| 1998-2003
Persistence
was only one of the reasons we are still around today. In fact,
it all comes back to the fact that Creighton and Carmichael were
still and probably always will be "stat studs." The league
had given them so many numbers to cruch, to analyze, to enjoy. And
this field DID have potential. They knew it. They just had to tinker
with the rules and hope that they could bring some of the talent
back to ensure not only a fun game, but a competitive game.
The
end result was 1998, at the time the greatest season ever. We pushed
the mound back a couple feet and took away a fielder. We brought
back Holmberg, Carriere, and Holt, and on top of that, added Jason
Eberhardt and wily old-timer Greg Creighton. We played more games
then ever before (1298 total ABs, more than double that of 1996),
with nine players crossing the 100 AB barrier. Records were broken.
Scott Carmichael set new records in ABs, runs, hits, RBIs, HRs,
Ks, and ERA.
The
very first "Holy Whites" logo led to some unhappy
fans |
Oh
yes, and we began the website you see right now.
The
website was a marvel...at the time. Looking back it today makes
us cringe, but Terry Creighton hammered out an inspirational area
for us to post stats, compare players, and best of all, talk trash.
1998
website banner
In
1999, we wanted to keep growing. On the field, we implemented our
first-ever playoff system and dubbed it "The Series at the
Sac." It was an 8-man, 4-team tournament. Matt Holmberg and
Joey Creighton took on Scott Carmichael and Mark Montgomery while
Terry Creighton and James Vassar took on Jeff Morrison and Greg
Creighton. Matt and Joey would come out on top over Greg and Jeff
and were announced as the first-ever league champions. We also played
a ton of games to GET to the playoffs.
The
league featured 2083 ABs, and that number does NOT include the playoffs
or the first-ever All-Star Weekend. The first weekend "for
the talent" featured Joey Creighton, Terry Creighton, and Greg
Creighton taking on James Vassar, Scott Carmichael, and Mark Montgomery.
It also featured the first-ever Rookie Game, pitting James and Jeff
Boian together opposite Eric Christensen and Jeff Kragel. The first-ever
Homerun Derby? Oh yes, Joey won it, the first of what is so far
four consecutive titles.
On
the web, we grew by being very very immature. We talked trash now
not only to each other but to opposing leagues around the country.
Why? For one, we wanted attention, not unlike the kid having a tantrum
at the grocery store. Two, we felt we weren't being "respected"
because we didn't use the "official" ball or play by the
"official" rules. The site itself was getting better and
better by the day.
1999
website banner
Year
2000 saw us take a step back from our monster schedule in 1999.
Less games were played, but we still had ourselves a Series at the
Sac, which featured Joey Creighton (again) and rookie Mike Walsh
coming out on top over Greg Creighton and Scott Carmichael.
The
website though saw a big shift in quality. This was also the first
year we registered for this domain name. Before, we were at http://www.personalweb.sunset.net/~jandt.
That address still points you to our current site.
Donnie
Jeffcoat and Omar Gooding (Wild and Crazy Kids) wrote regular columns
for us, and induced a lot more trash-talking then ever before. Some
people even quit because it was getting so bad.
On
a lighter note, here's Josh Bartholomew with his famous post game
interview after the lone day in which he played. He played in three
games on April 22nd, tossed 3 IP, and gave up 17 runs. He also went
1-16 with 10 Ks. His one hit? A grandslam off Scott Carmichael.
Yeah. You could feel the attention drift towards him during the
course of the interview. By the end of the conversation, he has
his own audience. After this interview, we never saw him again.
Part 1 || Part
2
2000
website banner (featuring the famous "Eric Christensen
wearing a bike helmet" shot)
Team
play finally came about in 2001 and it was perhaps our second biggest
step as a league, outside of moving to The Sac. Before, players
played on random teams and picked up individual wins or losses.
In 2001, five set teams were formed and would do battle. Three of
those teams would make the Series at the Sac playoffs, and the All-Star
Weekend would remain as well. The result was a massive interest
that saw many many games played. The total number of ABs, before
counting playoffs or All-Star Weekend, was 2889, over 800 more than
ever before.
The
2001 Playoffs saw the Horsemen (Creighton, Yoder, Christensen, and
Wattenberg) taking on Wiffolution (Sylvester, Evans, Morrison, and
Kendall) go at it in an awesome best-of 3 series, winner heading
to the finals to face the Holy Whites (Carmichael, Walsh, Byrd,
and Stuempfig) in a best-of-5 series. The Horsemen won the semifinal
series, then last to the Whites in the finals in four games.
As
far as the website was concerned, we just kept building. We added
a fantasy league and sparked a rivalry with a SF-based league called
the Ken Griffey Junior Wiffle Foam Ball League (KGJWFBL). That rivalry
has since led to trips for both leagues to the other's locale and
many many many dominating games on our part. All in fun though!
Last
season was just that. There were over 1000 less ABs than there were
in 2001 thanks to many bad players and many good players who lost
interest because of playing with many bad players. Still, the Horsemen
came out on top of the Series at the Sac, defeating the Whites in
the finals (who beat Wiffolution in the semis).
The
website kept getting better. We added "2k2 Pads," threw
together another season of fantasy wiffleball, and incited a riot
in the message board with Moby fans. Good times.
Which
leads us to now. Season #10. The Commish has promised this to be
the best season ever. You might wonder why he'd make such a proclamation.
You'll find out soon enough.
1994-1996
1997
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