2026 Season Schedule

I have posted the 2026 Schedule, Please put in all your known signouts early so we can get a better idea of attendance for the season.
 

Alternative Realities

 What would Team Storm look like as...

Lego

The Simpson's

South Park

Superheroes

Back to Back Baby!!

The Storm finished off the Playoff weekend with another Championship! This one definitely seemed different than the others as it was unexpected, especially after our lackluster Saturday play.

It was extra special for Kevin as it's his last year with the Storm as he is hanging up the cleats after playing 22 seasons with us. Enjoy your retirement Kevin.

Here are are some pictures from yesterday.

Storm Finish Season with a win on retro Jersey Night

Storm sported a cornucopia of colours on Retro jersey night as Storm players wore the oldest version of the Storm jersey they could find (or fit into). This night would be a tribute to the history of Storm as well as the last regular season game for one of Storm’s longest tenured players.

The game started off with Broadside showing where he got the nickname from as he couldn’t find the broadside (or the short side) of the board and walked the first batter. He settled in and only gave up one run in the inning. Storm responded with two and won the inning. The second inning saw Coulas take the lead with a two run second. Storm opened the floodgates in the second as they put up a max six and Duran clubbed his 30th home run of the season. Storm was up 7-3.

Batting Practice took over in the third, and Coulas’s first four batters of the inning acted like it was batting practice until BP found his groove and retired three in a row to escape the inning with only two runs allowed. Storm added two more of their own and were double Coulas after 3. 

Coulas laid an egg in the top of the fourth and Storm added three more taking what should have been a commanding lead at 13-5. However, the top of the fifth saw Storm fall into one of two traps that has dogged their season. After recording two outs with no runs in, Storm started to get a case of the dropsies as at least four high fly balls fell to the ground. Not all of them were cans of corn, but they were all high enough that an in-service film was offered. Had any of them been caught, the inning would have had minimal damage, but with two outs Coulas rallied to score 7 and draw within one of Storm.

Storm didn’t get too discouraged, though, and they were able to bounce back in the bottom half of the inning with four of their own to increase the lead to 5 runs. Storm shut down Coulas in the sixth and added two more to have a comfortable lead in the seventh. Coulas added two in the seventh, but it was too little too late and Storm held on to a 19-14 lead.

Since this was retro jersey night, and players were attempting to wear their oldest jerseys, let’s take a look back and see how retro some of the jerseys (and old some of the players) are!

Shawn - 2025

Tony - 2025 ( we are intentionally ignoring his service time with the A’s!)

Sam - 2023

Ken - 2022

Mills - 2022

Rene - 2019

Brian - 2015 (though he played in the league long before that!)

Duran - 2012

Jeffrey - 2011

Bob - 2006

Joey - 2005

Kevin - 2004

Greg - 2002

Brad -2002

Lance - 2002

Some fun historical notes:

Storm had consecutive killer drafts selecting Joey and Bob in consecutive years. They were two of the league's most dominant players for much of their Storm tenure. 

Some research may need to be done, as Brad made a really big deal going into his last at bat, that this was his first year on the team without a home run. This fact is disputed by the records on statleaders, which claim he had no regular season home runs in 2019, 2021 (covid amended), or 2024. Brad can take this up with the people who enter the stats. 

Kevin has played his final regular season game as a member of the Storm.  His career (as tabulated on statleaders dating back to 2004) has been legendary. 

Career Highs:

AVG - .667 (2016)

OPS: 1.609 (2007)

HR - 9 (2007)

RBI - 55 (2009)

Runs - 64 (2007)

2B - 14 (2006+2007)

Hits - 92 (2007)

Career Totals:

HR - 48

RBI - 684

Runs - 790

2B - 185

3B - 13 

It looks like 2007 was a career year for Kevin, but it was a pleasure having him on the team every year. We know you’re with us in the playoffs, but we thought it was appropriate to honour you after your last regular season game, especially since it was retro jersey night, and nothing screams retro like Kevin, who as we all know has been playing some form of baseball for over 70 years (or something like that!) 

