
Note:We’re still waitingforatrue-bredhistorian,aliterarygenius andsomeonewith
institutional memory(oracombinationof anyof these things) whowill updatethisclassic
piece writtenin2000.
SECTION ONE:
Originsof the Game
In 1994, an intrepidbaseball evangelistsetouttobringthe Grand Ol'Game to the idolater
Singaporeans,still heldinthrall bytheirinfatuationwiththe unregenerativegame of soccer—a
legacyof theirgreat misfortune of havingbeenruledbythe British.Atleastthatisone of the
creationmyths.
Othersargue the originsof our softball associationlayinthe psychological needforNorthAmerican
expatriatestodistance themselvesfromtheirvoluntaryexilesinAsiabyplayingthe game of their
youths.The Singaporeansare merelyunwittingtools;theirlaborandenthusiasmsmanipulatedto
serve the selfishneedsof disingenuousWesterners.
Anotherschool maintainsthe Saturdayafternoongatheringsserve preciselythe opposite function—
as a vehicle tobuildcross-cultural awarenessandsocial bonds.
Naturallythe cynicsdismissall theseneedlesslycomplex colonialist,neo-colonialist,andpost-
colonialistinterpretations.Forthem,Saturdaysoftballmeansalittle exercise whichprovidesthe
rationale—if one isrequired—fordrinkingbeer.
As alwaysthe case,truthresidesinanadmixture of all the variousviews.

2. Our Struggle for a Place in the Sun
Puttingthe genesisdiscussionaside,all the participantsmustderive some profitfromplaying
because ourSaturdaygame hassurvived,evenprospered.Ithasnot alwaysbeeneasy.A numberof
misguidedpeopleandgroupsconspire todenyusour little pleasures.
First,we face the constantstruggle tobeatoff incursionsof soccerplayers.Theyconstitute onlya
nuisance factor.More troublingare the white-cladpractitionersof aprimitive formof ourgame,the
cricketplayers.Since theycannotmusterthe same kindof ardourfor theirgame [whocould?] that
we do for ours,the infrequencyof cricketersonthe fieldrendersthemaminorannoyance.
The weatheroffersadeterminedadversary.Butnotreally.Some of ourmostmemorable games
tookplace duringdownpours.Otherswouldargue fairweatherinSingapore isworse thanfoul.
Many players—evenstalwarts—wiltunderthe hotmid-daysun,retreatingintothe FacultyClubto
suck beerswhile the rest"playtwo."
A truly cosmopolitancrowd
Aside fromthe constantworrywe may not have a field,until 1999 the otherconcerncenteredon
lack of bodies.Itusedtobe a case eitherof feastorfamine—toomanypeople ornotenough.Too
manymeansbattersface a picketline of five orsix outfielders;toofew meanswe make one field
deador evenplaydouble-or-nothing.Butthe game mustalwaysgoon; and italwayshas.
The most interestingfeature of the demographicsisitsinternationalcomposition.
Baseball is,of coarse,the quintessential Americangame.Butthe numberof Americanshasalways
beendwarfedbyCanadians (Postscript:Untilabout2007-2008 when local membersfromSoutheast
Asia and the wider East Asia area began to proliferateand give thegamesome formof
regenrativity ).
For longperiodsof time,AmericanswereevenoutnumberedbySaskatchewaners.The registerlists
before 2000 listedsix playersfromCanada'sversionof Kansas.
Some of the funniestmomentshave come fromwatchingEuropeansrunthe bases.There is
somethingabouthavingtostopon the base that defiesEuropeanlogic.Fora period,alarge cohort
of Swedesplayedregularly.Sadly,theirnumbersare now exhausted.OtherEuro-weeniescame from
England,Scotland,Germany,France,Italy,andNorway.Ourgameshave alsoattracteda fairnumber
of Antipodeans—andhappily,noneof the Australiansevercame back.
Until the last twoyears,attemptsto proselyte the nativesgenerallyfailed.Thatisnotto say
importantconvertswere notmade.Some of ourSingaporeanplayersare nolongerneophytes;in
fact, theyare oldveterans[whocanalso holdtheirowninsophisticateddiscussionsof the latest
actionin majorleague baseball].Butfaithandgoodworksfinallypaidoff.Presentlywe have asolid
bedrockof Singaporeans—rangingfromformerNUSvarsityplayerstokidsrecruited[orisit
conscripted] inaneighborhoodschool.
