SJ Sports: Wiffle Ball is Back!

Wiffle ball was the king of games when Mike Buchter was growing up in Denver, Pa. Even when his Little League coaches put a strict ban on playing wiffle ball — they feared the light yellow plastic bat would mess up the young players’ swings — Buchter and his buddies just found another place to set up and play.

“We’d have to go from one side of town to the other because they used to come looking for us,” Buchter said.

Now, the 53-year-old Blackwood resident wants to pass along his passion for the game that features a plastic ball with holes cut out at the top of it, to the younger generation.

Buchter set up the inaugural Wiffle Ball Tournament, which was held on Sept. 14 and 15 at the Blackwood Kiwanis field. Twelve teams from all over the surrounding area signed up and consisted of four players per team, ranging in age from 10 to their mid-50s. Proceeds from the entry fee were donated to the Blackwood Kiwanis athletic programs.

The team of Anthony Calafato, Dan Grandrino, Anthony Domenic and Ryan Buchter, Mike’s youngest son, claimed the championship. Domenic helped guide the teenagers to the title by using a dominating array of tricks with the ball. He allowed just two hits over the course of the tournament.

Buchter got the idea for the tournament when his sons, Ryan and Nathan, came home from the local K-Mart with a set of bats and ball that were unbeknownst to them.

“They’d never played it before,” the elder Buchter said. “They didn’t know how to throw any of the trick pitches. I threw them the risers, screwballs and all that jazz. They picked it up really fast.”

The game of wiffle ball does differ from conventional baseball since base running is eliminated. The field is laid out with foul lines and markers for singles, doubles, triples and home run areas. The home run distance for the tournament was 70-feet. The games had a 45-minute time or were limited to six innings.

Buchter’s present plans are to schedule future tournaments with the hopes that participation will grow to the level of popularity of several North Jersey wiffle ball tournaments, which feature over 50 teams at one venue.

Content provided by South Jersey Sports Club.

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Author: SJ Sports Club-Tom McGurk