Final Score: Storm 19 - Coulas 14

Storm Jersey’s

2002 - 2002  White

2003 - 2008  Grey

2009 - 2013  Grey Pinstripes

2014 - 2018  Orange

2019 - 2023  Light Grey/Orange

2024 - 2025  Blue/Grey/Orange

Doubleheader Thwarted by Storm

 

Both halves of tonight's doubleheader we're cancelled due to the lack of power. The games will be rescheduled at a later date.

Mothernature wins again!

Tonight's game against the Expo's has been postponed due to the town pulling the permits.

Damn Rain!!!

 

Storm washed away by Storm

Chip Merriweather here to report that the not so merry weather has washed away another Storm game. 

Stormwatch will resume soon.

2024 Scheduled has been updated

 The 2024 Schedule has been updated!

STORM'S FIRST GAME IS SUNDAY MAY 5TH @ 5PM

You can now sign out for any games you know you'll miss. Sign Out Page

You can also download the schedule in PDF form if you please.

You can also download the Storm Schedule in iCal

A Guide to Nicknames

Nicknames have started to become more prevalent in the writeups because of a belief that people thought they were funny and added a certain pizzazz to the writeups. One reader actually commented that he knew a writeup had been created by AI because of a lack of nicknames (that’s an A and an I for artificial intelligence, not an A and a lowercase l for Al). However, after one of our faithful readers commented that he had no idea what was happening in the game writeups anymore because he didn’t know who anyone was, I stopped using them.

Here is a guide to nicknames that have been used in recent writeups, if you would like to go back and cross reference to see who did what when and to whom.

Captain Underpants = Al (last name Stanfield, which is a brand of underwear turned into a name from a popular children’s book series)

Captain Kangaroo = Joey (a joey is a baby kangaroo, and Captain Kangaroo was an old children’s television show)

The Captain = Duran (because he wants to be called the Captain [also because it give us something to write with a K should he strike out again])

The Thane of Whitby = Brad (last name Macdougall and he is a big Shakespeare fan, and in Macbeth  er, I mean The Scottish play, everyone whose name begins with Mac is a thane of something)

Tank Engine = Jeff because his last name is Thomas and Thomas the Tank Engine was a popular TV show (just noticing a lot of references to kids’ TV shows).

Batting Practice = also Jeff, when he is pitching because, well, the other teams hit really well off him. Since he donned a pitching mask, he has also been referred to as Hannibal Lecter and Stanley Ipkis (the character who turns into the Mask in the Jim Carrey film)

Any reference to cereal = Mills because General Mills makes cereal brands

Dr. Seuss/ I am Sam - Sam - there have been some fun poems about Sam. Check them out Starting to contemplate new references to Son of Sam or Samwise Gamgee or Sam McGhee so if you see those, they are all still Sam

Marlborough Man - Brian

Can’t remember any others for now, but if I missed any you can ask and I’ll let you know. 

Also, there might not be a use of nicknames in the future for fear of confusion. 

 

2023 WMSPL Tournament Wrap up

It was a fun, busy weekend that left Storm with many aches and pains. As the team dwindled, Storm was reliant upon some call overs from other teams.

Huge shoutout to the original players sent over by the Bonecrushers. Mike, Chad, and Garry all played well. Chad had the 3rd highest average for the team in the tournament (.682), and Garry had the second most RBIs (12). They also played solid defence.

Resty joined from The Crew after Storm eliminated The Crew and played solid 3rd base while adding consistent offence. And finally, Ben joined Storm to help out after the Great Catcher Controversy of 2023 when Triple Play refused Storm a catcher in the championship game.

As for Storm regulars? Well, Joey and Bob had the best stats on offence. Upon review of scoresheets, it appears that Joey may have hit for the cycle in the Expos game, and was a triple shy of the cycle again in the Triple Play final. Bob hit solidly all weekend.