Andfinallythere isourrepresentativefromthe People'sRepublic;butsome suspecthe isactually
fromNeptune.(Postscript:Wesimply called him, Gino)
Future Trends
Unlike the majorleagues,ourbaseball assemblyhasnolabor problems;nobloatedsuperstars
demandingspecial attention;nomegalomaniacowners;nostrong-armingcitizenstoforkout
hundredsof millionstobuildnewstadiumssowealthysuitscanenjoyseveninningsinthe comfort

3. of a luxurybox.Instead,we pick ourteamseachweekbasedona chaoticlotterysystemof counting
off 1s and2s; butit almostalwaysensuresprettyeventeams.Althoughthe gulf inskilllevels
betweenexperiencedbaseballplayersandnewcomerscanbe verywide,forthe mostpart that gap
has narrowedsignificantlyovertime.Quiteoftensome prettydamngoodsoftball isplayedout
there.Some playershave shownremarkable improvementinskillsandfundamentals;otherscome
out everyweekand,despite theirbestefforts,willalwaysbe ourleague'sversionof Mario
Mendoza.But nobodyreallycares.All we wantisone cornerof a field,asunnydaywitha slight
breeze fromthe north-east,twentypeople whowanttoplayball,andthe assurance the FacultyClub
isstill sellingthe cheapestbeerinSingapore.Thatain'ttoomuch to ask,is it?
SECTION TWO:
Some interestingobservationsonpick-upsoftball gleanedfromRobertSmith,Baseballinthe
Afternoon:TalesfromaBygone Era (New York:Simon& Schuster,1993). OldBob perfectlydescribes
our Saturdayafternoontilts.
Softball,whichdevelopedfromwhatwasknowninthe earlyyearsof the [20th] centuryas "indoor
baseball"(playedmostlybygirls),neverattainedthe national stature orevensomuchas an inkling
of the mysticqualityassignedtoournational game—partly,of course,becauseitneverbecame
more than mildlyprofessionalizedandlargelybecause itdemandednosuchsuperlative physical
skillsorattainments—noninety-mile-an-hourpitches,nofour-hundred-foothome runs.Butdespite
Little League andBabe Ruth League thathelpedherdsomanyof the nation'syoung(notall of them
willingly)ontobaseballdiamonds,softball hasbecome ourtrue sandlotversionof the game.
Because itcan be adaptedtosmallerfieldsandmore informal equipmentandcanbe engagedin
withequal fervorbyoldandyoung,it can be playedalmostanywhere bymenandwomenof almost
any age,withnouniformsmore specializedthanasuitable markedcap,aT-shirtwitha team
emblem,anoldpairof pants,and a setof sneakers.
Actually,softballresemblesoriginal baseballmore closelythanthe official game does.The ball is
nearlythe same size....Thepitcherwasstill requiredto"pitch"(i.e.toss) the ball to[the "striker"],
although...the rulespermittedhimtotryto deceive the striker.Earlier,the pitcherhadbeenalmost
a nonentity,sometimescalledthe "server,"anditwas deemeddecidedlyunsportsmanlikeforhimto
try to keepthe strikerfromgetting"hishit,"asthe game didnot reallystartuntil the ball hadbeen
struck intofairground....The catcher,firstcalled"behind,"stoodafew yardsbehindthe batterand
receivedmanypitchesonthe bounce....The onlyfull-timeinfielderwasthe shortstop,whowas
indeedashortstop,forhe was chargedwithprotectingall the fieldinsidethe baselines...andbehind
the pitcher.The three basemen,while theymighthandle ballshitwithintheirreach,were usually
positionedwithone footonthe base,readyto laya gentle tagon any enemy runnerwhomight
approach.
The same spiritusuallyinformsthe game,withrivalriesmutedbyfriendshipand
neighbourliness....Often asoftball game is a standard preliminary to a major beerparty, withboth
teamsequallyinvolvedinthe after-gamefestivities.Sowhile there are nominstrelstosingthe
gloriesof the game,or philosopherstoelucidateitsmysteries,andcertainlynohistorianstomagnify
itsheroes,itdoesfeedrichsatisfactionintothe veinsof plainfolkthroughoutthe land....Butat least
we have beensparedthe glutof statisticsthatsometimesseemtomake upthe real game of big-
time baseball,ratherthanthe recordof winsand losses.Andthe celebrationsaftersoftballvictories
are usuallyenjoyed,byplayersandspectatorsalike,ineachother'scompany.Softball heroesand
heroinesare all tooobviouslyfashionedfromthe commonclay.

