A sport for weekend warriors

It’s that time of year, when many former and current baseball and softball players, some slowed down by age or injury or new careers, take to the field once again, this time to play a variation of the sport that anyone can play: slo-pitch softball.

Unlike in traditional softball, slo-pitch takes the high-speed pitching out of the game. Although a pitcher is technically only 11 percent of a team, in fact he accounts for half of the game. And having a great pitcher makes life miserable for those who aren’t great hitters, meaning most people. In slo-pitch, everybody has a great chance to hit the ball, making it more challenging to play defense, as well.

Slo-pitch started in the Philippines roughly ten years ago, when a group of expats and local businessmen enamored of softball and baseball decided to take their recreational sport one step further by starting a tournament. Starting off as an informal club of softball enthusiasts, Pangaea is now Asia’s longest running softball competition and is home to Asia’s major softball teams. Year after year the Pangaea Cup showcases the finest softball players from amongst the best in the region.

Pangaea, incidentally, is the name for the super-continent which scientists consider the original land mass of the earth. Over the millenia, Pangaea broke up into the various continents, which drifted apart, some recombining to form new land masses. This is also one plausible explanation for commonalities in the genetic make-up, animal and plant life of many societies which are geographically far apart.

Regarded as one of Asia’s most prestigious competitions in slo-pitch softball, the Pangaea Cup never fails to attract entries, both from local and international softball teams. This year alone, the tournament attracted 15 teams from Korea, Japan, Hong Kong, Indonesia, Middle East and host Philippines. The teams are sub-divided into three brackets: Club, Group A and Super Division. RP Cebuana Lhuillier team will try to write history again as they defend their Pangaea Super Division crown and aim for their third consecutive title in the event which started yesterday at the Alabang Country Club.

The team will banner this year’s Philippine delegates to the 13th Pangaea Cup Slo-pitch International Softball tournament organized by the Amateur Slo-Pitch Softball Association of the Philippines. With an outstanding 26-6 win last year against Dubai-based Just-1-More in their championship match, Cebuana Lhuillier sealed the tournament’s Super Division champs for two consecutive years, a feat no other local team has accomplished in the league’s history.

Prior to their Super Division crown, Cebuana Lhuillier captured the Club Division title in 1996. They then emerged Division A champions in 2003. The team made history in 2004 when they beat Korea’s Fattboyz to end the country’s nine-year quest for a Super Division crown. The three other local teams who will also see action are Pera Padala, Meralco Sluggers and Handlebar Gorillas. Finals will be played on March 5.

Foreign squads challenging this year are Fattboyz-Guzzlers, Korea Heat, Jakarta Worldwide Movers and last year’s runner-up, the returning Just-1-More. The RP-Cebuana Lhuillier team is headed by owner/player Jean Henri Lhuillier with head coach/team captain Davy Lan Perez and assistant playing coaches Kiko Diaz and Randy Dizer. Lhuillier, you will recall, was the team manager of our gold medal-winning tennis and softball teams to the Southeast Asian Games, beefed up by world-ranked Filipinos Cecil Mamiit and Eric Taino.

Slo-pitch is a great sport for those who may have been deserted by their athletic ability and explosiveness off their feet, but not by their competitive fire. It’s a great way to get some exercise, be with your buddies, and have clean competitive fun.