As for the rest of the team… it wasn’t ideal. Lance popped out to the catcher…twice. And struck out looking. Al tried to make Lance feel less bad and also popped out to the catcher. Jeff started  the tournament on fire going 7 for 10 in the first three games before going 1 for 8 in the semi final and final. Mills was struggling with timing all weekend, often swinging at the last second and with mostly his arms. Storm didn’t hit the way normally do and it caught up to them in the championship game.

It maybe is a good sign that so many players can underperform and Storm can still get to a championship game. Storm is going to have to see if they can overcome injuries to the majority of their young core. Is this the year that having the highest average age in the league will finally catch up to Storm? Only time will tell.

 

May the 4th be with you, and allow the new Season Begin!!

 Let's hope sunnier days are ahead for us this year.

As Tuesday May 2nd game has already been washed away due to rain/Cold weather, lets hope we are able to play our Doubleheader against the Crew on Friday night.

Our postponed game has already been rescheduled:

Friday June 09, 2023

@ 8pm on K2 vs Isotopes

Please signout if you know you won't be able to make it.

New Recruit for the 2047 Edition of the Storm

Congratulation's are in order!!

Duran and his wife Heather, welcomed Magnus Spray, a 7 pound, 11 ounce baby boy on Tuesday May 17th 2022.

Both Mother and Son are doing well, not so sure about the new Dad. lol

Storm is now looking good for another fast, power hitter in about 25 years.

 

2022 Season a week away

A new season is about to commence, a few old faces will not be returning this year, but luckily Al our longest tenured player has decided to come back for at least one more season. We also have three new additions this year. Ken has over 30 years of experience playing slo-pitch and will be a nice addition to the team and the beer circle, Stephen joins our team and brings an abundance of speed to the Storm something we can always use, and Adam also joined the Storm this year after being away from the game for a few years. We look forward to getting to know all our new teammates.

We are starting this season three weeks later than normal, but so far with the weather we have had this spring that's a good thing, I'm so looking forward to some nice consistent warm day's/night's ahead.

I have updated the Storm website to include our sign-out page and our calendar page. Please sign out of all games that you know you will be missing this summer.

We will not be doing a drink schedule this year, so everyone is responsible for there own post game beverages, We have had a few practices, with one more scheduled this week. Team BBQ's, or possibly a Pool Party! will be determined later this spring.

So feel free to reach out if you have any questions, or you need to sign-out of a game or 10.

Here's to a great season ahead, for the most experienced team in the league!

Storm Starts Strong

 Round Robin Game 1 - In which two VERY unlikely home runs are hit.

Storm started strong in game 1. The defense kept the Falcons off the board in the top of the first, and the bats came alive in the bottom. Jeff led off with a single. Duran flew out and Craig got some help from some sloppy defense. Joey, Bob, and Al all singled. Then Brad came up and smacked a three run home run over the fence. Yes, you read that right. Brad hit his first home run since.... Well, statleaders is down and nobody can actually remember when Brad last hit a home run.

The second was more of the same as Storm held the Falcons to two runs, and then batted through the lineup for six runs with Craig knocking in half of them with a three run blast. 

The script flipped in the third. Joey was perched under a fly ball in short left, until he realized he wasn’t under it, and the ball bounced off his glove. The Falcons took advantage this rare miscue and scored six. Storm couldn’t manage any, and all of a sudden it was 11-8 and a tight game.

Storm blanked the Falcons in the fourth, and then had a very strange inning offensively. With runners on first and second, Al hit a hard ground ball. He sauntered to first and stopped until the throw went home, at which point he went to second. Bob, being as aggressive as ever, rounded third, and when he saw the ball bounce away from the catcher, ran home. He took the pitcher and third baseman with him and beat the throw to the plate. At this moment, Al decided he could sneak into third, since there wasn’t anyone covering. One of the many Falcons surrounding home plate saw this, and threw the ball to the short stop who was now attempting to cover third. But the ball got away from them and went to the outfield. Al then sauntered home. This play was so confusing to our scorekeeper that she circled 1B, 2B, 3B, and HR and then eventually wrote a large question mark beside the whole thing. After the dust settled, Storm got five more hits and three more runs for a mercy inning. 

