When the Mid-Hudson Valley Senior Softball League meets, dugout chatter swirls. Not with tipping pitches, but top doctors for cataract surgery. In the Hudson Valley’s popular 60+ men’s league, courtesy runners are welcomed, and stretching is necessary. Players compare bruises – and missing teeth – from sharp grounders in between at-bats. They share notes of internal procedures and stents, adjusting the game they love to keep up. Celebrations of hard hits and smooth players – and the less frequent dugout jeering — are abound Monday, Tuesday, and Wednesday mornings in Poughkeepsie. After all, this is softball.

From spring’s first bloom to late September, the boys (and girls) of summer have ruled Poughkeepsie’s diamond since the dog days of 1996.

What began three decades ago with four squads has grown to 23 teams across three leagues. Then, the cutoff age was 55. Now players are allowed to join MHV Softball in their 60th year, after a stint on the ever-growing waitlist. From the list, fellows are graded on performance. The “A” grade signifies the highest-touted products for the yearly draft. Comprehensive statistics, taken by players’ wives, retired league members, or others.

Based on hitting rather than fielding, these numbers are, because most solid contact is scored as a hit when a player reaches. The best-kept stats are useful for each year’s draft, as players are selected to rosters. It’s very much a balanced league, according to nine-year league veteran Tony Scaduto. The talent is well-spread, and sportsmanship comes standard with every pick.

The most talented players are never the ones to say it out loud, like big Joe Broun, who picked up the game after high school and military service. whose baseball talents took him as far as Japan following a tryout with the New York Mets. Like others in MHV Softball, Broun plays in the travel leagues with peers in the 80+ age division, traveling as far as Florida, Cape Cod, and Syracuse to compete. “

Like TaxBrakes manager Mike Spinelli. These days, he brandishes a sling, balancing rotator cuff surgery recoup with managerial duties with the TaxBrakes team. And still, with a brandished sling and old-school managerial vocabulary, Spinelli encourages his guys to get hits by all means.

Much like the coveted MLB tryout, MHV Senior Softball takes pride in being the real deal. Quality, quantity, and prevention of injury. And heaven help any fielder who misses their cutoff man.

Monday, Tuesday, and Wednesday slates are packed with eight innings and coolers alternating electrolytes and six-pack pick-me-ups. The 23 teams are sponsored by local businesses, including Plattekill’s J&N Carpentry, Gold’s Gym, and a cluster of funeral homes.

Nearly 200 players of this league, many grew up with the sport in some capacity. Stickball under city streetlights and baseball as young men. “Probably every guy that plays, similar to me, grew up playing the game,’ said Tony Scaduto, who plays for TaxBrakes and J&N Carpentry. “It’s basically in our blood.”

There is no showboating in this league. The desire to win is certainly there, as well as the urge to play as much as one’s body can allow. When fielding or running isn’t an option anymore, guys will come to take batting practice, to hang out with former teammates. Many have shared a field in high school, college, and earlier summer league days. Others play well into their 80s and 90s, the latter, like founders Lou DiCicco and Howie Roth. Often, pickup basketball is a means of cardio practice. Squeezing in a weekly batting cage session is similarly not required, but well enjoyed. Shared along with doctors’ notes and prescription tips are stories of the past. Camaraderie built on shared military or professional experiences, sharing memories of years spent traveling through cities, countries, spreading the game that men hold a lifelong love for.

More than bragging rights and the winner’s circle, the league’s best team also gets an embroidered windbreaker. Practical and personalized to feature the player’s name and team name, it’s the senior league letterman. For love of the game lives here.