4. Whensoftball suddenlycame intomylife,itwaslike arebirth....Isoondiscoveredthatthisgame
was baseball all overagain—onlymodifiedenoughtosuitpart-timeperformerswithalittle rust
beginningtogatherintheirjoints.Of course,youngpeopleplayit,too,foritwas a true
neighborhoodgame,requiringnotnearlysomuchroom as baseball andnoexpensiveequipment.
Rivalrieswere neverbitter.Asinmyboyhood,one day'steammate mightbe the nextday'senemy.
There were notitlestopursue,noaveragestocompile,nostandingstokeeptrackof.
The little eccentricities,however,actuallyaddedmerrimenttoourcontests,whichwere never
allowedtodescendintomortal combat.Whowonor lostthe bloodygame was nota pointtobrood
on—orfor thatmatter evenremember.A weekafterthe seasonended,Icouldn'trecall the
outcome of more than one or two of the games.AndtwomonthslaterI had forgottenthemall.[Our
softball games] alwaysrepresentedthe spiritthatoriginallyinformedthe game of baseball inthose
ancientafternoons.Itwasnota religiousexperience.Notasacredone.Not a tournamentof knights-
errant.It was fun.
SECTION 3: THE ROSTER
DAN [Coach] CROSSWELL
Crosswell isacrustyold throwbacktype.One of the foundersandchief proselytizer,Coachhasbeen
responsible forrecruitingmanyof ourplayers.Andbecause he isconstantlyyellinginstructions,he is
alsoprobablyresponsible forrunningasmanyaway—includinghiswife.Coachusuallyplaysall-time
shortstop.Despite havinglostfourorfive steps,he argueshisstellardefensehelpsbalance the
teams.The real reasonis he can't hit anymore.Althougha historyprofessor,Crosswell isuniversally
knownas Coach.He thinksthe appellationcomesfromhismanagingthe Singapore under-19
baseball team.Inreality,he remindseverybodyof CoachfromCheers.
ACTIVE ROSTER (As of 2017)
 CHRIS [the Gimp]YONG
Chrisblewhisknee;butpostponedsurgeryuntil he coulduse the time off.A versatile player,
Chrisplayspitcher,shortstopandfirstbase withequal skill.How muchskill isopento
interpretation.Despite beingaYankee fan,the Gimpisone of our mostpopularguys.
 RICHARD [Big Dick] NG
One day Richardwas takinghiskidNikotothe RecComplex andhe spottedusplaying.Anold
softballer,he askedif he couldjoin.Thereafterhe wasa regular—whenhe wasnotcatching
shotsoff histhumbin leftfield.Richardgotsickof Singoandlefta lucrative jobasa currency
trader [Ineverknewhimtoreportgains] to testthe watersinToronto. He landedonhisfeet.As
far as the Big Dickgoes,onlyhiswife knowsforsure.
 LLOYD [ChiefWahoo]YEO
SometimesreferredtoasOuppy[tothe Coach's Andy],Yeoneversaw a baseball beforehe
startedcomingout to playwhile finishinghishonorsyearatNUS.He now ranks amongour most
consistentplayers.A true devotee of the Game,Lloydhasbuiltasoftball programfromlessthan
scratch at Monfort SecondarySchool.Andtohiscredit,he startedrootingfor Clevelandbecause
of theirlegacyof ineptitude.He hasnodifficultyarguingawaytheirOctoberswoons.
LESS ACTIVE ROSTER
 JOHN [Indiana]MIKSIC

5. No,John isn't a Hoosier.The Indianamonikerstemsfromthe factMiksicisa major leaguerin
the archaeologycircuit.Since Miksicownsbaseball cardsfromhischildhoodinrural Ontario
County,NewYorkolderthanthe Coach,yougot to know Johnis our oldestplayer.Butage has
done little toerode hisskillsandlesstodiminishhisenthusiasmandlove of the Game.The silk-
handedMiksicisnotedforhis adeptpicksat first;some mightcompare hisplayto FrankChance.
Miksicknowswhohe is; butmissedseeinghimplaybyacouple years.