The fifth and sixth inning were fairly uneventful and Storm went into the final frame leading 20-8. In the seventh, however, Storm decided to get generous. After six innings of solid baseball, Storm decided to bobble a few. This led to the Falcons putting up nine runs. They only pulled to within three, so it was never THAT close, but it was close enough to invoke the annoying rule that the home team has to bat if they aren’t winning by seven. It makes you think the league should remove runs for and run differential from time breaking procedures to avoid this type of situation.

Notable Boxscores:

Craig - 5 for 5, HR, triple, 5 RBI, 5 runs 

Joey - 4 for 5, 3 runs, 2 RBI

Al 4 for 5, 7 RBI, 3 runs, single turned inside the park home run via three base error

Brad - 3 for 5, HR, 3 RBI

Jeff - 4 for 5, 2 runs, RBI

Kevin 3 for 4, 2 doubles, 2 RBI, run

Dave - 4 for 4

Cycle Watch: Craig missed the double

In other news….

Storm Award Vote - In which Brad votes for himself and STILL wins most sportsmanlike player

Storm award voting is much like AGT or an American election. In the MVP race, Duran’s heart wrenching story of recovering from a heart attack and then leading the team in eight different offensive categories pulled at the heartstrings of his teammates, and he won the MVP award.

There were calls for a recount after Brad won the MSP award, and then jokingly mentioned how he had voted for himself, or rather his nom de plume, but it called into question the integrity of the vote.

A Covid-19 shortened Year in Review

 Season Writeup

The league had a different format this year which led to less variety and more consistently challenging competition. The rust was apparent early in the season, and Storm definitely had trouble with the doubleheader format as they rarely won game 2 of the doubleheader. We’ll see how that plays out in the playoffs when it will take three consecutive wins to win the tournament on a day with four games. 

Storm had its lowest winning percentage since 2011 when, gasp, Storm had a losing percentage. But most players were just glad to be out at the park playing ball and drinking beer with other people again. 

It was still a good year for Storm, finishing second in the division and leading the league in runs scored. The major difference is that Storm was third last in runs against, which is strange for the team, and will have to be fixed if they expect to go on an extended playoff run.

Team Leaders

AVG. : Duran - .824, Rene - .775, Lance - .694

HR: Duran - 19, Craig - 18, Joey - 11

RBI: Duran - 65, Craig - 58, Joey - 53

Runs: Duran - 62, Joey - 59, Craig - 57

2B: Rene - 20, Bob and Joey - 16

3B: Duran - 6; Bob, Joey, and Jeff - 2

Hits: Duran - 70, Craig - 68, Joey - 62

SLG: Duran - 1.812, Craig - 1.366, Rene - 1.254

OPS: Duran - 2.643, Rene - 2.051, Craig - 2.045

Single Season Records

Percentage based records are easier to maintain in a shortened season, so these records come with an asterisk. But Duran had an incredible season smacking extra base hits almost every time he came up, and broke the single season records for OPS (2.643) and SLG (1.812).

MVP Race

The same player won the Storm team MVP all but three years from 2006-2019. And usually it was pretty much default. But this year there is not a clear winner. Storm MVP candidates will be listed below in alphabetical order to avoid perception of bias.

Craig - Criag had a dominant offensive start to the season. Then someone told him we keep track of statistics, after which he struggled a little. But he still had an excellent offensive season finishing third in the league in home runs and in the top three on Storm in home runs, RBI, runs, hits, slugging percentage, and on base plus slugging. In addition to his excellent offensive season, Craig was arguably Storm’s best defensive player. Not only did he catch nearly anything in the air in his direction, he also made some excellent throws from the outfield, hitting his cutoff throws with precision. If you’re taking both sides of the ball into consideration, Craig has a very strong case for MVP.

