If the size of the Friday crowd is any indication of what to expect all weekend at the 7th Annual Blade Ball and Bags Tournament, it promises to be a great party. The encampment down the right-field line would indicate that some younger people are planning to dig in and spend the weekend at the Moose. And that is something that the late, great Blade Hess would love. This ain’t softball as a pastime….it is softball as a commitment. When we rolled into the parking lot, we were both shocked at the number of people there at 6 PM. I mean, on the Saturday of The Blade, parking can get a bit involved….but on Friday night?? That’s fantastic!!
It has taken about 15 years for me to personally go from knowing 90% of the players to knowing 20% of the players. Yes, time is the great neutralizer. And the game has changed significantly. I don’t pretend to know anything about who is playing with who or who the big bangers are. I know the older guard, and guys who are the sons (and grandsons) of guys I may have played with or against. But a strange thing happened on the way to the Weekend of the Blade…I actually looked forward to a KTown softball game….2 of em actually. That has not happened for me in well over a decade. It has taken a while, but the “ball” side of this celebration has made it from games of nostalgia with some competition thrown in…to an old-school “kick that guy’s ass then party with him after” KTown weekend throwdown. I know I have Steve Hess (and an army of Dons and Donnas) to thank for that.
And then it was on to Sunnyside as Steve Hess would insist. And he wouldn’t insist you go…but he sure would insist he went….and you’d go because you knew, if nothing else, Blade would be there. And as huge as this softball tournament is becoming….you knew everyone would be there Friday night. Sunnyside was his place, and the people there were his extended family. It is only fitting that the party is strong at the park and equally strong at Sunnyside. No tribute to the man is complete without showing love to The Side. We parked in front of Wy-Swa-ki Chiropractic Clinic, hammered our favorite dine-in Za in KTown…believe it or not, cheese and black olives…had some drinks and closed out the Friday of the Blade at his home stadium.
So if you are reading this Saturday morning…finish your coffee and head down to The Moose. This is the day to see and be seen. This is the day to raise some serious funds for a beloved member of our cast. This is a day to celebrate the life and legacy of the great Steve “Blade” Hess