 KYLE [HelloKitty] Latinis
Latiniswouldbe a strange cookie inanybody'sbox of Animal Crackers.Givenhiseastcoast
Stallone verbalizationsandCalifornialaid-backpersona,itisappropriate Kylecomesfrom
Kansas.The same internal contradictiondogshishitting—Latiniseithercranksone or hitsa weak
dribblertothird.Afterastretch of playingpepperwiththe thirdbaseman,Latiniswaschristened
"HelloKitty."He nowreceivesplaintivemeowswheneverhe stepstothe plate.Kyle isalso
famedforhisoutlandishapparel.Justwheneverybodyfiguredhe hadreachedthe depths,he
wore a full suitof thermal longjohns—naturallywiththe armscut outto displayhistats.And
rememberwe are playingonthe equator.
 GOH [Jugs]GEOK YIAN
Geokis anotherof our Singaporeanstalwarts.Despite playingeachandeveryweek,hergame
still defiesanalysis.Alwayswell dressedineitherherOriolesorAstrosgarb,at leastshe always
looksgood.SometimescalledJugs—nonotforthat;because Kvictimshave to buya jug of
beer—Geokhassharplyreducedherstrike outtotals.A saddevelopmentforthe restof us
 MARTIN [The Flamingo/Contrary]BAZLYLEWICH
Martin isthe sole survivorof the SaskatchewanSix.A powerhittinglefty, Bazylewichusuallyis
an offensive force.Itishisdefensethangetshimintrouble.Whenhe variedonhisfamiliar
theme of a groundball throughthe legsatthird byliftingaleghe earnedthe tag "Flamingo."
Martin isalso knownasthe Contrary.Whateverthe line of argument,evenif he agreeswithyou,
invariablyhe assumesthe opposingview.
RETIRED ROSTER
 ALVIN [the Guppy]HEW
Big Al comesto Singapore bywayof NewfoundlandandToronto.A one-manlow-lightsfilm, the
Guppyneverfailstoadd to our collectionof AlphonseandGastonclipsof butcheredplays.Hew
isalso rememberedforaddinganew termto the baseball lexicon.Afteryetanotherfutile turn
at firstbase,the Coach banishedAl torightfieldinthe middle of aninning.Reminiscentof
BobbyValentine'sbotchedreplacementof RickyHendersoninthe 1999 NLCS,Al's
unceremoniousremoval came tobe referredtoas"beingValentined."Onoffense,Al is
renownedforhis"swingingbunts"—sure toelicitgreatpealsof laughter.Butthat'sAl'sgame.
 TED [Cannibal]WONG
Like Alvin,TedisanotherSino-Canuck.Butthatis where the comparisonends.Wonghasas
manycircus catchesto his creditas Alvinhasboners.AndTedgeneratessurprisingpowerfrom
hissmall frame.Ananaesthetistbyprofession,Wongisfrequentlyseenwonderingaroundina
zombie-likedaze.No,he isnotdippingintohisowndrugs;he suffersfromacute sleep
deprivationfromworkingungodlyhours.Strange amedical mancallshimself the Cannibal.Also
eccentricishisnumber—66.He wouldadd another6 if we wouldlethim.

6.  ANTONY[Nigel,Tuquo,Kiwi] KENNEDY
One of the mostpopularplayersleftusat the endof 1999. Nigel lookedtobe aliferin
Singapore;he couldnotleave until he finishedhisdissertation.Againstall odds,he finishedit
[kindof] andgot a posh jobinPerth.Sadly,hiscareerwasas short as hisdoctoral candidacywas
long.Nowa free agent,he mightevenreturntothe league;butwithmuchdiminishedvalue.
Famedforhis McGwire-likebelts,TuquoalsodressednearlyasbadlyasLatinis.Where Latinis
wearsVCheaddress,the Kiwi,beingaKiwi,couldnevermasterwearingabaseball cap.
 DAN [the NakedSavage] YANG
Notto dwell onattire,butlookinggoodisan importantpartof baseball.Nobodynoticeduntil
we startedtapinggames,butDan lookslike he isplayingwithoutanydrawers.A talentedpitcher
and middle infielder,Danhasplentyof popinhisbat.