Duran - Slo-pitch is primarily an offensive game, so if it’s offense you’re looking for, Duran led the team in eight different categories including every percentage based category and every power based category except doubles. And Duran also has the sentimental  vote going for him. He started the year on the IL after suffering from a heart attack. Disappointed with how the team was playing without him, he started by playing the minimum innings and worked his way up to full games. And he got married this year.

Joey - The team’s perennial MVP had a down year for him, but still had a year that most players would dream about. While he had a rough start and didn’t finish at the top of any percentage based statistic, he finished in the top 3 on the team in home runs, RBI, runs, hits, doubles, and triples. He also plays shortstop, a very demanding position. In his one game in the outfield he demonstrated just how strong his arm is with hard and accurate throws from the outfield to home plate. 

Rene - Rene hit 20 doubles in 19 games, and finished in the top 3 in every percentage based statistic. He led the team in walks. He also played solid defense after sustaining an injury on his first play of the season. 

Most Sportsmanlike Race

Unlike the MVP, Storm has had a different MSP almost every year. And every year the vote is so spread out, that occasionally two votes can get you the trophy. And again, this year there are many players who deserve the award. But is the award limited to players? Or could Scoops Jockovitch, supply sports reporter be eligible? And if he is eligible, is he deserving of votes? Always good for a laugh, even if you might have no idea what happened in the game (or even if a game was played) after reading his writeups. But he’s a good guy. Wears a fedora like nobody’s business and is never short on Cubans (either the cigars or the sandwiches). We have learned far too much about his wedding night, his interest in dominatrixes, and his fetish for monkeys with cymbals. But he’s certainly good for a laugh. Vote Scoops Jockovitch.*

*This message was paid for by Scoops Jockovitch. 

I’m  still waiting for my paycheque Bra… I mean, Scoops. 

Storm Updates!

Both Games against the A's were washed out due to Rain Storms! 

They have been rescheduled to Sunday Sept 12th at 8pm & 9:30pm on K2.

The schedule for the playoff's is now up, please sign out if you will not be able to make any of the games.

We are having a "Storm team only" BBQ (Sorry Everyone Else) after our Playoff games on Saturday Sept 18th at approximately 6pm in the parking lot. We will be having Hamburgers, Hot dogs, Chicken, Pulled Pork, Jerk Chicken,  Potato Salad, Macaroni Salad, and Coleslaw.

Bring your own beverages!

We're Back!!!

 

With Covid-19 restrictions ready to lift, the WMSPL will finally be able to get the season under way July 7th..

The Website has been updated with the 2021 Storm Schedule.

If anyone needs their email forwarding changed please let me know. Or if you have any questions please reach out.

Anyway, lets go out and have a great year not staying at home. 

Whitby Men's Slo-Pitch League still going strong 40 years on

Columnist Taylor Retter provides brief history of league

Forty years ago, a loaf of bread cost 30 cents according to Statistics Canada, the Happy Meal made its debut, and the Whitby Men’s Slo-Pitch League (WMSPL) played its first game.

The league was formed in 1979 with four teams, which represented the subdivisions they supported. They were Otter Creek, Pringle Creek, College Downs, and West Lynde.

Now, there are 12 teams and more than 180 players who meet up 38 times a season to catch up and play ball.

The season features a league tournament and is capped off by playoffs and an awards banquet.

But for some players, this league is about more than just showing up to see who can run the fastest, or hit the most home runs.

George Clay, pitcher, is the longest-tenured player in the WMSPL, and has been dutifully playing for 33 years.

He first gave it a shot after hearing from some friends about a league that was close to home and well-organized — but stayed for the quality of play and the connections he made.

“I’ve made a number of friends in the league. It doesn’t matter what team I play against; I have friends on every team in the league at this point,” Clay said.