 FRANCK [Weebles]WIEBE
Wiebe playedwithusfora couple yearsbefore movingontoJakarta and San Francisco.He still
routeshisflightstoAsiathroughSingapore sohe can play.Despite hisposturing,Wiebe is
anotherKansan.Wiebe isbestrememberedfortwothings.First,he inventedthe "tumble weed"
playinone of our aftersoftball two-handtouchgames.Second,he wasthe onlyguywhowould
argue withFarrell.
 TOH [Agentof Satan] HEAN
Anotherone of our Singaporeanfateful,TohHeanismostnotedforhisabilitytoflagdownflies
inthe gap.A frequentvictimof hisglove-work,LatinisisconvincedTohHeanisinleague with
the devil.Asa hitter,TohHeanhas more peaksand valleysthanI-70throughPennsylvania.He
goesthroughspellswhenyoucan'tgethim out;thenhe lapsesback intoperiodsof hittingcans
of corn.
 GAVIN[Michelangelo]GAY
His nickname hasnothingtodo withthe greatRenaissance artist'ssexual preferences.Gavin's
unique stance atthe plate remindsyouof the statue of David;butunlike DY,Gavinwearspants.
Gavinhas turnedintoa threat at the plate.Inthe firstgame of 2000, he hit a dramaticthree run
homerwithtwoout to knotthe score inthe bottom of the ninth;histeameventuallywonin
extrainnings.
 GINO[the Shark]
Ginois so far outthere,he makesLatinislookmainstream.WhenyoulookintoGino'seyesyou
see nothing;that'swhyhe is calledthe Shark.Butyou know whateverisgoingonbehindthose
lifelesseyescan'tbe good.Alwaysguaranteedtodothe unexpected—carrythe battofirstbase;
run to firstviathe pitchingmound;turna triple intoa single.One daywhenwe were comparing
notesonour misspentyouth,we askedGinoif he evenmisbehavedasa kidinChina.The
response wasshocking,evenforthe Shark."Once Itriedto kill myteacher,"he saidindeathly
seriousness.Hitheroverthe headwitha chair; thenfledtothe hills.The manisalwaysa
revelation.
 FABIAN [the Fab]
Our lone consistentEuroweenie,FabiancomesfromGrenoble,France.Althoughnew tothe
Game,the Fabbringsplentyof athleticism.He mayhave initiallythoughtthe Game wastoo

7. easy.He hit a home run inhisfirstgame.He now provesthe ancientwisdomof the Game,the
longeryouplay,the harderit gets.Fabianalsocoversa lotof groundin the outfield.
 CHRIS
One of Lloyd'srecruits,Chrisisnowa veteraningoodstanding.She hasshownsteady
improvementinall phasesof hergame.Like Geok,a secondsacker,she alwaysmatchesthe old
pro incomingattiredinfine MLB threads.Chrisalsoacts as Lloyd'sGM andbenchcoach at
Montfort.
 BRIAN FARRELL
Afteryearsof frustrationwatchingasuccessionof GMs trade awaygreat talent,Farrell gave up
on hisExposwhentheytradeda promisingsecondbasemanforayounguntestedpitcher.You
got it.The pitcherwasPedroMartinez.Fortunatelyhe playsthe game betterthanhe reads
majorleague talent.Anoriginal foundingmember,Farrell isaprettygoodcenterfielderanda
consistentline drivehitter.Farrell'sreal strengthrestsinhispresidingoverdebate inthe Faculty
Club.He claimsnevertohave lost an argument;andnobodyisgoingto contestthe point.
 ANTHONY [Bo Gangles]TAY
A productof Pennanda Philliesfan,Tayisa professorof economics.A WilberWoodwannabe,
Tay usuallypatrolsrightfield.Hispursuitof flyballsisalwaysanadventure;frequently
highlightedwithsome Steepin'Fetchitsoft-shoe.Thatisnotto suggesthe isfleetafoot.You
couldtime himgoingto firstwitha sundial.
 XIAO [Cy Young]YANG
A frequentparticipant,XiaoYangofferssteadydefenseandaprettydecentbat.Her handle does
not originate fromanarm like the famedBuckeye Cyclone butratherfromAngMos confusing
hername.
 CHEE HOW
Chee Howhas not beentaggedwithanickname.Thisissuggestiveof hissteadyplayanda
nagginglackof idyiosyncracies.Like TohHeanandGavin,Chee How has illustratedcontinuous
improvementinhissoftball skills.Inone memorablegame Chee How robbedBazlylewichof two
home runs,once withthe basesloaded.