And those connections span beyond just casual post-game conversations or friendly chirps across the field.

“One of the great pleasures I get is that both of my boys play on the team with me,” Clay said. “A number of the players on the team I’ve coached in their minor careers, and it’s a family. That’s what we say about these teams, they’re family.” 

And while he says he only signs one-year contracts, Clay is waiting for his body to tell him to retire and plans to continue to play as long as he can with his friends and family … much to the chagrin of every team they have to play against.

He has nothing but praise for the league and wishes it success in the next 40 years.

“I hope it continues to grow the way it has, that it continues to be a fun place for people to enjoy the game. They just have to follow the pattern of what they’ve been doing for the last 40 years, and I have no doubt the success will continue.”

And how has the league changed since his first game?

“It’s gotten a lot younger, a lot more competitive. Everyone plays to win, but if you don’t win you can come back and play the next night and it’s all good,” he said.

And the players have been coming back, as evidenced by the fact the average player in the league has 8.6 years of WMSPL experience, and the league average age is 43.8. The Storm takes the trophy for longest average tenure, with 13.9 years, which makes sense considering their average player age is 47.

This year's teams were supported by: Awakened Life Chiropractic and Wellness Centre, Swiss Chalet, Broadway, All Organic GreenThumb, Hanet Plastics, IG Wealth, RE/MAX Crossroads Realty, Creative Harbour, Mantis Investigation Agency, CMD Electric Ltd. and Sidewalk360.

This year everyone received custom hoodies and the annual year-end banquet was elevated by a live band, “Two for the Show,” as players celebrated the 40th anniversary of the league.

Are you looking to be a part of the next 40 years of Whitby slo-pitch history? Head to www.wmspl.com for more information or to join a team for the 2020 season. Who knows, you might just become part of the next playoff championship team.

Written by: Taylor Retter who is a Carleton University journalism graduate and daughter of a player in the Whitby Men’s Slo-Pitch League. Written for Durhamregion.com

Storm Season Summary

Storm had another first place finish. Unlike last year, which came right down to the last game of the season, this one was wrapped up pretty early on. This could be bad for Storm as their last two games of the season were pretty pathetic. Sloppy defense and lackadaisical hitting was problematic. They’ll have to turn it around if they hope to be successful in the playoffs. While their season record is impressive (31-6-1), they lost twice each to the 2^nd through 4^th place teams (one of the losses to Broadway was in the mid-season tournament).

The theme of the season was defaults. Storm had five default victories, which helped with the record but hurt people trying to put up individual statistics.

As a team; Storm led the league in runs scored – 719 (tied with the A’s), and fewest runs against 415 (though this statistic as aided by the five forfeit victories).

The two new players were solid additions to the team. They both hit very well and played solid defense. As you can see below, their names appear all over the Storm leader boards. We’ll see if they are enough to help get Storm  win the playoff championship.

Team Leaders:

AVG. – Joey - .807, Rene - .720, Jeff -.688

HR: Joey – 22, Craig – 15, Duran, Lance, Bob – 12

RBI: Joey – 86, Duran – 74, Lance – 73

Hits : Joey – 92, Jeff – 88, Lance – 84

Runs : Bob – 74, Joey – 72, Duran – 69

Doubles: Jeff – 21, Duran – 20, Rene – 19

Triples : Duran – 6, Bob – 5, Jeff and Craig – 4

OBP: Joey - .792, Rene - .716, Craig - .689

SLG.: Joey – 1.570, Rene – 1.440, Craig – 1.333

OPS: Joey – 2.362, Rene – 2.156, Craig – 2.022

Individual Season Bests:

Kenny – Doubles – 10

Lance – OPS – 1.756

Brian – doubles -- 2

Bob – Walks – 12

Al – triples – 2

Jeff –  AVG -.688, doubles – 21, triples – 4, SLG. -.961, OPS. – 1.642